Sturdivant, Alma soccer team believes they’re getting close
By Kevin Taylor
Alma Schools
Edson Arantes do Nascimento once said, “Soccer is easy. People make it hard.”
Better known by his nickname, Pelé, the Brazilian-born international soccer player may have been on to something.
Theodore Roosevelt once said, “It is hard to fail, but it is worse never to have tried to succeed.”
Alma boys soccer coach Cory Sturdivant believes in these same philosophies, too. Then again, Pele and Teddy Roosevelt never had to negotiate the brutal 5A-West, either.
The 2026 Airedales were primed to break through this season. But a couple of tough losses and a tie with Mountain Home denied Sturdivant’s seniors a shot at history.
When the school’s only soccer coach gathered his players in the locker room on a stormy Friday night in early May, the tension was palpable.
“It was very hard and sad, probably one of the more difficult (losses), soccer-wise for me,” Sturdivant said. “We got into the locker room, and the boys did not yet know that Greenwood was trailing Mountain Home by one.”
Despite dropping a 1-0 decision to Siloam Springs, whose coach heaped tons of praise on Sturdivant’s team for its gallant effort, Alma still could have grabbed the fourth and final playoff seed had Greenwood beaten Mountain Home that same night.
They did not.
“We were disappointed in the loss to Siloam, but we knew we gave it everything we had,” Sturdivant said. “They played with grit and determination … but having to tell them Mountain Home won and would be advancing was extremely hard.”
It wasn’t just the rain that was pouring outside that made everyone wet; it was the tears of pride and frustration in that locker room as well.
“You could already feel the emotion in the room as I started talking, and I’m sure the guys could see it in my eyes,” Studivant said. “I wanted them to know that, regardless of how bad it hurt, to not get in (post-season), that I was very proud of the legacy they are leaving for future players.”
No statues will be built for Lukas Wald, Lukas Todd, or Jay Patel.
But there should be.
“Todd and Jay have been with me since seventh grade, talking soccer, living soccer, in my class, and all around,” Sturdivant said. “Walking into the locker room where their name tags used to be (last week) hit me probably harder than any other year, except the last two at Hot Springs.”
An Ozark native, Sturdivant won a pair of state titles in Hot Springs before taking over at Alma in 2017, from scratch, and hoping to click in the already powerful 5A-West.
But the 5A-West is actually the 6A-West, with larger, more established programs. Last week, Russellville was knocked out in the semifinals, meaning it wouldn’t be in the finals for the first time since 2013.
Since its inception in the spring of 2018, when the Airedales go head-to-head with three of the state powers (Russellville, Siloam Springs, and Van Buren) twice a season, the 5A-West has produced seven state champions, with the Cyclones winning six of them.
This week, Siloam Springs has a chance to make it eight straight with a win over El Dorado.
How tough is the 5A-West? Former member Greenbrier went from finishing seventh in its last year in the 5A-West to a second-place finish in the 5A-Central.
Young Guns
Sturdivant will have four seniors on next season’s roster, including veterans Daniel Rodriguez, Oscar Ventura, and Marco Canales.
But the core is in its strong underclassmen, most notably sophomore Hamir Thibodeaux and his school-record 13 goals in 14 matches, helping the Airedales to a school-record 6-9-1 record, including a 5-8-1 5A-West mark.
“Isaac Wald really stepped up this year and helped alleviate some of the pressure on Hamir, along with Trace Muszanski and Abel Lemus Peraza,” Sturdivant said. “Marco Canales and Danny Rodriguez will anchor our defensive back line next year. Mason Mahar, Brayden Standley, Dylan Martinez, Oscar Ventura, Jaxson Cook, and Joshua Osborn were able to give us a good look offensively and defensively.”
With 32 returning players, the Airedales will head into the 2026 season with a smaller conference, too, with Harrison dropping to 4A.
“We’re looking to build on the legacy of the year before and the players that came before us, but we can’t count on any past success - we have to live in the here and now and make things happen,” Sturdivant said. “If we are losing Harrison and not picking up another team, that makes those Farmington, Greenwood, and Mountain Home games that much harder and more competitive. I feel like the boys understand this is a tough conference, and our expectations are not only high, but we can have success and work towards getting into the state tournament.”