Trust at the top
Undefeated Demons earning their No. 1 state ranking as they overcome adversity, improve their teamwork
Chris Eadie can’t dispute the talent the Santa Fe High boys soccer team has had over the past several years.
For the Demons, the difference between looking good on paper and playing better on the field comes down to trust, he said. Eadie is watching what players who trust one another can do, even in the face of dire circumstances.
It was never more evident than during Tuesday evening’s nondistrict match with Albuquerque Hope Christian. Santa Fe High, the recently anointed top-ranked team in the state by MaxPreps. com, was without starting senior goalkeeper Ethan Earnest against the Huskies after he called in sick. Then, it was down to third-string goalie, Connor Cunningham, when backup Evan Martinez was ejected after receiving a red card for a collision with Hope Christian’s Tyler Burks in the penalty box 15 minutes into the match.
As if to add insult to injury, the Demons played a man down for the rest of the match. A team with players who don’t trust one another doesn’t rally from a 2-1 halftime deficit and dominate possession like Santa Fe High did.
The reward was Alex Waggoner’s sixth straight match with a hat trick, as he scored all three of the Demons’ goals in a 3-2 win to keep his team undefeated at 6-0 heading into Thursday’s quarterfinal match against Farmington in the Albuquerque Academy Invitational.
“When we trust one another and don’t panic and press the issue, we’re clearly the stronger team,” said Eadie, who is in the third year of his second stint with the program. “When we use everybody and we’re patient, that’s when we create opportunities.”
While it might seem like success was three years in the making for Eadie, he said it was more like 12.
Eadie coached 12 players on the roster on the club circuit from the time they started attending school before returning to the high school ranks in 2018 as the Demons’ junior varsity coach. It just so happened that many of the players on that squad were the same ones he coached in club.
When he resumed his varsity head coach role 2019, Eadie had most of those same players follow him. Still, Demons midfielder Mike Wissman said it was a young, inexperienced group that didn’t quite learn how to become leaders until this offseason, and the long-sought chemistry finally began to materialize over the summer.
“In past years, we really weren’t focused and kind on and off the field,” Wissman said. “We were kinda messing around. I think everyone is dialed in for this season. This team has a strong belief, and we wanna go all the way, not just make some noise and get to [the state tournament].”
As if fate had plans for the Demons, it plopped a prolific goal scorer in their laps with Waggoner. After spending the past three seasons at Taos, Waggoner transferred from Taos to Santa Fe High and has a statebest 22 goals to go with his hat-trick streak.
While it might seem easy to integrate Waggoner into the fold, Eadie said it took some time for Waggoner and the team to trust each other.
“There’s starting to be that trust,” Eadie said. “He’s figuring out how to play with these incredibly talented players that are around him, and he’s not always been accustomed to that.”
Eadie’s system is predicated on the ball touching as many feet as possible with no player dominating possession. It took a few matches for it to reach the level Eadie wanted, even as Santa Fe High posted wins over St. Michael’s, Pojoaque Valley and Monte del Sol to start the season. The last two were mercy-rule wins by 11-1 and 10-0, which were firsts for the program in more than a decade.
Waggoner said those matches showed what the Demons are capable of doing, but the consistency is not quite there yet.
“The whole state can see what we can do, and our parents can see it, obviously, and that’s fun,” Waggoner said. “But you can’t let yourself get caught up in those little nitty-gritty things. I mean, it’s great, and we can’t wait to play every day.”
If Eadie needs an area that shows the offense is working, it’s the assist category. So far, 10 Demons have recorded at least one assist, with Wissman responsible for 11. Eadie said that style forces opponents to defend the entire field, instead of just Waggoner.
“Our offense is potent, but — and I tell the team this all the time — the more we trust each other, the more we spread the ball out wide, the more we can use every piece of our attack,” Eadie said. “And the better off we’re going to be because we can be patient while Alex or Mike is being double-teamed and let the play develop as we maintain possession.”
That was on display for most of the match, even as the Huskies held a player advantage. The Demons managed 18 shots on goal, although Huskies goalkeeper Cody Guggino recorded 15 saves to frustrate the Demons.
Even more frustrating were fouls that gave Hope Christian a 2-1 lead at the half. Kaiden Giron scored on a penalty kick after Martinez’s red card to for a 1-all tie. Brenden McMurry gave the Huskies a 2-1 lead on a goal off a direct kick from outside the penalty box to end the half.
Waggoner, who scored the opening goal in the third minute on a breakaway, tied the score at 2 on a penalty kick in the 50th minute after he was fouled in the penalty box. The goal came after the Guggino stopped three straight shots in the 48th minute.
Guggino was helpless to stop Waggoner on the finale, as he took a pass from the right flank by Jack Joseph and beat Guggino in a one-on-one, which led to a dog pile of Demons on the near-side corner of the field.
“We had trouble finding space, but once we opened it up, it was there,” Waggoner said. “Me and Mikey can move the ball well, and all the other guys are solid. They can move the ball well, too.”
Perhaps it’s yet another sign the Demons are moving up the pecking order in the state soccer ranks.