NOOKSACK VALLEY

PIONEERS

Coach: Valentin Villalobos

Last year: Finished third in the Class 1A Northwest Conference standings with a record of 0-13-0. ... Did not qualify for postseason and finished 0-17-0 overall.

Players to watch: William Kingma (so., D); Luis Garcia (fr., M); Rigiberto Gonzales (fr., M); Luke VanWingerden (so., F); Levi VanWingerden (so., GK)

Outlook: It's common for any coach to be optimistic heading into a new year, and after a tough first season leading the Pioneers, coach Valentin Villalobos has real reason to believe Nooksack Valley will be more competitive this spring. "Last year I had just enough players and didn't have a whole lot of experienced players," Villalobos said in a phone interview. "This year I have way more players, and I have quite a few that played for Rangers." Freshmen midfielders Luis Garcia and Rigiberto Gonzales have impressed Villalobos during preseason training, and the duo should contribute right away. Sophomore Luke VanWingerden and senior Cristian Uriel Campos have shown their abilities to score and will log minutes up top for Nooksack Valley. Sophomore William Kingma headlines the Pioneers defense, and keeper Levi VanWingerden will be relied on to reduce the 6.4 goals per match average Nooksack Valley surrendered last season. "Everyone is confident about winning a couple games," Villalobos said. "We are really working hard."

2013 ROSTER

Player Year

Alejandro Hurtado Sr.

Roberto Baltazar N/A

Omar Lopez N/A

Leo Velasquez N/A

William Kingma So.

Kyle Macy N/A

Luke VanWingerden So.

Levi VanWingerden So.

Adrian Zavala N/A

Rigiberto Gonzales Fr.

Jesus Martinez N/A

Luis Garcia Fr.

Daniel Jose N/A

Nick Swanson N/A

Cristian Uriel Campos Sr.

2013 SCHEDULE

March 14 at Blaine (Pipeline) 4:30 p.m.

March 16 Mount Baker 4:30 p.m.

March 18 at Sedro-Woolley* 6 p.m.

March 20 at Meridian* 4:30 p.m.

March 22 Blaine* 4:30 p.m.

March 23 at University Prep 1 p.m.

March 28 at Mount Baker* 4:30 p.m.

March 30 at Friday Harbor noon

April 9 at Lynden (Bender)* 3:30 p.m.

April 11 Ferndale* 4:30 p.m.

April 15 at Squalicum (Northwest)* 4 p.m.

April 17 Burlington-Edison* 4:30 p.m.

April 19 Anacortes* 4:30 p.m.

April 20 Lynden Christian* 1 p.m.

April 23 at Sehome (Northwest)* 4 p.m.

April 25 Bellingham* 4:30 p.m.

*NWC game

Reach ANDREW LANG at andrew.lang@bellinghamherald.com or call ext. 862.