On April 20th Angel Sandoval was recognized by the Washington Interscholastic Activities Association as the WAII Athlete of the Week. These athletes are being recognized for their “outstanding performances and impactful contributions in their communities” by the association. In addition to demonstrating athletic prowess these students must be “in good academic standing at their schools” to be eligible for this honor. Cascade soccer fans acknowledge that Angel’s recognition is well deserved. In one week of play (with games against Overlake, Ephrata and Omak), Angel led the CHS soccer team to three victories by scoring seven goals and having three assists. Six of those goals came from “hat tricks” (when a player scores three goals in the same game) that Angel performed first in a game against Ephrata on April 10, and again against Omak on April 13.
Angel’s record alone makes him deserving of this honor; however, his coach (and father) Jesus Sandoval credits his mindset as well: “[He] puts in a lot of effort, plays off his position, he’s independently good but he thinks about the team. He’s very disciplined, always gives his best, is a leader and very coachable.” Senior soccer player Alex Castillo agrees: “[Angel] has put a lot of work into his soccer career, and it has paid off in games.”
Angel currently plays left-wing on the CHS varsity soccer team. Angel has been “playing since [he] was four.” He has a clear passion for the sport, but also enjoys getting “to spend time with [his] dad.” To get to where Angel is now he had to work for his spot, Jesus said Angel has been playing soccer his “whole life, [he started] in club at five.”
The WIAA soccer achievement isn't the only accomplishment Angel has had over the course of his soccer career. Currently he is the highest scoring player on the Cascade soccer team, he has been on the varsity team since his freshman year, and he has won many tournaments against soccer clubs such as Wenatchee FC.
“I [have] learned that playing soccer takes hard work and dedication,” said Sandoval who learns how to be a better soccer player by “watching other games to see players who are better than me and use that on the field.” Someone Angel admires is Cristiano Ronaldo, because “he’s an all-around good athlete and the work, time and effort he puts in (even with a family) he’s still an amazing player, when he was younger, he was really flashy; he was always confident.” A way Angel gets better on the field is by his dad’s presence. Angel is motivated to make his dad proud. “My dad is often harder on me than the other players. He treats me like everyone else when we’re on the field, but after games he tells me how to get better and what I could do to get a better run or a better pass. Little things,” said Sandoval.
“He’s like a little brother. He’s always trying to step up for everyone and make them proud. He really wants to make his dad proud and show that he has the talent to be a varsity player and it’s not just that he’s the coaches' son,” said senior soccer player Kevin Herrera. Herrera went on: “He’s a very positive player and he’s always confident, he pushes really hard at every practice and all the games, he’s really good at making runs because he’s fast, he’s really friendly and fun to be around.”
“He’s really good at communicating, he’s fast and skilled with the ball, he knows how to talk to everyone on the team. He can talk with anyone and make them feel comfortable, he can connect with them.” Not only is Alex a teammate to Angel but he is also a friend, he said, “he’s very chill and a good person to talk to about anything, he’s easy to talk to,” said senior soccer player Alex Castillo.
Angel is hoping to continue his soccer career by playing for the University of Washington.
"Keep playing and practicing. Some days you might not have a good practice, or a game and you might want to give up, but that’s when you put in the work by yourself,” said Sandoval.
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