Four 100 Mile House soccer players have taken their soccer skills to the next level this summer and are playing for the Kamloops Blaze.
Reid Davidson, Allison Carr, Ashley Holyk and Daneya Tessaro are all playing for the Blaze in the Thompson Okanagan Youth Soccer League and they have just kicked off their outdoor seasons, which run from April to August.
All four students attend Peter Skene Ogden Secondary School (PSO) and are key players on their school soccer teams as well as rep soccer.
Davidson, Grade 11, was captain of the PSO Eagles soccer team this past season. It is the midfielders’ third year playing for Kamloops and he has his sights set on playing university soccer after graduation. His favourite player is Lionel Messi and top team is Barcelona.
The trio of Holyk, Carr and Tessaro all play for the U-18 ‘B’ Blaze squad and have been inundated with soccer of late as their season coincides with their senior girls high school season.
This past weekend, Holyk and Carr trained Thursday night in Kamloops, drove early Friday morning to a tournament in Hope to play four games with their PSO Eagles’ school team before heading back to Kamloops for Blaze games against Kelowna and Kamloops ‘A’.
One might think Carr and Holyk would be sick and tired of soccer and travel already, but it’s quite the opposite.
“We both really enjoy the sport and all that comes with it. This is the first year for the three of us playing with Kamloops and we felt it was the next step in playing at a higher level of soccer,” says Carr.
“We stay really busy and could be practising anywhere from two to four times a week with both seasons running simultaneously.”
Carr, who also plays hockey and volleyball, like Davidson hopes to play university soccer one day.
The three Grade 10 girls will be relied upon heavily this high school season as PSO will host the North Central District AA Girls Zones at the youth fields May 15-16. Holyk plays forward while Tessaro and Carr typically play either midfield or defence.
Last year, Holyk scored all three of PSO’s goals at the zone championships in Prince George and her scoring punch will be looked to again to help the Eagles win games.
“Ashley has a knack for scoring goals and has good speed and a nice touch in front of goal. She gives our team a whole new dimension when she’s playing and opens things up for everyone else,” says PSO coach Sean Glanville.