The AHS spring soccer team kicked off their season two weeks ago. The spring program has many returning players from AHS fall soccer and a few additional athletes from Glenwood and Basalt. Since it’s a club team, they are allowed to roster kids from out of the district, unlike the fall team, which represents the school. The team also gets to compete against other clubs and schools across Colorado that they don’t usually get to play against in the regular fall season. AHS freshman, Max Brenniger has started his first spring season of many to improve his game.

“A lot has changed since middle school soccer. I noticed a huge increase in competitiveness and talent from last year to this year, especially in the spring season. I think spring soccer is cool because you get the opportunity to travel and play in places that we didn’t go to in the previous season. It’s also a perfect way to stay conditioned and develop your game before next fall,” Brenigger said. “The only downside is you don’t get to compete for big titles like conference and state championships.”

Since regular seasons aren’t very long, a lot of athletes look for opportunities to continue playing and improving in soccer. A lot of sports in the valley aren’t played year round, so soccer players like to take advantage of the unique opportunity. It’s also a great way to open yourself up for scouting and to recruit for colleges, and more advanced teams. Luckily, Aspen’s club team is after the high school season because club teams tend to get more kids than high schools because of the traveling aspect, and mixture of players. AHS sophomore, Nick Mitchell enjoys how the teams are spread apart across the school year because it gives him time for other activities.

“I’m thrilled that our seasons are spread apart. Club seasons usually tend to last a lot longer than high school seasons, which would be hard because I wouldn’t be able to ski as much during the winter. I sometimes do wish that Aspen had a year-round soccer team because I love playing it, but it would be hard to only focus on one sport without getting burnt out,” Mitchell said. “I like being able to cross train in different sports and have something to look forward to when one sport season ends. I’m happy that I have the option to do both spring and fall seasons because I have made a lot of good friends and had a lot more fun than not playing a sport.”