Shortly after the turkey is put away and the pumpkin pie is polished off, a group of loyal Cabrillo High School Conquistadores—husbands, fathers, and grandfathers—lace up, suit up, and show up for the annual Cabrillo Alumni Soccer Game. For nearly 40 years, former and current Cabrillo varsity soccer players have taken a break from the holiday merriment to pass, dribble, score, and relive memories.
This year is no different. On Nov. 28 the alumni soccer game will take place at the Cabrillo High School soccer field in the absence of media, large crowds, or audience applause. Instead, it will be a game that takes place simply for the love of the game, for the sake of friendship, and to honor good times past.
Anthony Yatsko, who has been organizing the event for several years now, said the event has been taking place since the early 1980s. Last year Yatsko said the big game attracted 35 players along with eight seniors who had recently graduated. He expects more this year.
“Obviously word has gotten out about the success of this event so we’re hoping that more alumni will come out this year,” he said.
Yatsko is a 1986 alumni and a 1996 varsity coach. He said he tries to organize the event around Thanksgiving or Christmas each year. “So it’s always nice to get the old guys together. Some of us have put on a few extra pounds but it’s always nice to get out and have some fun together,” he said.
Steve Kranz, a 1981 Cabrillo graduate, was one of those players who has participated on and off for several years to meet up with old friends and to test out his skills.
Though they didn’t play together in school, Yatsko and Kranz have plenty of sports plays to relive through the alumni games they’ve played together over the years. So on a recent day of reminiscing about their alumni soccer games, it didn’t take long before the conversation focused on highlights of last year’s game.
“Well, I was waiting for us to get a PK [penalty kick] and see who was going to run up and take it,” Yatsko said, almost out of the blue.
“Me. I’m not going to shy away just because I missed one penalty kick. Come on. I missed one. I’ve made many others,” Kranz said.
“I think the rule of thumb is oldest captain on the field takes it,” said Yatsko with a nod to Kranz’s age. “I guarantee if there’s a PK in the first two minutes of the game you’re running up there.”
All joking aside, Kranz said he likes getting out on the field and playing the game with all the other alumni, however, a big part of the reason he played last year was to play with his old teammate and Cabrillo soccer star alumni Blair Hirzel. “I decided to play this year because Tony [Yatsko] grabbed me by the neck,” he said jokingly. “No I played the last couple of years, but Hirzel came out. Me and Hirzel were like this through high school, and the soccer team. So I had come out and—I don’t even know if I threw a pass to him—I hope I threw a pass to him. That was one of the reasons I came out to play,” Kranz said.
Kranz started playing soccer when he was 10, before there was even a youth AYSO league in Lompoc. He said that though he played through his first two years of college, he stopped playing after that.
He said one of his best memories is when he was a freshman and the team was 0 and 14. His team helped build the program up until he graduated in 1981. That year was the first year the team was undefeated and won league, he said. The alumni game is a chance for him to get out on the field and play the game that was such a big part of his youth. “It’s a good time to get out and have fun and see if I’ve got any skills left,” he said.
This year he won’t get to play Hirzel in the alumni game because his old teammate can’t make it due to family obligations. But last year Hirzel, a 1982 alumnus, commented on what brought him out to play that year.
“It’s been four years since I actually touched the ball. I’m a little slower and out of shape. It’s like riding a bike, you know. I love the sport and I can still pass and I can still dribble, maybe not as quickly as I used to. But I still can,” Hirzel said last year.
Yatsko said that he expects to lose a few alumni, like Hirzel, this year because the game is held during the holiday. “So we’re probably going to lose a handful. We’re probably going to gain a handful. But at the end of the day we hope it’s a positive event,” he said.
And in general it is. The event is more than just a way for athletes to relive their glory days. In 2014 the game raised more than $1,700 for the Cabrillo High School soccer team so they can buy new uniforms this year. “Hopefully it will be as successful as it was last year. It will still be a great day,” Yatsko said.
Last year was also significant for another reason: It was named the Nathan Young, CHS Memorial Alumni Soccer Game in honor of Nathan Young, who died in a tragic accident in 2001. Young was captain of the Cabrillo soccer team his senior year in 1999. The varsity coach at the time, Greg Eisen, decided to dedicate the 2014 game to Young, and a plaque was created in his honor.
At that game Roderic Schmidt, Cabrillo coach from 1983 to1995, said it’s that unity and the shared memories that make the alumni game what he called “incredible.”
“There are so many players that come back and you know, probably the worse part about it is they don’t look 17 anymore. So sometimes I don’t quite remember them. Beyond that just seeing them, talking to them has been really cool. And it is every year,” Schmidt said.
Yatsko also said that the magic of the game is the combination of seeing old friends while supporting the team.
“It gives them the chance to not only see friends but also play a game that we all love and enjoy, even if we’re not as fast as we used to be,” Yatsko said.
Yatsko said any Cabrillo varsity alumnus is welcome to participate. The uniforms are $20 and that includes game play. For alumni who bought the uniform last year, it’s $10 to play. All the money goes right back to the soccer program for new equipment or uniforms or to help pay for tournament travel.
GET YOUR KICKS
The Cabrillo High School Alumni Soccer Game takes place Saturday, Nov. 28. Check-in is at 9:30 a.m. with an odd vs. even game at 10 a.m. and varsity vs. alumni game at 11 a.m. Cost is $20 or $10 with last year’s game shirt. Visit the Cabrillo Boys Soccer Alumni Facebook page for more info.
Editor Shelly Cone can be reached at scone@santamariasun.com.
This article appears in Nov 12-19, 2015.