When Chayden Feist took the position as SHS soccer coach in 2014, he did not know how important soccer would become to his life and the fans. He would soon find out.

  The Yellow Jackets soccer team had a record breaking year in school history last season with a 15-0-2 record. Coach Feist hopes to repeat that record and move on to state.

  “I knew that the sport meant a great deal to a lot of people and that this sport was gaining more and more attention world wide. After my first year of coaching jv soccer, I found out why,” Feist said. “I will be a soccer fan for the rest of my life.”

      Feist, head coach of the boys soccer team and a history teacher at Henderson Junior High, is thrilled with last year’s performance.

   “It was great because for the first time in school history, we were the undefeated district champions. We also made it to the regional tournament for the first time,” Feist said.

  Their last game was played against Life Oak Cliff (LOC) who had 21-0-2.

  At the game, LOC scored leading the game with 1-0 but Aaron Veloz, now a senior, scored to tie. On the second half of overtime, LOC scored ending the Jackets season.

The  Yellow Jacket’s varsity team started the season with a pre-game against South West on January third and tied 1-1.

   Feist thinks that there is a great opportunity to repeat last year’s performance and has managed to study the game and create better opportunities for the athletes this year by preparing them physically and mentally.

  “We will run 24, 40’s for conditioning, take soccer preparation quizzes weekly and execute practice like we are the next state champions. We will learn how to behave like honorable members of society and watch our mistakes on huddle and fix them in practice. This year I have already started implementing new drills and started using new equipment. I think that these are the little things that will give us the edge against fellow opponents,” Feist said.

“I am a firm believer that mental toughness is the foundation to all superior teams. To help develop this mentality, I make sure my team and individual players know how good I think they are. We have outlawed all BCD (Blame,Complain, Defend.) Players will take ownership of their mistakes and use those learning opportunities as times to grow.”

  The athletes expectations are high and very positive this year.

Tino Rocha, a senior, has grown as a leader for the game and believes there is an opportunity to go to state.

  “I believe we have the opportunity to go far because of the new people that arrive.They are stepping up and getting on the varsity level. The experienced guys such as me, Aaron Veloz and Ivan Cabrera have to push them,” Rocha said.

  “Three things could take us to state: work, perseverance and strength,” Rocha said.

    Feist knows what to expect this season against other teams and acknowledges district will be a challenge.

  “We are playing some really great opponents this pre-season. I hope that when we get down, we battle,” Feist said.

  Abilene Wylie will be another one of challengers that the Yellow Jackets have to go through.

  “This year we are ranked #5 in 4A division 1 and Abilene is ranked #3. This should be a great indicator of how good we are,” Feist said.

  Even though they will play a challenging team, Feist has a lot of hope and appreciates what the team does out on the field.

  “I believe the team that wants to win the most and prepares the hardest is destined to win. I appreciate their passion for the game of soccer,” Feist said. “These kids just love to play the game.”