Crescenta Valley saw this season coming

The Crescenta Valley boys soccer program can look at this season's team through two lenses... the shortview and the longview. In the shortview, the Falcons are just trying to be better each day than they were the day before. But in the longview they have been preparing for this season for some time.   They have 18 seniors, 13 of them play for California Athletic SC, a club that essentially shares a location with the high school, meaning the club has become part of the community and the programs have become married together in a sense.   "We have a community feel to our program and our school," Crescenta Valley head coach Kurtis Millan said. "And this group we have is very competitive. They have been successful at the club level and have had success on their way to the varsity level, not losing a JV match for the last three years."   Millan is part of both the school and the club as he is also the technical director of CASC. He wants this season's high school team to continue to improve, but he knew in advance this could be a special year.   "We keep trying to get better and better every game and we try to motivate the players the best we can," Millan said. "We have been preparing for this year."   Millan's prophecy seems to have come true as this team entered the week ranked No. 10 in the State of California in PrepSoccer's weekly rankings, and after Tuesday's 5-1 win over Burroughs, the Falcons are now 17-1 on the season. The only blemish was a 1-0 loss in a tournament nearly seven weeks ago.   And though the team is loaded, as mentioned above with 18 seniors, and several other impactful players, there are five players that are standing out and leading the Falcons through what has been a phenomenal season so far.   Lukas Elze, Senior, Central Defender   Elze is a player that reads the game very well. He is one of the fastest, if not the fastest, players in the Pacific League. He is the kind of center back that you may miss sometimes because everything he does in terms of defending, or helping build up the attack, he makes look simple.   Luis Gong, Senior, Attacking Midfielder   Gong is the creative center of the Falcons attack. He is incredibly smart, very athletic and is an explosive player going forward. His intelligence on the pitch is very apparent as his brain works very quickly and reacts very quickly as well.   Jake Sheen, Senior, Central Defender   Sheen, who is Elze's partner in the back, is another center back who makes things look very easy. He knows how to simplify the game, and is a very smart player. He is one of the engines that makes the team tick.   Matt Sheen, Senior, Defensive Midfielder   Matt is the twin brother of center back Jake, and is a similar player in that he is a smart player and a key cog that makes this team go. He is a leader on the team, but leads with his actions and says very little.   Miles Vallejo, Senior, Keeper   Vallejo is an excellent all-around keeper. He's also very athletic and could be an outfield player if needed. He's a great shot-stopper, but beyond that he is a great communicator as he never stops talking with his defenders.

The Crescenta Valley boys soccer program can look at this season's team through two lenses... the shortview and the longview. In the shortview, the Falcons are just trying to be better each day than they were the day before. But in the longview they have been preparing for this season for some time.