KFDM COOP Posted April 12, 2008 Report Posted April 12, 2008 Lee coach tops all-district soccer squad By Michael Pineda Baytown Sun Published April 13, 2008 The dust has cleared from the 2008 season for the Lee and Sterling soccer teams and the time to reap rewards has come. Both teams are well represented on the 21-5A All-District team with Lee head coach Cris Dippel serving as the headliner. The fiery leader of the Ganders was named coach of the year this season for leading the team to a third-place finish in the district and its second consecutive playoff appearance. “I feel humbled,†Dippel said. “They thought that last year was a fluke and we came back and had another good year. Our numbers are up in the program and I have a lot of great coaches. Darrell Thompson, Tori Burton, Rudy Contreras and John Blackshear made all of the difference in the world. “Next year we expect to be in the thick of things in the district picture.†Lee placed three on the all-district first team and Sterling placed two. Edgar Sanchez of Lee was also named first team forward and Jose Cornejo made the team as a goaltender in his first full year starting at the position. Rounding out the Gander first team selections was Patrick Christian at defender. “I am real pleased with Patrick,†Dippel said. “He did not want to play defense but we had to have him. There is nobody that is going to outwork him.†Sterling’s Mike Pittman was named first team at forward after posting 10 goals and seven assists on the season. Joining Pittman on the first team was Miseal Velasquez at defender. “I was very happy,†Sterling coach Jim Richter said. “I had a defender make the first team for the first time. It is hard to get a defender in this district but Miseal had a really good year.†Lee placed four on the second team with Ulises Irias leading the way at forward. Wilson Irias and Luis Camacho were named to the team at midfielder and Octavio Torres made the team at defender. Sterling’s Geovane Preciado was second team forward with Alex Nunez named second team midfielder and Gerardo Hernandez making the team at defender. Lee’s Manuel Martinez, Johnny Pulido and Benito Huerta were named honorable mention, as were Sterling’s Eric Garcia, Daniel Gonzalez and Ricky Cazares. Cole Haas of Kingwood was named MVP of the district. Pablo Dirocco of Atascocita was named offensive MVP and Jeff Bergeron of Kingwood was named defensive MVP. Lee and Sterling’s district will have a much different look next season as Kingwood, Atascocita and Humble leave. North Shore will join Channelview, Port Arthur Memorial and West Brook, along with the two Baytown schools. The Ganders return the majority of their team as well as a junior varsity that posted a 10-4 record. Sterling, which finished fifth in district with a 4-5-5 record, will also have a strong cast returning to go along with a successful junior varsity team. “It was a fun year,†Richter said. “We had five ties and if we would have won any one of those games we would have been in the playoffs. It’s going to be a whole different ball of wax next season with Kingwood being out of the picture.â€
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