By Abby Drake
Staff Writer
Video by Kelli Miles
Soccer has become has sport for all nations since the World Cup and several Coppell High School students are catching onto the craze by registering teams at the American Indoor facility.
The American Indoor Facility offers several divisions for all ages including men’s and co-ed at levels of beginner, intermediate and advanced, and with every different combination there is a team for everybody.
The Alpha Dogs is a team made up of thirteen senior boys who join forces every Sunday night and battle other soccer teams in their division. Although they have lost the majority of their games the boys are still enjoying the competitive atmosphere.
Students for each grade with all different interests, weather they be musical, academic, athletic, or artistic, are able to come together and enjoy the competitive and entertaining aspects of indoor soccer.
Seniors Chris Teel and Daniel Moomau, founders of the Alpha Dogs, have dedicated most of their free time the last three years to their band Amber Open Skies, but decided to mix it up this year and add soccer to their schedules.
Along with the rest of their 12-man team, they spend their afternoons practicing and their Sunday nights competing against other teams in their division.
“We are big fans of soccer and we thought that being involved in a competitive league would be a good outlet for our love of the game,” Teel said.
There are also a few members of Coppell High School’s varsity soccer teams that play on indoor leagues. Three members of the Alpha Dogs, Colin Touhy, Conner Heckmann, and Ryan Meade, have all been a part of the CHS soccer program at some point during their high school careers.
“Touhy, Heckmann, and Meade are good mentors for the less experienced people on the team,” Moomau said.
The Alpha Dogs are just one of several groups of Coppell students to make teams, though. Cowboy’s varsity goalie Chris Hinze also started his-own co-ed indoor team made up of 14 Coppell High School students, last spring. Hinze started his team so the he could do something he loved with his own friends.
“I love it,” said Hinze. “I like [indoor] better than varsity and club, because its careless, fun and I don’t have to be serious.”
The indoor soccer craze has added a fun and light rivalry between teams from every grade, since there is playoffs at the end of the season for each division.
The first, second and third place winners of the championships are rewarded by getting the chance to move up a level, also the first place winners receive the coveted champion t-shirt.
“We are going to go all the way this year and we are going to get that championship T-shirt,” Hinze boldly predicted.
Indoor soccer has given several young athletes the opportunity to have fun, be active and show their skills. With several teams coming from CHS the competition is fierce and the championship at the end of the season is for anyone to take home.
