DAILY PILOT HIGH SCHOOL ATHLETE OF THE WEEK:

Eric Duarte is still waiting for absolute confirmation, but so far, all signs suggest he’s about to make history — in his own family, and at Estancia High.

Last week, Duarte received an e-mail from Lipscomb University soccer coach Charles Morrow saying Lipscomb was waiting to receive his Free Application for Federal Student Aid, but that in all likelihood, the school would offer him a full athletic scholarship to play soccer.

If he gets it, the senior Eagles’ striker would be the first Estancia student to get a full athletic scholarship to a Division I school for soccer, school officials said.

He would also be the first person in his family to attend a four-year college.

It seemed everything aligned for Duarte, who had help from his older siblings, and his high school and club coaches. Duarte is the third-youngest of eight children, and his older brothers and sister prodded him endlessly when Duarte would walk in the house, worn out from soccer practice.

“They’d help me collect my things,” Duarte said. “‘Are you done with your FAFSA? Are you done with your applications? Are you done with everything?’ It was good that they were there to help me.”

Duarte’s 19-year-old brother Pedro played soccer for Estancia and advanced to play for Golden West.

His sister Rebecca, 20, went to Orange Coast College.

But everyone had their eye on Duarte.

Duarte’s brother Rene, 25, helped Eric with his college application essays.

“He’d sit with me and help me with what my thoughts were,” Duarte said. “He’d ask me questions like he was interviewing me, but it was really helping me with my essay.”

Rene has since moved to Houston, but he still calls to needle his little brother about the process. For the family, Duarte’s not just an example. He’s a trailblazer for his younger siblings.

“There’s that pressure on me, but I try my best to play through it and study and stuff like that,” said Duarte, who has scored six goals in seven Orange Coast League games. “I think it’s good because it helps me play better. It helps me work harder on the class and on the field.”

That pressure sometimes translates to yellow cards, and both Estancia athletic director Tim Parsel and Coach Gannon Burks admit Duarte’s passion can translate to problems. They’re hoping he’ll grow out of it.

‘Eric has had a little bit of problems with his temper, so we’re hoping that doesn’t scare anyone off,” Parsel said half joking. “We’re hoping he finishes strong.”

Duarte, who made an official visit to the Nashville, Tenn. campus at the end of December, has decided he will go if he gets the scholarship.

“I just liked how the people there are much nicer,” Duarte said. “You feel that people want you there. People are more active, when you go around people greet you all the time.”

Duarte, who is also being recruited by UC Irvine and St. Mary’s of College of California, said that he’d like to stay closer to home, but there was a greater likelihood of starting as a freshman at Lipscomb.

Lipscomb recruiters first noticed Duarte, who plays on the West Coast FC premier team, at a Greensboro, N.C. club tournament called Score at the Shore last summer.

It was a far cry from Duarte’s first club, when he played for a Mexican league team in Santa Ana.

“He understands how to play on a team,” Burks said. “He makes the players around him better. He’s not a selfish player. He’s the type of kid you see on a sidewalk walking to school with a soccer ball. He’s always perfecting his trade.”

SORAYA NADIA McDONALD may be reached at (714) 966-4613 or at soraya.mcdonald@latimes.com.