This season, the girls’ soccer team welcomes a new but familiar face; Mr. Ray. With over a decade of experience coaching high school football in the 5A division and several years of coaching at the collegiate level, he takes on this new role with confidence, his mission going far beyond the field. 

“My goals are secondary to the goals communicated to me by each player.” Coach Ray said. “My responsibility is to challenge them every day to strive toward those goals by setting high expectations and holding them accountable to the standard.”

He emphasizes understanding both personal and team goals and choosing captains based on the team’s future growth. “I view every player on my team as a leader in their own way,” he said. “I’m fortunate to coach a team full of developing leaders, and I feel blessed to be called Coach Ray again. It’s truly where my heart belongs.” 

For Coach Ray, success is not defined by the scoreboard. “Success isn’t just measured in wins and losses,” Coach Ray added. “True success is found along the journey toward a goal.”

He reflected on coaching championship teams and rebuilding different programs. “Some of my most meaningful experiences/successful teams were with teams that started with losing records, aka rebuilding a program team.” 

He also emphasizes that “those teams build the foundation for future success, persevering through the growing pains, and I remain closest to those players. Those are the teams that come back to visit, keep in touch, and do amazing things in life.”  

To Coach Ray, success begins with team chemistry. “A team that respects, encourages, and befriends that player is destined for greatness as long as it’s genuine.”    

The foundation of Coach Ray’s program is built around the principle, “team over me.” Coach Ray highlights that “nothing is more important than the team. Every practice, every game, every decision should put the team before the individual.”

This belief is to be followed by upperclassmen and captains. He added that “captains serve as servant leaders and a link between the head coach, players, and officials.” 

Coach Ray’s long-term goal for this program is to be a “program built on togetherness, unity, and the ‘Team Over Me’ mindset.” He says that “it’s incredibly difficult to beat a team where every player works for the benefit of the team and for each individual on the roster.” He also hopes to add consistent conditioning, skill development, and team-building programs to strengthen the team more and more every year. 

Despite only being weeks into the season, he is already very impressed with his players and the dedication they have. Something his players might not know is “how much I already care for them and their successes this season because their individual and team qualities have already impressed me in the 3 short weeks I have been their coach.”    

When asked what Coach Ray’s favorite part of coaching soccer is, his answer was simple. “I would say the players.  They are each amazing in their own way. I also admire their competitive spirit.”

For motivation, Coach Ray has many favorite quotes. But this one from Rocky Balboa is one of his personal favorites. “The world ain’t all sunshine and rainbows. It’s a very mean and nasty place, and I don’t care how tough you are, it will beat you to your knees and keep you there permanently if you let it. You, me, or nobody is gonna hit as hard as life. But it ain’t about how hard you hit; it’s about how hard you can get hit and keep moving forward. How much can you take and keep moving forward? That’s how winning is done!”