Daily Pilot High School Athlete of the Week: Alfonso Pineda
Steve Virgen
The question that is usually heard when Costa Mesa High’s Alfonso
Pineda plays soccer is, “Are you sure this kid is a freshman?”
Pineda, a ninth-grade starting forward for the Mustangs, has been
using his quickness to overcome first-year jitters and his talent to
vault past the competition.
“At first I was scared about varsity soccer,” said Pineda, who is
5-foot-5. “I was thinking that there would be some big guys. It’s great
to be one of the small people. That fear went away. Throughout the games,
I started to gain more confidence. (Starting on varsity) is going to help
me out a lot in the future.”
Pineda assuredly gained confidence from his performance in the
Magnolia Tournament last week. His hat trick was the exclamation point of
the Mustangs’ 7-0 victory over Troy in the title game, as Mesa repeated
as champions Dec. 28. The day before, Pineda went for two goals and one
assist in a 7-0 win over John Glenn of Norwalk. Overall, Pineda’s skills
helped the Mustangs outscore opponents, 22-0, posting four shutouts and
outshooting the opposition 77-15, in the four games of the tourney.
“He’s having a great year,” Costa Mesa Coach Eugene Day said of the
Daily Pilot Athlete of the Week. “He’s been right there when we need him
to be. He’s not a ninth-grader as far as soccer goes. He’s a pure
striker. He just goes after it. You could teach him the basics, but he
just takes it to the next level. He has a great attitude, too.”
Against Troy, Pineda played more like a three-year varsity letterman
than like a ninth-grader dreaming about a patch for his varsity jacket.
His speed is a key for the Mustangs’ quick-strike, fast-break-type
offense.
“Alfonso was just on fire in the final,” Day said. “He was everywhere.
This kid has such a shot on him and he’s only a ninth-grader. Two of the
goals he got were just all him when he kept on running in toward the
goal.”
Pineda’s passion for soccer has been a big reason for his early
success, Day said. Pineda has been making regular trips to the practice
field at Costa Mesa, where he sometimes plays by himself. He runs wind
sprints and goes all out during soccer drills he learned from Day. Pineda
also sets aside time to act out scoring scenarios. He’s wavering on
whether he should unveil his celebrations.
“I just want to get better,” Pineda said. “The thing I’m thinking
about the most is scoring.”
Pineda’s desire to put the ball in the back of the net has been the
foundation of his game from when he started to play at age 6. However,
his knowledge and skills didn’t prevent the insecurities he initially had
before the season. Teammates like senior Eli Solis, who also plays
forward, have been helping Pineda attain confidence and learn quickly.
“I was shocked to make varsity,” Pineda said. “When I did make it,
that just gave me more confidence. And Eli has been helping me out. He
gives me advice, which really has helped me.”
Last year, Pineda, who went to Costa Mesa Intermediate, watched Mesa’s
soccer team win its first varsity league title behind the help of
forwards Trinidad Hernandez and Bernardo Falci, who are both gone after
graduating in the spring. Pineda soon became aware he had to fill the
shoes of those players, while Solis has also been making Mustang
followers realize that this season’s team could actually be better than
last year’s squad.
“Alfonso has made things a lot easier,” Day said. “Eli has stepped up.
And with Alfonso coming in, we’re just blessed to have those two guys.
(Pineda) has grown in terms of what he needs to do and so far they have
all been working well as a team.”
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