BIDDEFORD, Maine — As the boys high school soccer regular season came to a close, there was a different energy around Biddeford's practice last week.
For the first time in a long time, the Tigers enter the playoffs with a winning record. Two reasons for the turnaround of the program share the same last name: Kristopher, who goes by Zeus, and Saion Rankin.
The brothers were born into a military family and raised in Okinawa, Japan, where their American father, Jason, lived for decades and eventually met the boys' mother. Jason said his family has a tradition of military service and he wanted his sons to come to America before graduating high school so they could go to college here.
The three of them live with Zeus and Saion's grandparents in Biddeford. Now that they're settled in their new community, the Rankins have been making a name for themselves on the soccer field, and using any advantage they can to score goals and win games.
“We speak Japanese on the field, and the kids around—they don’t understand," Zeus, who is a senior, said.
While they've helped improve the play of their teammates over the last two seasons, their teammates have helped them adjust to Maine culture and the English language.
The language barrier was tough during their first year in Biddeford, the Rankin brothers said, but they work on their English speaking and writing every day. Saion, a sophomore, said he's noticed his English has improved this year, and he enjoys going to school and practice with his friends. Their schedules are a lot different now compared to when they were in Japan.
“After school [in Japan], I usually [went] to soccer [for] two to three hours, then came home, then go back to night school to study. I didn’t like that, but I had to do it," Zeus said with a chuckle.
Jason said every day in Japan was a soccer day for his sons, which included practices and games for up to eight hours on the weekends. He also grew up playing the sport, and he said it's awesome to see his two younger sons take the field together.
“They have great chemistry," Jason explained. "They [know that they] can pass the ball to one another, and they know that other person will make that run and they’ll hit that long ball to them."
Sometimes without saying a word, Zeus and Saion have connected for plenty of goals this season, helping the Tigers finish with a 9-5 regular season record.
“It’s been good this year," Saion joked, "Because I [scored] a lot more than last year".
Despite being in Maine for just two years, Zeus volunteers as a youth soccer coach and even referees youth games, because he knows there's a shortage of officials in the state. Jason added that Zeus wants to give back to the sport he loves and help grow the game in Maine.
For that service, Zeus was awarded the 2023 Harold Charlton Memorial Award by the Western Maine Board of Approved Soccer Officials for his "leadership, ability, and sporting behavior on the soccer field."
On the field, he scored 12 goals last season and was named to the Southern Maine Athletics Association's All-Conference First Team.
While the accolades are great to hang on their grandparents' refrigerator, the Rankins are excited to share the soccer field, and the ball, for as long as they can.
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