Soccer a kick to DeMille

CHRIS YEMMA

In a society that is about as interested in badminton as it is

soccer, it would appear odd that some people -- actually living in

America -- live and die by the sport.

Some people just can’t get enough of it. Forget about football,

basketball or baseball. Soccer is the world’s sport.

So why isn’t it more popular here? In Newport-Mesa, it is.

Estancia High junior varsity girls soccer coach Kara DeMille is

one person who lives and breathes the sport.

Starting at age 5, she has played soccer day in and day out, until

the present. She played AYSO, she played on club teams, she played at

Newport Harbor through high school and she now plays for Orange Coast

College.

Oh yeah, she also coaches it at Estancia.

“In the fall, when OCC was in the playoffs it was a pretty tough

schedule,” DeMille said. “I went straight from practice at OCC to

coaching at Estancia.”

That stint would have her practicing for a couple of hours in the

early afternoon with the Pirates and then spending another couple of

hours coaching on the other side of town.

From the artificial turf at Coast, to the real thing at Estancia,

and all the years as a Sailor, DeMille sure has made the soccer

rounds.

She had 67 saves as a freshman goalkeeper for the Pirates last

fall, helping the team finish 13-5-3.

But at the tender age of 18, she has come across some difficulties

in coaching kids who are roughly the same age. She also now realizes

what she never realized as a player.

“Playing at Harbor, I never realized why our coach [Brandy

Hayungs] would get frustrated over certain things,” she said. “Now I

see why. I didn’t realize how frustrating it can actually be.”

Soccer is also a part of DeMille’s family.

Her two older sisters, Kathy, 31, and Kim, 24, both played for

DeMille’s ultimate rival -- Corona del Mar. But she is the first to

play the sport after high school and she plans to keep playing it as

long as she can.

She said she wants to eventually transfer and play at a four-year

school.

As for now, her Eagles are 6-2-1, 2-1-1 in league, all in her

first coaching stint.

Because of the recent rains, the only practice area available is

the blacktop surface at Estancia, forcing the team to play street

soccer.

The team is led by Araceli Ceja, a freshman sweeper, senior

captains Alejandra Cerros and Bianca Vargas, junior Kaelyn Davis and

freshman Stephanie Garcia.

Down the line, DeMille said she wants to continue coaching after

finishing college.

Until then, she will keep playing and coaching.

With more people like DeMille, the popularity of the sport should

continue to grow in this country.