QUINCY – Israel Perez has led a full athletic career, participating in a variety of sports as a Quincy Jackrabbit, but soccer has been the sport that has stuck with him the most over the years. 

“I used to live in front of a park when I lived in a different state, we just saw the rec league and signed up,” said Perez. “Then, when I came over (to Quincy), I got into club soccer in middle school with a couple of friends.” 

Perez said he played with the club soccer team, Quincy United, throughout his middle school years before moving on to play for the Jacks at the high school level. His career with the Jacks was met with an unexpected bump when COVID caused both his sophomore and junior seasons to be cancelled.

Despite the challenges, the Jacks came back for Perez’s senior season in 2022, where he was the team captain that year, said Jacks’ head coach Hector Vaca. 

“We had a great team, and Israel was part of that with his great leadership skills and actually played every single minute of every single game that year,” said Vaca. “We really heavily relied on him and the defensive back.” 

The Jacks finished the season with a 13-5-1 record, earned first in the 1A Caribou Trail district tournament and made a run in the state playoffs, where they earned second. Perez said that year was the first time the team had made the state tournament in a few years and has continued to qualify for state each year since. 

“It was good to be a part of the change and going to state, at least to play,” he said. 

Vaca said what stood out to him the most about Perez was how hard he worked for the team and his ability to maintain a positive attitude no matter how difficult the situation might be. 

“You’d never hear him complain about anything; no matter how bad something was, he would just put his head down and keep working,” said the coach. 

One thing that Perez said he took away from his time playing with the Jacks was the opportunity to connect with a variety of people from all around the area, which could open the door to a range of new opportunities.  

Following graduation from Quincy High School and the Running Start program at Big Bend Community College, Perez took a two-quarter hiatus to figure out where he wanted to go next with his career. A friend convinced him to pursue a career in aviation, which eventually brought him to Walla Walla University, where he said he was impressed by both their aviation program and soccer program. 

“I looked around and it was one of the few schools that had soccer and aviation,” he said. 

Perez said playing at the collegiate level has been much more intense in terms of commitment, intensity and technique. He has had to learn to be more strategic in how he makes plays on the field now. 

One of the biggest challenges that he and his teammates are working to tackle as he now enters his senior season with Walla Walla University has been not winning many league games. He said that the team has begun to turn itself around and is expecting that they will find success this coming season. 

As the start of the university’s soccer season approaches and Perez enters his final year playing with the team, he said he is most looking forward to spending time with his team, playing more, winning more and seeing the program continue to turn itself around. 

“Just taking it all in for the last year,” said Perez. “Make some memories before the season’s over.” 

Looking toward his future following this season, Perez said he wants to continue with his path of becoming a commercial pilot. Following his graduation from Walla Walla, he plans to stay with the school and work as a flight instructor, where he can earn his hours until he is eligible to begin applying at major airlines. 

Perez has also started his own business in Walla Walla called Ace’s Moss and Wash, where he offers moss removal, gutter cleaning and pressure washing services. 

“We’re going two years strong,” he said. “It’s helped me through school and flight expenses.” 

He said he wants to thank all the coaching staff in Quincy that helped him get to the position he is today, including Vaca, his wrestling coach, Breck Webley, youth basketball coach Jennifer Gardner and the high school cross country coaches Andrew Schmitt and Ruth Royer. 

    During a previous game for Walla Walla University, Israel Perez and his opponent try to prevent each other from making progress on the field. In his senior season with the Quincy Jacks, Perez was the team captain and led the team to the state playoffs.
  

    Israel Perez and his teammate cross paths waiting for the opposing team to bring the soccer ball back into play. Perez said he is pursuing a career in aviation and started his own business to help pay for college.
  

    During his sophomore wrestling season, Israel Perez faces an opponent from Warden. Perez was involved in a variety of sports at Quincy High School including soccer, wrestling and cross country.