After finishing first in the district the year prior, Bowie fell short, losing in the first round to Stony Point in the 2022-2023 season. As last season came to a close, Coach Ryan Logan turned to two incoming freshmen to fill the shoes of captain in future years. One prospective captain, Carter Jones, a goalkeeper, has made several appearances on varsity games throughout the season so far.
“I have been playing soccer since I was seven years old,” Jones said. “I began playing club soccer with Lonestar and have stuck with it ever since. It’s been fun just to play with friends so that’s the main reason I have been playing for so long.”
Jones plays soccer throughout the whole year. During the school offseason, Jones will play club soccer for Lonestar, where he travels across the country playing in tournaments against players up to eighteen-years-old.
“Club team is super competitive,” Jones said. “We have to travel everywhere which can get tiring compared to school soccer where it is much more convenient. The transition from club to school soccer has been pretty easy because I have experience playing competitively with people older than me. I know I am one of the youngest on the field but it doesn’t bother me too much.”
Being a goalkeeper means that Jones is often stagnant and relies on positioning in order to find success during games.
“The most important thing about being a goalie is staying calm,” Jones said. “Being a keeper means that you have to support your teammates and help them communicate since you play most of the game off ball. Letting them know what they’re supposed to do can help the team be more structured. You have to try to subsidize the nerves and stay on top of your game mentally.”
Freshman Evan Dranguet, a striker, also played in several varsity games throughout the season. Dranguet also began his soccer career playing for Lonestar when he was three-years-old.
“I think a lot of my success comes from my parents,” Dranguet said “They have always motivated me to continue to work hard. I grew up being bigger than a lot of my peers and they allowed me to adjust and play with people bigger and older which allowed me to become a better player.”
Once a week the varsity team gets together to have a team dinner. This incentivizes players to build stronger team development enticing teammates to create stronger relationships. Many of the players do not get a chance to see each other outside of the field, so this is an opportunity to get away from soccer and build friendships
“My teammates have made so many positive impacts on my life,” Dranguet said. “The support they offer me along with Coach Logan has been such a big help for my technical development and positioning on the field, but also off the field, not as a player but as a person.”
Despite playing college football, Logan decided to coach soccer. He has been the varsity soccer coach and art sculpture teacher at Bowie for twelve years.
“It is not often I have Freshman play on varsity,” Logan said. “Every few years we will get an exceptional player that has the ability to play up two teams. Both Evan and Carter have a great work ethic and that is very important to me as a coach. They are both very respectful and seem appreciative of the opportunity to play varsity. Having younger players on varsity means that they have has the club experience. They have played with kids four or five years older than them, that age gap can make a big difference in training and development.”
As varsity head coach, Logan spends a significant amount of time training the younger players who are the future of the program. Logan coaches JV B, a team mostly consisting of freshmen that are looking at a varsity spot in the next few years.
“Our future is looking very bright, the teams are playing really good right now,” Logan said. “They have not lost a district game and seem to be getting better every week. We have one of the best freshman classes I have seen at Bowie. I hope they continue to work hard and fight to get better because they will have a real shot at regional and state tournaments. It takes a team to be successful, not just one player.”
