The University of the Virgin Islands
online student newspaper
"Impacting Our Islands One Voice at a Time"
The UVI soccer team has had almost as many changes in coaches as they have been playing the past few years. It seems as though once a suitable coach is found, they move on the next year. This year, UVI welcomes another new coach, Joe Zakowicz. This coach seems to be helping the UVI students and soccer players get better every day. Makenzie Glover, a player who’s been with the team since Fall of 2017 says, “We’re better than previous years, conditioning-wise.”
Soccer is extremely popular on most Caribbean islands, and certainly is on St. Thomas. To Tarika Woods, a rising Communications scholar, “It is the one thing [the St. Croix campus] has that St. Thomas doesn’t.” Because it is a unique gem STX wants to hold onto, the Soccer Team is under some pressure to increase their competitive level. Hopefully Zakowicz can bring that competitive edge. Glover told us that Zakowicz is planning on doing some recruiting next year. “He wants local talent, [but also wants] a junior varsity and varsity boys team.” In order to get the numbers required for this, he’ll have to bring in as many students as he can. Florida will be a likely place to find such talent. When asked about next year’s schedule of games, Glover replied, “Coach plans to travel in the states and the JV mens’ team will travel to Puerto Rico.”
This sport doesn’t just provide a great workout and extracurricular to our college. A handful of the team’s players have come to UVI St. Croix primarily because they receive a full-ride scholarship for playing. In some cases, these talented students would have trouble paying for an education otherwise. Players on the team come from all over the United States and other Caribbean islands to capitalize on this scholarship. Some of their locations include Texas, Brazil, Jamaica, and South Carolina. Zakowicz intends on making his current team better, while bringing extra players to up the stakes. As Glover remarks, “[We] still have a lot of work ahead of us, but it will be worth it to have a successful soccer team on island.”