It only took one practice with the West All-Star boys soccer team to make an impression on Rogers High coach Stephen Peck.
"We're looking really good right now," said Peck, who serves as one of the West assistant coaches this week. "I'm very impressed with the talent of these guys.
Arkansas High School Coaches Association All-Star boys soccer game
When: 7 p.m. today
Where: Estes Stadium, University of Central Arkansas, Conway
Rosters
WEST
Head Coach: Bryan Hardaway, Dardanelle
Assistant Coaches: Stephen Peck, Rogers; Stephen Sloan, De Queen
No.^Name^School
1^Alex Tobar^Hot Springs
2^Aaron Gaul^El Dorado
3^Christian Maldeuado^De Queen
17^Pedro Delgado^Fayetteville
18^Rolando Sidon^Springdale Har-Ber
19^Tobe Thomason^Harrison
20^Angel Herrera^Springdale High
21^Alex Braxton^Hot Springs Lakeside
22^Austin Dow^Benton
23^Brandon Olson^Little Rock Christian
24^Jesus Manjarrez^Fort Smith Northside
25^Estiven Garcia^De Queen
35^Landon Stafford^Central Arkansas Christian
36^Elliott Caston^Malvern
37^Trent Harter^El Dorado
38^Michael Betyo^Benton
39^Stephen Flanigan^Central Ark. Christian
40^Josh Howard^Bentonville
41^Irvin Rodriquez^Danville
42^Gerardo Hernandez^Dardanelle
43^James Eldred^Maumelle
44^Mateo Johnson^Vilonia
EAST
EAST BOYS SOCCER
Head Coach: Amanda Carter, Jonesboro Westside
Assistant Coaches: Matthew Page, Conway; Andrew Post, Greenwood; Tyler Woods, Beebe
Manager: Clay Watts, Greenwood
No.^Name^School
1^Cortez Jordan^Jacksonville
2^Nicholas Vasquez^North Little Rock
3^Tyler Jones^Beebe
7^Henry Aguirre^Conway
17^James Pollard^Siloam Springs
18^Carlos Beltran^Conway
21^Cory Ballew^Bryant
24^John Berkheimer^Searcy
25^Hayden Stricker^Jonesboro
26^Seth Vickery^Valley View
27^Garrett Miller^Nettleton
28^William McCastlain^LR Episcopal
31^Trace Laffoon^Searcy
33^Jack Whittle^Hamburg
37^Grady Majors^Batesville
38^Caleb Price^Jonesboro Westside
39^Jensen Thielke^Conway St. Joseph
41^Stephen Enderlin^Little Rock Catholic
42^Chris Holmes^Little Rock Catholic
43^Weston Schillinger^Pulaski Academy
44^Jack Whisker^Cabot
"We have some very skilled players out there. Not only are they good players on the field, but they're good with their character as well."
Peck said the West coaches had to do very little roster shuffling as most of the original roster made their way Monday to the University of Central Arkansas campus. The shuffling as far as making two teams work was also at a minimum as well.
Peck said he only had to ask three players to make a shift from a forward or a midfield position to be a defender in order to fill out the positions for two teams. Under All-Star rules, every player must play 20 minutes of the first half -- the reasoning the West will split into two teams -- then there is unlimited substitutions in the second half.
"Obviously, the strength of our team is the skill that these players possess," Peck said. "Most of them play midfield or forward on their teams, and we had only six true defenders on the roster.
"Some of them had to change up what they are used to doing, but I had three that said they were willing to play defense. That lets me know how coachable these players are, and that's nice to see."
Estiven Garcia of De Queen is one of the players who has caught the West coaches' attention this week with his skills. Peck, who is in charge of the defensive drills, has been impressed with Austin Dow of Benton at goalkeeper after some eye-catching saves during drills.
"I've been highly impressed with what we've done during practice," Peck said. "I think our defense is going to be very good. The only thing that might hurt us is some of these guys hadn't played in a while, and the heat may become a factor. They may not be in great shape, and conditioning could hurt us.
"The first half will be pretty easy because it's pretty easy to split the group into two teams. What may be hard to do is play them as one team in the second half because we have a lot of depth, from what I can tell."
The boys All-Star game is slated for 7 p.m. at Estes Stadium.
Sports on 06/24/2015