With 50 plus saves and great leadership abilities, freshman keeper Jorge Rodriguez is the main man to watch at Linfield soccer games.
After lettering three times and being the team captain in high school play, as well as being a second team all-Metro League honoree, Rodriguez came into Linfield knowing how to take over and give the team the best chance to win. Rodriguez has started in every game he has played in all but one, playing over 1000 total minutes this season. He missed four games due to injury late in the season, but still managed to reach the 50 save mark, finishing the year with 52 saves.
Spencer Beck/Staff Photographer
“Reaching the 50 save mark feels good, although it wasn’t something I was aware of,” Rodriguez said. “I just did my part to help us win.”
He gave up an average of 1.71 goals per game, giving up 19 total goals, but saved a little over 73 percent of shots that came his way.
He was not very happy with his play this year, however, saying, “I could have done much better preparing myself during the offseason, and done a better job on the field. I don’t feel like I played up to my full potential.”
He felt a little better about how the team played as a whole, but still believes they could be much better.
“I am decently happy with how we did, but I know we could have done better. A lot of the guys on the team would agree with that,” Rodriguez said.
Rodriguez expects that the team will do much better next year, and will work hard during the offseason in order to ensure the best chance of success for him and his team.
“My expectations for next year are to finish top three in league and get eight total clean sheets,” Rodriguez said. “We have a very young team full of potential.”
The Wildcats ended their season with a record of 8-9-1, improving from year to year. This young Linfield team will look to take a another step further next year and reach the .500.
Drew Mahrt/Senior sports reporter
