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Together They Stand

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SPECIAL TO THE TIMES

The Thousands Oaks boys’ soccer team will be the first to tell you pure talent doesn’t always determine who wins.

Thousand Oaks had more talent than any Marmonte League team last season, but a combination of big egos and little leadership earned the Lancers a fourth-place finish.

“Last year we had the talent and a lot of times guys were selfish and not willing to accept their roles, but things have changed,” Coach Mark Tietjen said. “Last year’s struggles were a key to helping us improve.”

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Erasing the memories of last season, Thousand Oaks (14-3-3, 8-1 in league play) has matured, using a positive and team-oriented attitude to become one of the region’s top teams.

“We have high expectations,” said forward Jeremy Terrell, one of six returning starters. “We are exactly where we planned on being.

“One of the big differences is our practices are taken very seriously.”

The Marmonte League was dominated by Simi Valley and Royal during most of the 1990s, but the Lancers have opened the new millennium by cruising through the Marmonte League.

They would be undefeated if not for a forfeit loss to Simi Valley. The forfeit occurred because a player who received a red card in a previous game was present.

Despite the forfeit the Lancers remain in first place and team chemistry is at an all-time high. Thousand Oaks is one game ahead of Westlake and Royal and a win over Westlake today and a Royal loss to Moorpark will clinch at least a share of the league title. Thousand Oaks last won the title in 1998.

“I always knew we had the talent,” Tietjen said. “It was just a matter of how we approached the season.”

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Tietjen is on the right track in building a program that has qualified for the postseason only once in his seven years. In 1998 the Lancers fell, 1-0, in the quarterfinals to eventual champion Loyola.

Thousand Oaks has scored three or four goals in all but one league game while outscoring opponents, 31-9.

Tietjen attributes much of the success to his assistant coaches, Matt Mahler and Edwin Astudillo. Both are former Thousand Oaks players who went on to play at Cal Lutheran and returned to help Tietjen build the program.

“The kids look up to them,” Tietjen said. “They run great sessions.”

Although the Thousand Oaks defense has remained strong, the offense is the focal point. Most teams build around one or two offensive threats, but the Lancers have four threats who have combined for 40 goals.

The offense flows through center midfielder Abraham Estrada, who in most instances dishes the ball to forward Danny Ermolovich, who then either scores or passes to Chris Jack or Terrell. Ermolovich is the team’s leading scorer with 11 goals and 20 assists. Terrell and Estrada have combined for 21 goals.

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