Soccer has always been part of Clark Erdahl’s ‘28 life. Through the 14 years Erdahl has been playing soccer, he’s been at center back and defensive midfield, and is not a stranger to pressure on and off the field.
“I like playing center back because I get to touch the ball a lot, and I get to make a lot of passes and get to do hard tackles. What’s difficult about being at center back is that you can’t really make any mistakes because making mistakes is usually a goal for the other team, so you have to be really good on the ball.”
During the off-season, Erdahl plays club soccer at ISC and puts in countless hours of work, trying to better himself for the High school season.
“Mostly, I just worked on my touches. Just juggling a lot, doing a lot of on the ball stuff. Getting more touches on the ball always helps,” Erdahl said.
For Erdahl, the transition from Club to High school season involves “a lot more training in the weight room, and stuff with the team, there’s a lot more to do during the high school season.”
City High lost 10 seniors last season, with eight of them being starters. The transition from last year opened opportunities for different players to step up their role on the team and get more involved.
“Last year we lost a lot of seniors, so this year it’s more of a like everybody’s involved role in the team, there’s more freedom and all of that stuff,” Erdahl said.
Erdahl has big goals for his second year on varsity. Last season, the team went undefeated in conference play and finished with a record of 15-2-3 overall.
“My goal going into the season is to become a regular player, regular starter, and to go win state.”
Erdahl was one of only two freshmen to be picked for the varsity team last season and has made many memories as part of the team. Last year, City High hosted Bettendorf for the substate final and went on to win 4-2, paving their way to state.
“My favorite memory was when we won the substate final, and we made it to state. [His favorite part about that game] was probably when our keeper Beckett saved a penalty that they had, he was the backup as well.”
As the soccer season kicks off, Erdahl is excited “to get in the game, getting to play more.”
