Sophomore Cade Ternes is playing his second season on the Antioch Community High School varsity soccer team and, despite being an underclassman, was elected as a captain for this season. Cade’s soccer and leadership skills have made him a player that others look up to and trust.
Ternes started playing soccer when he was just five years old and quickly developed a passion for the sport. He started playing for a club team when he was ten, so Ternes has had many years to learn the game.
“I think his biggest strength is probably his IQ of the game,” freshman Max Mehring said. “He knows the game very well, and he has good sense of awareness when he’s out on the field.”
One of Ternes’s biggest strengths as a player and as a leader is his great communication skills with his teammates. Junior Giovanni Diaz is one of his teammates who looks up to him, despite Ternes being younger than him.
“I think he definitely has the best [communication skills], ” Diaz said. “He always speaks up the most, and he always screams the loudest on the field. Every halftime, he is always the one who’s guiding us through things and motivating us.”
Ternes is very dedicated to improving his game, and his work during the off-season proves it. Ternes plays for a club team called FC Lake County to keep elevating his skills outside of school. He also keeps himself in cardiovascular shape by running a lot, which helps improve his stamina.
“During the off-season, I work hard every day by running to stay in shape and work on the details I would like to improve on for the upcoming season,” Ternes said.
An important aspect of being an athlete is being able to reflect on performance and point out things that are needed to improve. Ternes always holds himself accountable and reflects on his game in order to improve.
“One thing I have to work on is my shooting,” Ternes said. “I need to have more shots on goal in future games.”
Since Ternes is such an elite player with a love for soccer, he plans to play at the collegiate level after he graduates. Ternes’s hard work and dedication is paying off, and he has proved to be a great player at the high school level.
Come out to see Ternes and the Sequoits soccer team tonight at 6:15 p.m. against Round Lake High School down at the Sequoit stadium.
