Luis Sanchez is trying to win a state title at every high school soccer program in Greenwood.
Granted, there are only two teams — Pillow Academy and Delta Streets Academy — but it would still be quite a feat for Sanchez, a member of the Mustangs’ first-ever boys soccer championship squad back in 2016. Now an assistant coach with the crosstown rival Lions, the 21-year-old is aiming to add another ring to his collection.
“Our main goal this season is a state title,” said Sanchez, a recent college graduate along with first-year Lions head coach Connor Altman. Sanchez graduated from Mississippi Delta Community College in May while Altman earned his degree from Mississippi State.
“We’re a good team,” Sanchez said. “We learn from each other. We don’t have five or 10 years of experience like some of these other coaching staffs, but we love the game. That’s the main thing.”
Sanchez grew up spending weekends at his family’s restaurant and sneaking out to watch adult league soccer games at nearby Wagner Park on Sundays. He lived in Itta Bena, though, without a soccer program at Leflore County.
So before his junior year, Sanchez transferred to Pillow, the only local school with a soccer team at the time.
“I thought I wasn’t going to fit in because it was different,” Sanchez said. “I was going from public school to private school, and you hear a lot of things about private schools. But when I went in, the guys welcomed me with open arms.”
After winning a Division II North soccer title at Pillow Academy in 2016, Luis Sanchez is aiming to add another ring to his collection as an assistant coach at Delta Streets Academy. The Lions (6-4, 3-0 Division III North) are in prime position to capture their first district title in Sanchez’s first year as an assistant coach.
After making it to the second round of the playoffs as a junior, Sanchez went all the way as a senior under the direction of first-year head coach Serafin Simon, a star in the adult league Sanchez used to idolize. Sanchez and Simon will face off on opposite sidelines for the first time at Chazzy Moor Field on Feb. 11, but they remain close despite different uniforms.
“I always ask him for advice because he knows these guys so much better than I do,” Sanchez said. “He’s been coaching them since they were 8 years old. When we have a problem like what to do or what formation or what player plays this and that, I always ask him for advice.”
“He is very dedicated to the game, loves the game and has a passion for it,” Simon said. “He knows the game well and the guys are lucky to have a state champ player on their side. I know he will tell and show them how hard they need to work in order to get that first ring.”
Like Simon, Sanchez says that many talented players are priced out of the sport because public schools in the Delta rarely offer soccer.
“There’s a lot of talent around here, but unfortunately there are no soccer teams in public schools,” Sanchez said. “There are a lot of guys who might not be the best at it, but they can be developed into it. It not only helps soccer, but it helps football and basketball because of the footwork and running.”
However, he did say that Delta Streets is helping to solve this issue.
“Now with Delta Streets, it’s more affordable for parents to pay for it,” Sanchez said. “This upcoming season, we’re going to have more kids coming in. They see their friends playing for Delta Streets and they want to be a part of it, too.”
With the Lions (6-4, 3-0 Division III North) in prime position to capture their first district crown, Sanchez’s right hand may soon be heavy with hardware if they can continue their current trend.
•Contact Riley Overend at 581-7237 or roverend@gwcommonwealth.com. Follow @OverendOut on Twitter.
