Cap's Vaquerano Nears End of Stellar Prep Career

goal-scoring sensation Stephanie Vaquerano likes to keep things simple when she’s on the soccer field.

“If I ever think about things too much when I’m out there I hesitate, and once you hesitate it’s all downhill from there,” the Mustangs' senior forward said.

Easy for her to say.

Vaquerano doesn’t have to sweat the tactical planning most of her offensive counterparts rely on to get past a crowd of defenders. Her jackrabbit quickness affords her the luxury of finding her own way. And more often than not, by the time her defenders catch up, it’s too late.

“She’s really hard to defend because you think she’s going one way and she goes the other,” said Capuchino sweeper Victoria Chavez, who played against Vaquerano in youth leagues. “When she’s gone, she’s gone. Nobody’s catching up.”

Vaquerano boasts a powerful and accurate left-footed shot and excellent goal-scoring instincts to go along with her speed, a skill set that demands opponents employ multiple defenders to try to contain her, Capuchino coach Rich Medina said.

Vaquerano, believed to be among the program’s all-time leading scorers, has the Mustangs on the brink of their first Peninsula Athletic League Ocean Division title in seven years after six consecutive second-place finishes.

Capuchino, 11-1 in the PAL Ocean, can clinch the title when it plays second-place Mills (9-0-3) at 7pm on Tuesday at Mills High. The winner of the game gets an automatic Central Coast Section playoff berth.

But after she concludes her distinguished prep career sometime in the next few weeks, Vaquerano doesn’t know if she’ll ever play organized soccer again.

Overlooked by four-year college teams?

Despite an impressive soccer resume that includes being a four-year varsity player and the PAL Ocean’s forward of the year as a sophomore, Vaquerano is not widely known outside local circles.

Most Peninsula coaches believe that’s because Vaquerano does not play on the elite premier club circuit where most four-year colleges scout potential recruits. Scouts have apparently overlooked her performance on the San Bruno Galaxy (level-1) club team and at Capuchino.

Vaquerano said she wants to play collegiate soccer, but that “academics come first.” Vaquerano has a 3.8 GPA and wants to major in criminal justice. She’s considering a career in law enforcement after she completes her college degree.

She hopes to become Capuchino’s first scholarship player since 2002 graduate Kelsey Hollenbeck (University of Portland).

“I think I’d bring a lot of devotion and a lot of passion,” Vaquerano said when asked what she thinks she’d bring to a four-year school. “I love this sport and going to a four-year and playing it with other people who love this sport would be amazing.”

Medina believes four-year colleges are overlooking a prized prospect.

“The JCs are asking about her,” Medina said. “But the (four-year) schools aren’t coming to our games.”

Medina said Vaquerano’s pace separates her from garden-variety high school prospects with advanced technical skills and average speed.

Medina, who played San Francisco League soccer, said the biggest difference he noticed between the second-tier major divisions and elite premier division was the speed of the game.

“In the lower divisions, they had a couple of players who are fast,” he said. “In the premier division, everyone’s fast.”

That bodes well for Vaquerano, among the fastest high school players Medina’s seen.

“She has an extra gear that other players don’t have and she uses it all the time,” Medina said.

'It’s sad to know that my high school career is ending'

Vaquerano has made believers of coaches throughout the league.

Sequoia coach Melissa Schmidt said Vaquerano compares favorably to several of her former players who’ve gone on to play at Division II schools.

“She’s got a ton of speed and a lot of hustle, that’s what’s most impressive about her,” Schmidt said. “There seems to be a lot of natural ability there.”

“She’s really skilled and she knows how to score goals,” said Mills coach Caroline Tiziani.

Tiziani, who coached Division II soccer at San Francisco State, believes that with some more polish, Vaquerano could be an impact Division II player.

Asked if she thinks she’s been overlooked, Vaquerano paused, and then acknowledged she hadn’t really considered it.

Then again, she never expected to score more than 100 goals at Capuchino when she went out for the team freshman year.

“I just thought I’d do it for fun and keep in shape,” she said. “It wasn’t something I really thought I was that amazing at.”

But as the end of her prep career draws near, she’s not taking anything for granted.

“It’s sad to know that my high school career is ending because this has been one of the most fun years we’ve had,” she said. “It’s sad knowing that I’m not going to be able to come back here and play again.”

She’s hopeful to go out in grand fashion, helping the Mustangs end six years of futility.

“It would be the greatest thing to end my senior year off” with a league championship, Vaquerano said. “We tried so hard and we’ve always come in second. This is our final chance.”