Chris Cernick (left) faces off with fellow frosh Mallory Kortuem during a drill this summer. (John Fisken photo)
Cernick (far right) and friends celebrate his recent birthday. (Michelle Cernick photo)
“Even select (soccer) can’t make you a great player unless you put in all the hard work and effort.
“You have to want it bad enough.”
It’s that drive which keeps Chris Cernick moving forward every day as he pursues his dream of soccer success.
The Coupeville High School freshman, who will be managing the girls team this fall before joining the Wolves boys’ program as a player in the spring, is deeply committed.
And his philosophy is one which could benefit any player.
“I would love to say that if there are kids out there that feel that you have to be in Select to be great, I would just like to say that I have only played one year of soccer, but I practice four hours a day,” Cernick said.
“I am very disciplined and work very hard because I am working towards being a great player one day, which is my dream.”
When he’s not playing, Cernick will assist his dad, Reese, who runs a local U14 co-ed squad, as well as reffing rec soccer games on the weekend.
The young gun enjoys pitch life and wants to spend as much time as possible around his favorite game.
“I enjoy being outside all the time and playing soccer as an athlete,” Cernick said. “It gets boring if I am inside too long.”
Soccer offers a different flow than some other sports, something he greatly enjoys.
“It’s my favorite sport because I like using my feet rather than my hands,” Cernick said. “And I love running with a ball and doing cool tricks that you can’t do in many other sports.”
He prides himself on his endurance and determination, though he’s constantly working on upping his game.
“I would like to work on building up my endurance so I can withstand a whole soccer game,” Cernick said.
“My goals as a freshman is just to get onto varsity and if not just keep improving til I can get there one year,” he added. “My future goal is to be able to play for the MLS Sounders and then eventually play for Barcelona or another international soccer team.”
As he’s worked on fine-tuning his game, Cernick has drawn support from his family, with his father providing him a great deal of help.
“My dad has helped me a lot with soccer,” he said. “He has taught me a lot of valuable skills and now I am ready to move on to high school.”
Cernick has also picked up knowledge from “my friend, Jean Lund-Olsen, or from watching videos on YouTube.”
When he’s not playing soccer, Cernick enjoys hanging out with friends and listening to trap music. In school he gravitates towards gym and wood shop.
But soccer is never far from his thoughts, as evidenced when he names his favorite film — Bend it like Beckham — probably the best-known film about life on the pitch.
Now, Cernick is ready to write his own Hollywood ending on the pitch.
