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11/04/2021 12:00 AMCal Stephens has seen plenty of success during his time as a member of the Guilford boys’ soccer program. For starters, Cal won a SCC title with Guilford during his first full season of varsity play as a sophomore.
Now a senior, Cal helped the Grizzlies finish with a record of 11-4-2 in the regular season this year. A forward, Cal has scored 13 varsity goals for Guilford thus far in his high school career.
Cal grew up in a soccer family. He started playing the sport as a little kid and has been on the pitch ever since.
“We’re a big soccer family. I have three older siblings that also played soccer for Guilford. My dad had us all playing since we were little,” says Cal. “I love so many things about soccer. It’s called the beautiful game for a reason. My favorite aspect has to be the ability to show up every day with a new chance to give it your all.”
Cal’s most memorable moment as a soccer player to date came during his sophomore season, when Guilford made a championship run in the SCC Tournament. Cal and company secured the crown by defeating rival Hand in the conference final.
“Winning SCCs my sophomore year has to be my favorite memory as a player,” Cal says. “Golden goal win against Wilbur Cross, a semifinal win over Xavier in penalty kicks where I made one of the five penalty kicks for my team, and then topped off with a win over our rival Hand in the final. It was an awesome experience.”
Head Coach Curtis Gullette credits Cal for putting so much time into improving his skills as a soccer player. Gullette feels that Cal’s passion for the game inspires the Grizzlies and makes everyone around him that much better.
“This passion shows at each and every game and practice. During practices, Cal comes ready to put in the hard work necessary to improve. He is always working on his game and asking the coaches what he can focus on to enhance his contributions to the team,” says Gullette. “Cal is a resilient person who always puts the team first before himself, looking for ways to not only strengthen his individual game, but make the team stronger. It has been a pleasure to coach Cal.”
Cal says that his relationship with Coach Gullette has grown strong through the years.
“Coach Gullette and I have a good relationship,” Cal says. “I have been struggling with an illness the last two seasons, which has impacted my game, making for many ups and downs as a player. But being able to be vocal with him and find what coach wants of me has helped a lot.”
In addition to playing soccer, Cal plans on serving a two-year mission trip once he completes one year of college. Cal also enjoys snow and water skiing in his free time.
“I usually just like hanging out with the guys. I also have two dogs that I love to play with,” says Cal. “As a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, I plan to serve a two-year church mission after a year of college. I’m really looking forward to that.”
On the heels of a solid regular season, Guilford opened postseason play by competing in the SCC Tournament last week. The team’s next quest is the Class L State Tournament that gets underway this week. Cal is looking for the Grizzlies to make a big push for some championship hardware in states.
“The goal is to win states, and I know we can do it, because we can play with anyone,” Cal says. “We had a tough overtime loss to Fairfield Prep in the first round of SCCs, but I know the boys will bounce back and be even hungrier for states. We have a great group of guys that I think highly of that are hard workers with high ambitions.”