The league is different, but the goal is always the same for the Casa Grande High School girls soccer team.
“Our goal is to win it,” Casa coach Vinnie Cortezzo said.
The Gauchos move into the Vine Valley Athletic League with the same intentions they had during their tenure in the North Bay League and, before that, when they were in the Sonoma County League.
Cortezzo admitted he doesn’t know a lot about his new league opponents.
“It is definitely a change,” he said. “We’ve played Petaluma and Sonoma, but we’ve never played the Napa schools. We don’t know what to expect.”
Casa Grande goes into the VVAL with what Cortezzo says is “a nice balance of young players and veterans.”
Leading the way will be senior veterans Mia Santander, Joycelen Garcia and Megan Hanley.
They form the nucleus for a team that could make another run for a North Coast Section playoff spot.
Although only sophomores, three other key Gauchos are experienced, having starred for Casa as sophomores.
Expected to be among the Gaucho leaders are goalkeeper Rebecca Lewis, forward Erin Stanley and midfielder Marisol Vargas.
Soccer continues to be a popular participant sport at Casa Grande. Cortezzo reports that there were 36 girls trying out for the varsity and about 50 players total out for the varsity and junior varsity teams.
Cortezzo is happy to move into the new league, coming off a final year in the NBL where every match of the season’s second half was a struggle to make the NCS playoffs.
“Our whole season last year felt like it was the playoffs,” Cortezzo said.
The league change comes just a year after most Redwood Empire schools switched soccer from a fall to a winter sport.
“A lot has changed over the last couple of years,” Cortezzo noted. “I’m excited over the league change. I’m looking forward to playing new teams.”
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