An early exit from the 2013 Region XI Tournament has motivated head coach Rafael Martinez and the returning group of sophomores, highlighted by All-American Juan Carrillo (Cordoba, Spain/CES Lope de Vega) to bring the Marshalltown Community College soccer team back into the national spotlight.
"We have a group of sophomores," said Martinez, "that are very eager to develop a team that can be successful. This team is very inspired to accomplish great things for the program."
The Tigers posted one of the best regular season campaigns in program history in 2013, finishing the year with a 14-3-1 mark, good enough for a second place finish in the Iowa Community College Athletic Conference (ICCAC). MCC's hopes of claiming its fourth Region XI title were cut short, however, as Dakota County Technical College knocked out the Tigers in the opening round.
"Our returning sophomores are coming off a very successful season, but not reaching their goal last year has created an emptiness inside of them, giving them the drive to work harder this year," Martinez exclaimed.
Carrillo became the sixth All-American in program history, and just the second MCC freshman to be honored after earning a second team selection in 2013. Carrillo recorded 41 points in his rookie campaign, the seventh-best single season mark in the Tigers' history. The Spain native looks to continue to climb the MCC record books as his 13 assists last season already rank ninth in school history.
"Juan arrived at a very good level physically and mentally this year. He has taken care of himself and is motivated to be a part of a successful program. Even after a strong freshman season, he stuck to his commitment to stay at Marshalltown and get a quality education while improving his game."
Carrillo spent the summer playing for the GPS Portland Phoenix, a member of the Premier Development League, the top-level men's amateur soccer league in the United States, joining former Tiger and 2012 All-American Javier Lopez, who played for the Des Moines Menace of the PDL.
Joining Carrillo in the leadership role will by Jordan Gilmore (Portadown, Northern Ireland, UK/Craigavon) and Marquell Comer (Tallahassee, FL/Lincoln) who return for their second season after combining for 28 starts on defense in 2013.
"We took a big hit on defense, losing a few key components from last year, but Jordan and Marquell provide the experience that is necessary to build a strong backfield. We have a strong incoming group of freshman on defense that will look to our two returning sophomores to pave the way."
Joining Carrillo up front will be a talented crop of freshman that Martinez hopes will compliment the All-American and provide multiple styles of play from the forward position.
"The forward position is the deepest position we have. We have players that can support Juan up front and draw attention away from him, but also be able to incorporate scoring chances themselves."
Martinez looks to freshman Isaac Moore (Des Moines, IA/Herbert Hoover) and Charles Huberty (Champlin, MN/Prairie Seeds) among the talented group to provide a big impact for the Tigers, noting their early success in preseason training.
After losing two primary starters over the last two seasons in Alex Galvan and Ralph Duopu, Martinez turns to veteran Celes Vilar (Las Palmas, Spain/Claret-Corazon) to provide stability on both ends of the ball. "Celes has a coach's brain. The team will look to him to utilize that knowledge efficiently and carry us in the middle."
Martinez will look to a number of players to provide valuable minutes alongside Vilar. "We are extremely talented with the ball at the midfield position. We have to work to make sure we take care of responsibilities without the ball. As opposed to past years, our midfield core will be possession oriented but will be able to provide flexibility on both ends of the ball."
The Tigers return two veteran goalkeepers in Julian Pena (Muscatine, IA/Muscatine) and Andrew Waterfall (Brandon, SD/Brandon Valley). Freshman Kwan Tolbert (Conway, AR/Conway) will compete with the two sophomores for the starting spot.
"We are fortunate to have such a strong group of goalkeepers. We have two quality returners and a motivated freshman that brings intensity everyday."
The Tigers will be challenged early and often throughout the season, as Martinez noted the competitive nonconference schedule along with the always-demanding path through the ICCAC. "We start off against two quality opponents right away in Coffeyville Community College and Johnson County Community College." Johnson County, the host of this weekend's JCCC Showcase, enters the season ranked No. 20 in the preseason NJCAA rankings.
"This is one of our toughest nonconference schedules in recent memory," Martinez added. "We understand the difficulty of playing in Region XI, and we want to be prepared once conference play begins." MCC will also take on Oakton Community College, a team that received votes in the preseason rankings, as the Tigers' home opener on August 29.
As for the conference slate, Iowa Western Community College proves to be the perennial powerhouse again, receiving the No. 1 preseason ranking after posting an undefeated National Championship run in 2013. "We know Western is the team to beat, but we also have to remember that their only loss in the last two seasons was to Marshalltown."
Overall, the ICCAC will provide a challenge top to bottom. "Year after year the average level of conference play improves. The level of soccer here in Iowa speaks very well about our conference. You can expect some upsets this year, some surprises throughout the league."
For the fourth consecutive year, Martinez will be flanked by the same two assistant coaches on the sidelines. Creighton Jenness, the team's goalkeeper's coach and former Tiger standout enters his fifth season under Martinez while Allie Osmundson enters her fourth season.
"Maintaining the same coaching staff over the past four seasons has been special for each of us," Martinez added. "We know each other's strengths and weaknesses, and it is a big asset for the entire program to have all three of us together."
The anticipation for the season is high, but the expectations exceed all else in 2014.
