**Athlete Interviews are posted every Thursday for recruiting advice, what to look for, and more.
We did a written interview with Kyle Sanchez, center back for the Oregon Tech soccer team. His story tells of trial and tribulation, breaking records, and rising to the top against all odds. His story in all its honesty is something younger athletes can relate to and strive toward during their recruiting process and collegiate careers.
“[I am] From Post Falls, Idaho. [I] Started playing rec soccer when I was four years old. When I turned nine, I joined my first club team (Idaho Thunder FC) as a goalie. Over time, I moved to outside back, and eventually I made my way to center back. On Thunder FC, I traveled throughout Washington, Idaho, and Montana for soccer tournaments. Once I made it to high school, I decided to skip high school soccer and instead play club soccer in Washington for Washington East SC where I thought I could play more challenging teams. For Washington East, I was able to compete in the Washington Premier League and travel all over Washington. We also got to attend the US Youth Soccer national tournament and the NPL Finals.
Related: Do You Need to Join a Club Team in Women's Soccer?
“I met Coach Munhall at one of the tournaments I went to with Washington East… during the spring of my senior year of high school. He recognized my name from an email I had sent him during my sophomore year. He invited me to visit the campus right after my game, and I gladly accepted. I ended up signing with Oregon Tech a week after my visit.
Related school rating: Oregon Institute of Technology
“My freshman year at Oregon Tech wasn't exactly what I had hoped for. I made the travel roster for every trip, which I had wanted, but I only played in about four games. At the end of the season, I contemplated whether or not I wanted to continue playing at OIT. After a lot of thought, I decided I wasn't going to give up and that I would just have to put in extra work in the off-season. During that spring season, I started in every game we had.
“My sophomore year is more of what I wanted. It started out rough, having to get used to a brand-new coach and having a minor quad injury right before our first set of games, but I was able to find myself on the starting squad within the first couple conference games. We ended up breaking the school record for wins in a season. Unfortunately, our season ended at the first game of the [conference] tournament again.
“My junior year was about as bad as it could be. We once again had a new head coach, and I suffered from a groin injury in the second game of the season. This had me miss the entire season.
Related coach rating: Casey Tate
“Finally, there was my senior season. I got to captain the team this year, which I was excited for, though I figured this would just be another season for us. Fortunately, it was anything but a normal season. We had one of the best defenses in the nation, only conceding eight goals in the entire season. We also won games where we went down to ten men, went down two goals, and were even facing a nationally ranked team. The season was full of breaking records: we were the first men's soccer conference (co)champions, we broke the record for most wins in a season, we won the first tournament game, we even won the tournament for the first time, and we finally got to attend the NAIA national tournament.”
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* Originally published on December 2, 2021, by Sydney DeNardo
