The Marsaline
Fans of futsal, a form of indoor soccer, will have a chance to be a part of a tournament on May 8, hosted by Rebecca Hernandez and three Spanish Club members, Manny Suarez, Valerie Flores and Kendra Ruiz. The tournament is scheduled for 4 to 9 p.m., and the admission cost is $1 per person.
“It’s an activity for students so they can participate in it and have fun,” said Hernandez.
There’s a limit of how many players can be on a team and how many players are on the court. Hernandez stressed that rules are in place to eliminate complaints or concerns about the event.
“Eight players are on one team – six players are on the court with two substitutes,” said Hernandez. “The rules prevent any injuries, and both halves are 15 minutes each.”
Hernandez said she really hopes this event goes well. As the club has been playing the sport for years, it has become a tradition.
“In the past, the Spanish Club hosted futsal but never took it seriously, so this year we decided to make it a tournament,” said Hernandez. “I believe that it’ll bring more recognition to soccer, and since the boys’ soccer team won state, it’s good to keep the momentum going.”
In Marshall there’s no indoor soccer facility, so the event will take place at MHS in the gym. The event originally was planned for late April but was rescheduled to accommodate testing taking place in the gym.
Spanish Club’s first priority was to have at least four teams enter to make a round-robin tournament. Organizing this event took a lot of time and work from the members.
“Our intention is to have four teams enter and have a bracket with one winner, and hopefully spectators will come and watch,” said Hernandez. “It took a lot of brainstorming, but we got three committee members and the help of the girls’ head coach to organize this event.”