Boys soccer: Avendaño overcomes adversity, stars at St. Charles East

Adversity didn't stand a chance against Renato Avendaño's perseverance.

Most kids would quit playing soccer if they were dealt the kind of setbacks Avendaño has, but the St. Charles East senior isn't like most other kids.

He loves the game like so many do but he also possesses a rare, innate drive to fight through injuries, and because of that quality he wouldn't allow another torn labrum destroy his hopes and dreams of having a great final season in a Saints uniform.

And oh what a year it was.

The DuKane Conference Player of the Year and All-State selection led the Saints to an 18-2-3 season and a conference championship despite playing with a torn labrum. He gritted his teeth through the physical pain while not allowing the injury to drain him mentally from being a leader through a rugged schedule, which included an undefeated conference season.

He's also the 2019 captain of the Daily Herald Fox All-Area boys soccer team.

"There was no denying his talent, but whether he could stay healthy enough and he muscled through it," Saints coach Vince DiNuzzo said. "He was often in a lot pain and inflamed, and as a coach you're kind of looking at him and talking to his parents to make sure everything is good. He even postdated his surgery until after the season because of his passion and commitment for the team. That's pretty remarkable and was special to watch."

The 5-foot-10, 140-pound senior has fought through hardship in recent years like few have. He was unable to play during his eighth grade and freshman years because of Osgood-Schlatter syndrome.

As a sophomore, DiNuzzo was tempted to bring him up to varsity, recognizing the amount of talent he could offer the team, but he was recovering from a labrum tear in the spring so he made his debut on the JV squad instead. He tore his labrum again the following April and has been fighting through the injury ever since.

"I struggled with the injury my whole junior season and then on my first game back from the surgery I got hurt again," he said. "So I spent the whole summer trying to rehabilitate the muscle and focused on being healthy for my senior season but once (the new season) rolled around it still hadn't healed at all so I had to push through it."

While Avendaño didn't participate physically with the team during the summer, he was still there alongside his teammates.

"He earned the respect of teammates over the summer," DiNuzzo said. "He attended everything and supported his team from the bench. He encouraged them and his commitment spoke to his leadership in being voted as fourth captain."

While Avendaño's a fierce competitor, he's also super outgoing and friendly, so it's not surprising that his teammates have great respect for him.

"He is one player that is always looking to push the other people around him because he's always trying to be better each and every day," senior Brendan Adams said. "Even through injury there was never a game that he did not give the other 10 teammates on the field 110%. Everyone this year played a significant role in some way and from early on you could tell he found his quickly from scoring goals on the field and being a role model off the field."

Avendaño led the team with 15 goals and added three assists, often showcasing his ability to break backlines down by beating players one-v-one and stretching backlines with his pace. The result was a truly dangerous goal scorer regardless of the name on the opponent's uniform.

"I was definitely proud of all the goals we accomplished," he said. "And how hard we were able to push ourselves and to come together as a team."

Born in Illinois, Avendaño is half French and half Guatemalan, and 100% soccer player, with hopes to play somewhere next year.

"My mom is from France and moved here when she was 20," he said. "Both of my dad's parents moved here from Guatemala and my dad was studying abroad and his host family ended up being my mom's family and eventually over time they started dating. French is my first language."

Renato Avendaño a beaucoup de talent au football et veut que l'on se souvienne de lui comme d'un enfant capable de parler à tout le monde et de s'amuser avec tout le monde.

(Translation: Renato Avendano is very talented at soccer and wants to be remembered as the kid who could talk to anyone and have fun with everyone).

"His personality is best described as funny," Adams said. "His humor is contagious, always keeping a smile on the faces around him."

His younger brother and teammate, Luca, a sophomore, certainly has someone to look up to.

"Playing with Renato is amazing," he said. "He is one of the hardest working people I have ever been around in my life. He has a huge passion for soccer and nothing can stop him."