Xavier implements strenuous training drills to stay sharp during 11-day hiatus

CEDAR RAPIDS — In basketball, the “killer” conditioning drill is designed to improve players’ speed, agility and endurance on the court.

The Cedar Rapids Xavier boys’ soccer team practices something similar, albeit a bit more sophisticated.

The Saints play “murderball.”

“It’s extremely tiring,” junior captain Owen Vasquez said. “Whenever the ball goes out of bounds, it’s immediately played back in by Sho (Takaoka) to an open player, straight in the air or to a goalkeeper. The ball never really stops, so you always have to be on your toes.”

After a 2-1 win over Class 3A No. 2 Iowa City Liberty in its regular-season finale on May 16, Xavier has 11 days before hosting Independence in a Class 2A Substate 4 semifinal May 27.

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“With the time off, we were planning to go pretty intense,” Coach Takaoka said. “Murderball is kind of like a continual 11 vs. 11 — no stoppage. It pushes limits a lot.”

Takaoka said he got the concept from professional soccer coach Marcelo Bielsa, current coach of the Uruguay national team.

“If you’re doing 45 minutes of murderball, you’re getting a lot more fitness than playing a regular 80-minute game with all the stoppages,” Takaoka said. “Sometimes we do four sets of 12 minutes or even break it down to sets of six minutes, depending on what we want to work on.”

“The time limit tells us how intense it needs to be,” Vasquez said. “If it’s five sets of five minutes, that means we’re going to be really, really intense for five minutes and then get a break. Versus today (Tuesday), it was 15 minutes for three sets, so while it’s intense, it’s not nearly as taxing on the body.”

It may sound intimidating, but the Saints have bought in.

“It’s a lot of fun,” Vasquez said. “Not having to do throw-ins or corner kicks means there’s a higher chance you get the ball.

“I’d also say it’s great practice because one of the things we do well is getting the ball back into play quickly — so working on that where the ball never stops is great for us to take into games.”

The tactics appear to be working for Class 2A’s third-ranked Saints (9-2-1).

Xavier finished second in the Mississippi Valley Conference Mississippi Division — a group comprised of primarily 3A and 4A opponents.

“We’re not afraid to hang with those bigger schools and pull out a win,” Vasquez said. “I think this team has a large level of grit.”

Vasquez is a key member of what Takaoka considers his “junior core.”

“This junior group, five or six of them, have been starting since their freshmen year,” Takaoka said. “There has been a lot of anticipation with how this season was going to go. Finally, these guys are juniors that are the core of the team.”

Among that core is Vincent D’Amico, who leads the team with 10 goals and 8 assists.

“Vinny is having a breakthrough season,” Takaoka said. “When he gets the ball, he beats one guy, two guys, dribbling and then usually scores or assists. He’s been very impactful.”

Also standing out is junior Thomas Cavin, a 3A first-team all-state selection in 2024.

“Thomas has been the starting center-back for the last three years,” Takaoka said. “He keeps the defense tight and covers a lot of ground.”

Senior Baxter Hennessey serves as the other team captain. His assignment is helping to control the midfield.

While expectations are high, the Saints aren’t looking past what’s in front of them.

“Any team can beat any team on any day,” Vasquez said. “It doesn't matter that we're the 1-seed. We still need to prepare mentally and physically so that we can show we're the better team to seal it and head to state.”

Should Xavier advance to the substate final, it will host the winner of Dubuque Wahlert and Center Point-Urbana on May 29.

“One game at a time — whoever comes out of the game, we have to take care of business,” Takaoka said. “I think Wahlert is one of the toughest No. 2 seeds in any of the substate brackets because of who they’ve played. If it’s CPU instead, we have to be ready for them, too.”