PAYSON — The phrase "Payson High School soccer" isn't one that has usually conjured up fear in the hearts of opponents. In fact, it was rare enough for the words "Payson" and "soccer" to even be used in the same sentence — until this year.
The Payson boys soccer team is used to being a punch line, the team that every other coach pencils in as a "W" before the season begins. Mediocre to bad soccer has been a not-so-proud Lion tradition for years. But suddenly, the punch line has started to punch back. The Payson boys soccer team is winning.
Senior tri-captain Ivan Flores said it best: "My freshman year was kind of a joke. It's just kind of hard to break a tradition that's been here since I was a freshman, but we know we have a good team, and now it's just time for us to prove it. The only team that can beat Payson is Payson."
Thirteen seniors are on the Lions' soccer roster this year. Most of them have been playing for the school since they were freshman. After enduring three years of losing records and frustrating finishes, they have taken it upon themselves to create a new tradition — a winning one.
Until this season, that senior class had only experienced 11 wins in three years. Last week, the Lions got their eight win of the 2006 season with a 1-0 victory over Orem.
"We've come together this year," said junior tri-captain Jason Cook. "Last year when everyone said 'Payson's going to lose,' we just kept losing. This year we came in with the attitude that we're going to win."
All of the team's coaches and all of the players have a common theme when describing the turnaround they've experienced. They all say the difference between losing in the past and winning in the present is a team-first attitude. Everyone on the team is quick to point out their teammates, and all of the starters are quick to point out the contributions of the substitutes.
"The last years we had a couple of individuals who weren't so focused on just the team," said goalkeeper Spencer Nielson. "This year, we've had 10 people score out of the 18 on varsity. Anybody can score with us. It's not focused on just one person."
While the talent needed to win has developed, the biggest challenge Payson has faced is learning how to win and to not be intimidated by teams that have always dominated the Lions in the past. Two critical games in the first half of the season served as turning points: a 6-1 over Class 5A's Timpanogos and an overtime win over Orem early on in region play.
In the first game, the Lions learned they could go against a bigger school, score goals and dominate a game. In the dramatic 3-2 over Orem, they learned they could compete in their region and make the plays in close games.
"The Timpanogos game when we beat them 6-1 — I had confidence, but just not that level of confidence yet," said defensive tri-captain Tyler Christiansen. "I knew we could win, but when we started scoring on them it was like, 'OK, we can win now.' "
It was a substitute, Leo Corzo, who scored the winning overtime goal at Orem, another event that everyone uses to emphasize the team mentality.
"We got it started against Orem," said Flores. "They have a really good passing game and it was quite challenging. We played them like we knew we could."
Two disappointing losses in the middle of the year to Region 7 powers Timpview and Provo provided some adversity, but the team came together and bounced back. In its second game at Provo a week ago, Payson scored the first goal and came away with a 1-1 tie. The biggest sign of the team's new winning attitude was its disappointment in settling for a draw, even though it was against a team that no one can ever remember not losing to.
"We had a tough tie against Provo," said Cook. "In the past couple of years when we've never beaten Provo before, they've just had that mental edge. This year we don't even care about that. We play our game. We play as a team."
For the first time in years, the state tournament and a potential first-round home game awaits the Payson soccer team. Win or lose, this year's accomplishments speak for themselves and have given the players some valuable memories and experiences.
The tournament "is definitely exciting," said Christiansen. "We've been waiting a long time. It's time."
Added Nielson: "We've become a family. It's just been so fun. This year has just built it all together. We started low and we've just built it up. It has been a fun ride."