From girls to boys, and from freshmen to seniors, Rocklin High School has great talent in the game of soccer. Over the Thanksgiving break, many students hit the road to sunny San Diego, California to play in a college showcase soccer tournament known as the Surf Cup.

The motto sported by the Surf Cup is “best of the best”. According to the Surf Cup’s website, the tournament draws the attention of thousands of spectators and attracts more than 400 college coaches and scouts.

Sophomore Sam Tarazi was one of the participants in the tournament and expressed how nerve-wracking the experience was.

“It felt like they were looking for flaws,” said Sam. “[I had to] just shut them out and just focus on the game mostly. Like I wouldn’t look over.”

A major tournament provided major competition, however, and Sam’s team had to square up against teams that were ranked top three from other states. Included in this list was the very best team from Idaho, who lost to Sam’s team.

Jordan Schneider, a freshman, was another student who made the trip down south. He, too, found the tournament to be daunting.

“It was very nerve-wracking in the beginning of the tournament but as the games went on, it got easier and less nerve-wracking” said Jordan.

Both Sam and Jordan’s favorite part of the whole experience was getting to spend time performing in front of college coaches.

Junior girl Brooke Manley and her club took part in the tournament as well. Brooke loved her time in San Diego, saying “It was an amazing experience that I’ll remember forever. As you walk in you can already feel the energy buzzing and all the nerves from all the kids. Everyone there belongs to be there because it’s the best of the best.”

This San Diego college showcase was a huge opportunity for many boys and girls from Rocklin High to gain higher level attention and there may just be some stars that were captured from Rocklin High over Thanksgiving break.