By Todd Wills
Corsicana Daily Sun
Corsicana — Mario Castaneda says, for him, scoring goals was a process.
As a freshman for the Tigers soccer team, he didn’t score.
“Then it just started happening,” Castaneda said.
As a sophomore, he tallied 22 goals and won district Most Valuable Player honors.
As a junior, he scored 20 goals. He didn’t repeat as MVP — “He should have,” Tigers coach Tom Sanchez said — instead Castaneda was the runner-up.
He is on his way to contending for the MVP award this season. Castaneda has scored nine goals which ranks him fourth in the state. He has eight assists which is the best in Texas.
“It tells you what he is doing,” Sanchez said. “A lot of it he is doing on his own. It’s a learning experience. His teammates are starting to support him more.”
Castaneda, a team captain, is one of two forwards in the Tigers’ 4-4-2 alignment — that’s four defenders back and two strikers. The offense flows through him.
So when it was feared he would miss the first month or two of the season with a knee injury, Sanchez was beyond concerned. But an MRI showed that the injury wasn’t as bad as first thought. Castaneda only took two or three weeks off to heal.
“He’s finally getting his soccer legs,” Sanchez said.
The hope is a strong senior season will produce a soccer scholarship. Castaneda’s brother, Eduardo, scored 89 goals for the Tigers and plays for the club team at Texas Tech.
Mario is hoping to land at either Notre Dame or SMU, but it may be more realistic, with the lack of men’s Division I teams in the state, for him to play for a Division II school.
“I just want to play,” said Castaneda, who plays club soccer for the Dallas Texans, so there promises to be more exposure in the summer.
His grades certainly won’t hurt him. Castaneda is currently ranked ninth in the senior class. He is a popular student and teammate.
“He’s very quiet, very mellow,” Sanchez said. “He’s humble.”
Castaneda’s parents, Mario and Martha, were born in Mexico. The middle child, Castaneda has a younger sister, Elizabeth, so there is likely to be another soccer player in the family.
Castaneda isn’t a part of the “Play Station” generation. He practices soccer twice a week in Grand Prairie during the Texans’ season. He works at H-E-B.
“The kid is always moving,” Sanchez said.
Todd Wills may be reached by e-mail at twills@corsicanadailysun.com. Want to "Soundoff" on this story? E-mail: soundoff@corsicanadailysun.com
