Luis Luviano takes over Oak Hills girls soccer program after memorable run at Hesperia

The local soccer scene was shaken up Thursday afternoon when Luis Luviano announced his departure from the Hesperia High School boys soccer program.

Oak Hills High School Athletic Director Shawn Yancey made it official, confirming that Luviano has been hired as the school’s girls soccer head coach.

“Tell them I’m coming,” Luviano said, directed at the rest of the teams in the Mojave River League. “I don’t say that to be cocky, but I say that as a confident coach. Knowing the caliber of coach I am now, I hope I can take over this program and continue the path that Oak Hills girls soccer has been on. I know they’ve accomplished a lot and I look forward to meeting the girls, continue the same path and give them a little bit of Coach Luviano’s swag.”

Making the shift to Oak Hills signifies the end of an era that began nearly two decades ago, when Luviano graduated from Hesperia in 2005.

Luviano’s coaching career at Hesperia High School began in 2007 with the junior varsity squad. He worked his way to the program’s head coach for the 2013-14 season.

When mulling the decision, Luviano made sure it was carefully thought out.

Luviano’s daughter, Alyna, just graduated from eighth grade at Cedar Middle School, which is just a short drive from Oak Hills High School. She will be attending Oak Hills as a freshman and it’s been Luviano’s dream to coach her in high school.

“She’s the sole reason for this change and honestly this was the most difficult decision I’ve ever had to make in my life,” Luviano said Thursday afternoon after taking a photo at Oak Hills High School, making the job official. “It’s making me emotional because I'm going to miss the boys. It’s something that’s going to be on my mind for such a long time. But knowing that my daughter wants her dad to stand on the sidelines with her for the next four years is priceless. This is a beautiful disaster. It was beautiful while I was there and respectfully, I give the staff at Hesperia the credit for my coaching career.”

In taking over the Oak Hills girls program, Luviano replaces Joe Kulm, who served as the head coach since the 2012-13 season.

Kulm stepped down from the program looking to spend more time with his family and to “accomplish a few other things.”

“Oak Hills has been a wonderful place to coach,” Kulm said Thursday. “The athletes, parents, administration, teachers and staff are always very, very supportive and truly want the best for our students and community. I will continue to support the students, and the program as a teacher at Oak Hills but just won’t be coaching.”

Over the years, Kulm’s squads amassed a record of 175-67-25. He led the Bulldogs to the CIF-Southern Section Division 3 title in 2019, and the CIF Southern Regional Div. II championship in 2020.

“We are super grateful because stars aligned perfectly and we have the right guy for the job,” Oak Hills Athletic Director Shawn Yancey said. “Joe Kulm did amazing things for this program and honestly those are big shoes to fill. … But Luis did a killer job with the Hesperia boys program and we are excited because his history of success is what stood out the most.”

Luviano is well aware of what’s expected from him following Kulm’s success.

“I know those are big shoes to fill because Coach Kulm did his part,” Luviano said. “He’s got a CIF title and a regional title to his name. I never got a chance to get the title, we were close but just fell short in losing in penalty kicks.”

After two losing seasons, going 11-22-12 collectively in his first seasons as head coach, it was all uphill for Luviano’s squads.

In the 2016-17 campaign, the Scorpions captured the MRL title and went on to capture five more over the next six seasons.

During that span, the Scorpions also went on several deep playoff runs, starting with  Division 5 CIF-SS and CIF regional title game appearances in 2018.

Hesperia was eliminated in the Division 5 quarterfinals in 2019 and in 2020 made another run to the Division 4 CIF-SS title game, followed by a CIF regional semifinals berth.

After a one-year absence from the playoffs during the pandemic shortened season, Hesperia made a run to the Division 3 quarterfinals in 2022, and then lost in the second round of the Division 2 playoffs this season.

Luviano ended his tenure at Hesperia with a total record of 136-68-35.

“This 10 year stretch as head coach really taught me a lot but it’s time to move on to a new chapter in life and that’s coaching girls,” Luviano said. “We had success with the boys going from Division 5, all the way up to Division 1/2 this year and competing against the best teams in Southern California. I’ve had many players move on to compete at the next level. That run was just awesome. So I’m super excited to start this new chapter.”

As for advice for his successor at Hesperia.

Patience is a virtue.

“Please be patient,” Luviano said. “Those are super special boys, especially this next coming season. Hopefully the same philosophy of a holistic environment, when it comes to student-athletes continues. The student part comes first, so hopefully whoever it is remains on top of their academics and has good communication with their teachers.”

This article originally appeared on Victorville Daily Press: Luviano takes over Oak Hills girls soccer program after memorable run at Hesperia