Katrina sings the national anthem at a recent match at Championship Soccer Stadium. | Photo courtesy of Orange County SC/Liza Rosales
Katrina Pesek first came across Orange County Soccer Club back when they were the OC Blues. She had recently sang for another current USL Championship in the Los Angeles Galaxy II and she figured there had to be a team closer to where she lived. She reached out and was invited to sing for the team and her love of the team grew.
She started in soccer with AYSO in middle school. She played a year in high school, but that was her last year playing as a kid. It wasn’t until a friend invited her to play for an adult team that she started playing again. Katrina shared her thoughts on getting back into playing. “I figured why not since that level soccer was for beginners and experienced alike and would serve as my ‘fun' form of exercise.” She began playing with several teams with her husband and even played indoor soccer too. All the while she was also a referee, which we won’t hold against her.
These days, soccer is a family affair. Her son was recruited to play on the OC club team, and this fueled their interest in soccer in general. Not only were they around it all the time, but they started to build a community around the beautiful game. She said “now we have soccer on TV more often than not, we are OCSC season ticket holders going on two years, and we are big OCSC and LAFC fans.” When not watching soccer, which is most of the time, she does take boxing lessons from Gary Ballard, a former professional fighter, so be careful when critiquing her rendition of the National Anthem.
She feels very fortunate to have the opportunity to sing for a team she loves. She wrote to me, “I am truly thankful for the Anthem opportunities, it's an amazing honor for me each and every time, and I am now one of OCSC's biggest fans!” Hopefully you have had the honor to hear her sing, and if not, that’s a big reason to come out to a game where you can hear her sing, or sing yourself with County Line Coalition. She gives everyone a personal invite, “embrace the soccer atmosphere! Get a scarf (and yes, wear it even in summer) and hold it high, sit with our team's supporter group for a game or two and cheer, sing, drum with them.” She goes on to add, “It makes the games more enjoyable, fun, and LOUD.”