PLAYOFF PROFILES : Castro Drives Just for Kicks

Five days a week, Luis Castro rises at 5 a.m. in Lake Los Angeles, near Palmdale, and drives at least 1 hour 15 minutes to attend Cleveland High.

But he is not complaining.

Castro, a senior on the Cleveland boys’ soccer team, has 20 goals in 16 games and the Cavaliers (12-2-5) have advanced to the second round of the City Section playoffs.

Cleveland plays at Garfield on Friday.

Castro, a speedy center midfielder, was not widely known last season when he helped Cleveland post a 6-4-4 record and reach the playoffs for the first time in the 1990s.

Thanks to a conspicuous start, he often has been a marked man this season.

In the Hart tournament last December, he scored seven goals in four games and led Cleveland to the championship.

The tournament title was a turning point for the Cavaliers, who finished second behind Birmingham in the Northwest Valley Conference.

Castro’s family has a big investment in Cleveland soccer. His older brother, Wilber Quintanilla, has been instrumental as an assistant boys’ coach. His sister, Patti, is a junior on the girls’ team.

When his family moved to Antelope Valley a year and a half ago, Castro briefly attended Littlerock High but chose to return to Cleveland and endure a lengthy daily commute.

“I felt like I’d never fit in at Littlerock,” Castro said. “For me, making new friends and all that stuff is hard.”

Castro certainly fits in at Cleveland.

“He’s definitely their playmaker in the middle and one of the most dangerous players in the city,” Chatsworth Coach Desmond Willows said of Castro.

Castro’s talents have made him a target for double teams and rough play, and he missed a pair of games with a shoulder injury.

“At first . . . I got frustrated,” Castro said. “But once you accept that they’re gonna keep an eye on you that gets you pumped up to try even harder.”