There are moments in life that provide a call to action. And there are moments that make you shake your head with disbelief.
Canyon sophomores Penelope and Iliana Hocking are two of the county’s rising stars in girls soccer, and both of the twin sisters have already committed to major college programs. But if not for a lollipop, things might be different.
A lollipop? It’s true, the family says.
Roughly 10 years ago, Denny Hocking and his wife, Venetta, signed their daughters up for parks and rec classes. Penelope was in soccer. Iliana was in cheerleading.
At the end of each soccer practice, Penelope’s team received a treat. Denny still chuckles as he remembers Iliana jumping into the line, hoping for a piece of candy.
“They said, ‘Well, you’re not in that class. If you don’t do the class, you don’t get a lollipop,’” Denny explained. “She was like, ‘Can you sign me up then?’ That’s actually how they both got involved in soccer.”
Iliana put her spin on the humorous story.
“I was a little five-year-old,” she said. “I barely knew what sports were, but I knew what candy was.”
Athletics is the lifeblood of the Hockings. Their father was a three-sport athlete (baseball, soccer and basketball). He had a 13-year Major League career with the Minnesota Twins, Colorado Rockies and Kansas City Royals. Venetta played junior college basketball.
Competitiveness came naturally for their children. Denny recalled that even in the recreational games in which no one was keeping score, his daughters knew if they had won or lost. The tough losses would be reflected on the way home.
“I just remember the car rides,” Iliana said. “It was dead silent. It was bad the whole day. It was something at an early age that we wanted to be great and to succeed.”
There haven’t been many silent car rides lately, as Canyon and the Hockings have been on a hot streak this month.
Canyon is 10-9-1 overall, but it has gone 4-2-1 since Jan. 1 and climbed to No. 9 in the county poll.
Penelope, the team’s primary striker, has seven goals this month, while Iliana has been the play-making midfielder who has been critical to the Comanches’ possession-oriented style.
In perhaps their biggest win of the season, a 2-0 victory over then top-ranked Esperanza, each Hocking sister scored a goal.
The twins give much of the credit for the team’s success to first-year coach Pedro Santos.
“The group is definitely having a lot of fun right now, and Pedro has been awesome,” Penelope said. “Everyone loves him. It’s a really good vibe with the team. Everyone is happy, supportive and positive.”
The Hockings have parlayed their soccer talents into an opportunity to play for Pac-12 schools. The twist is that when the sisters go off to college, it will be their first time on separate teams. Penelope, who is eighth in the county with 16 goals, has committed to USC. Iliana has committed to Arizona.
“They both try to be tough and say, ‘Oh, it’s going to be great,’ and things of that nature,” Denny said. “I think as we get closer to that day where one gets in a car and the other gets on a plane, it will be a really emotional day. Not only for them, but also my wife as well.”
For now, the Hockings are focused on helping the Comanches try to win the Crestview League title and then perhaps go on a long run in the CIF-SS playoffs.
Santos says the rest of the team is ready to follow the talented sisters.
“Even though they’re not the captains because we have three senior captains, they are leaders on the team,” Santos said. “You can tell that every single player looks up to them. They are natural leaders. They earned that position.”
