Prolific Coronado goal scorers relish competition on, off field
Coronado’s Preston Judd and John Lynam aren’t much different from normal high school teenagers.
They like to have fun, play video games and partake in conventional adolescent activities.
“We just go hang out — hang out with some girls,” said Lynam, smiling.
But now that the fall sports season is in full swing, the fun and games briefly have been put on hold for their first and ultimate love: soccer.
With the increased focus, they again have proven to be one of Southern Nevada’s most formidable duos, all while turning Coronado’s boys into one of the favorites to win the Sunrise Region this season.
“We’re looking pretty good,” said Judd, the senior captain. “But we can all do better. I’ve had a lot of chances and haven’t finished all of them. It’ll matter more down the line, so I’m going to keep working on that.”
Judd and Lynam have combined for 15 goals and 11 assists through five matches this season and will continue having key roles should the Cougars — who last season finished as the Division I Sunrise Region runners-up — advance to their first state tournament in school history.
“What’s nice about it is if one’s having a bad day, then the other one picks it up,” said Coronado coach Dustin Barton, in his ninth season at the school. “If one gets mugged out of the game, the other one picks up the slack. It’s nice having two (star players). We’ve had one before, and he scored a lot of goals, but to have two is even better.”
Both players are coming off a season in which they scored 36 points apiece and were All-Southern Nevada selections. Judd also was an all-state honorable mention.
But they have higher hopes for this season. As of Wednesday morning, Lynam, a junior, leads Southern Nevada in scoring with eight goals and six assists, and Judd is second with seven goals and five assists.
“Sometimes we’ll joke around about the leaderboard, but we don’t take it that seriously,” Lynam said. “If we do that, I feel like it’d change our game. If we thought about that a lot, we’d try to keep the ball more and score instead of sharing passes and stuff.”
But the most important thing is that Coronado is off to a 4-1 start and has outscored its opponents 24-3.
“We had an idea (this might happen),” Judd said. “Because we knew coming into this we’d be a force to be reckoned with.”
Barton, who has coached in the Clark County School District for 13 years, didn’t mince words when asked where his two standouts rank among the players he’s had in the district.
“The best,” said Barton, without hesitation. “They’re different styles. John is more direct and runs at players. Preston stands players up and dishes the ball to John. They kind of work well together that way.”
It also helps that Judd and Lynam have become best friends off the field.
Whether they are playing FIFA on Xbox or asking girls on dates, there’s always a healthy competition.
“Off the field, we always hang out … just the usual thing,” Judd said. “On the field, I think we connect well. It’s kind of a competition out there between us.”
Contact reporter Ashton Ferguson at aferguson@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0430. Follow on Twitter: @af_ferguson