The562’s season previews for the 2022-23 school year are sponsored by Vertical Raise, the official team fundraising partner of The562.
The562’s soccer coverage for the 2022-23 school year is sponsored by Beach Futbol Club.
The562’s coverage of Cabrillo Athletics is sponsored by the Cohn Family.
Four different schools have won a Moore League boys’ soccer championship in the last seven seasons, including the Cabrillo Jaguars. That championship came back in the 2015-16 season and the Jags have been a bit of a wild card ever since.
Longtime head coach Pat Noyes has navigated the program through injuries, plus the heightened challenges of the pandemic on the West Side, and now has a talented roster with more experience and camaraderie than he’s had in a number of seasons.
“I think the strength is going to be us attacking and going forward, pressing and playing high,” said Noyes. “I think that the group personality is really strong and we’ve got a lot of attacking players.”
Noyes said he’ll have a ton of flexibility in his attacking rotation, with the ability to move several players into different roles and positions. The team is junior-heavy, with a small but impactful senior class.
Among those seniors is incoming transfer Ivan Torres, who Noyes praises for his high soccer IQ. Torres has played six years in the LAFC Academy, providing a high level of skill and physical maturity to help the Jags this season. His younger brother, Jesus Torres, is also back after earning a spot on the All-Moore League first team last season.
Martin Robles Ruiz is another key returner with a focused, attacking mindset at the top. Finishing off scoring chances has been a challenge for Cabrillo in recent seasons, and Robles Ruiz is among the players with the talent and opportunity to put more goals on the board for Cabrillo this year.
Junior Nathan Mosqueda is also back with the program after stepping away last season. His older brother, Eduardo, was a key member of Cabrillo’s CIF State Championship team in 2019 while putting up prolific numbers during his junior season. If Nathan can repeat what Eduardo did in 11th grade–15 goals and 17 assists–it would be a huge boost to Cabrillo’s chances.
Junior Duane Baker is a speedy and talented player out on the wing, who’s been around the Cabrillo program since he was young. Baker is also playing in the Elite Clubs National League (ECNL) where he’s gotten valuable playing experience outside of high school soccer. Sophomore Javier Palomares is back after getting quality playing time as a freshman a year ago. He also plays a high level of club soccer and will add more depth to Cabrillo’s attack.
The defense will be anchored by senior right back and team captain, Andrew Moreno, and it’s the most veteran position group on the field with four seniors across the board. Moreno will be joined by Joe Ibarra, Chris Barcenas and Jesus Torres in the starting lineup.
“I feel like this team is going to be more successful, because we talk more than in past years,” said Moreno of what makes this team different from previous ones. “I feel like if we play well back there (on defense) and touch the ball, play out wide, create opportunities, I think if we finish them, we’ll do well this year.”
Coming off the Babrillo bench, junior Victor Orozco is a super sub who will likely be called upon for minutes on defense, in the midfield, and as an attacker.
“It’s a really, really good group of kids, and you can see I enjoy them, I like coaching them,” Noyes said of his team. “The goal is to get in the playoffs and make a run and get as far as we can. I’ve kind of looked at it, and I like where we’re at.”
Noyes feels the schedule is constructed in a way that will give his team some confidence and wins in the preseason, while also focusing on team bonding. The Jags will make the trip to Catalino to take on Avalon for an all-day team bonding trip. The team will also head to Oxnard to play the other Cabrillo for the team’s only Saturday game.
The Moore League season starts off with a bang for the Jags who host Poly in the league opener on Dec. 14 followed by a trip to Millikan two days later.
