Owen Ulmer – I’m Owen.

Patrick May – I’m Patrick.

Ulmer – This is Athletes of West.

May – Today, we got to catch up with star soccer player Cameron Spangler about how the season is going so far and his goals in the future.

Ulmer – Who am I here with today?

Cameron Spangler – Cameron Spangler.

Ulmer – Cameron, what sport do you play?

Spangler – Soccer.

May – Cameron, how many years have you been on varsity?

Spangler – All four years.

Ulmer – So, how has the season gone for you so far?

Spangler – For me or for the team?

Ulmer – For both.

Spangler – For me personally, halfway through the season, I already have more goals and assists than I had last season, so that was a big goal for me. We lost an unlucky game for us, but we bounced back and are undefeated since. That was about the fifth or sixth game of the season.

Spangler – I mean, obviously, there are gonna be struggles week to week, injuries happen. One of our starting strikers, Kaden Johnson, broke his wrist, and he is out for the season, which took a hit on us. Other than that, we have been pretty solid. Obviously, there are struggles game to game and in the game, but that’s what we do in the Parkway West Soccer program: we overcome those problems.

May – You guys must have good chemistry. What do you do to build that?

Spangler – It was huge that most of us played together last year, losing three seniors really didn’t affect our team that much, so this chemistry has just been building for over a year now. We organize team bonding activities, including team dinners and breakfasts, to foster a sense of unity and strengthen our connections both on and off the field.

Ulmer – Being as good as you have been this season, are there any major goals you have for this season?

Spangler – That state chip. 

Ulmer – What do you guys have to do to get there, because I have heard you guys have a very hard district this year?

Spangler – Some would call this district the group of death. We have the number two and three ranked teams in the state in our district, and with us being number five, 

Ulmer – Are you a captain this year?

Spangler – Yes, I am.

Ulmer – Were you last year?

Spangler – Yes, I was.

Ulmer – How does that change your experience? You have to be more of a leader, and does that make your experience better or worse with the team?

Spangler – Being a captain on the team makes you realize the boys need someone to look up to. I’m not saying as a role model but as someone to set the tone before the games, during practice, so I always got to have a positive attitude, so it can rub off on them. If I make a mistake, I got to pick my head up right away. I can’t let that affect me, or else it can affect them. You always have to be picking them up, encouraging them, helping them, so they can be the best players that they can for our team. I got to be the best player and captain I can for our team.

May – Do you think being on varsity all four years has affected your high school career?

Spangler – Yes, I do.

May – In what ways, in the classroom, or in general?

Spangler – It definitely has affected me on the field, just having this experience, knowing what the other players play like. After that freshman and sophomore year, it made me want to get bigger, and I already knew how to play against those bigger guys. But now that I am bigger than I was, I can easily play around them, and my soccer skills have progressed, being able to play against the best competition all four years.

May – Coming into your freshman year, what was a big ‘welcome to varsity moment’?

Spangler – Just that big change of getting hit harder and having to get back up like nothing happened, that was a big welcome.

May – So, being on varsity for all four years, do you have a favorite season so far?

Spangler – Last year, my junior season, it was so fun, the team was so good, and I don’t want to speak too early, but this season has been tons of fun. I’m not gonna say more. We still have a couple of weeks left, and I am excited to see what it entails for us.

May – Who would you say is your biggest opponent on the schedule this year?

Spangler – It would definitely be Ladue, they have been ranked one or two in the state all year and they won state last year in Class 3, and now we both moved up to Class 4.

Ulmer – So teams like that are really good. How do you prepare for them and get ready to beat them?

Spangler – On the team, we try to say the next game is the biggest game of our season, so we are gonna prepare for them just as much as we would for any other team, and we will watch our film and just be ready and go into the game locked in.

May – What does the practice schedule look like?

Spangler – Well, we have games two or three times a week, so if we have games on a Monday, we will have a Sunday night practice. If any days throughout the week we don’t have games, it’s practice.

Ulmer – So Cameron, what really motivates you and keeps you going to do really well in your sport?

Spangler – It’s just my love for the game that pushes me to be the best I can. I have such good friends on the team, and I want to perform for them, and I hope it’s the same way the other way around. Like I said, just love for the game.

May – What is your biggest inspiration?

Spangler – My biggest inspiration is probably my family, my brother, my mom and my dad. They push me to be the best I can all the time.

Ulmer – Alright, that’s great, thanks for coming on, really appreciate you.

Spangler – Thanks for having me!

Ulmer – Alright.

May – Thank you for listening to the episode of Athletes of West.

Ulmer – And go watch Cameron do what he does best on the soccer field.