When it comes to talented soccer players... one must look at Harbor Teacher Prep High of Wilmington to find a perfect example of someone who is not only talented, but loves the game, and it shows whenever you see her.

Junior forward Mayela Medina has established herself in just three years among the greats in CIF-Los Angeles City Section for the Monarchs, who have won the last two Division 5 championships in a row, including when they defeated Community Charter of Los Angeles, 4-0 at Sotomayor High back on March 5. 

Overall, Medina has established the top scoring record in the CIF-LACS each of her past two seasons where you get two points for each goal you score, and an added point for assisting on a goal. Medina scored an astounding 91 points by producing 37 goals and 17 assists for Harbor Teacher Prep (20-3-2 overall), who's season ended on a 3-3 tie with The Webb Schools in a CIF Division 5 State Regional game, but the Monarchs lost on a penalty kick shootout.

"In my opinion, penalty shootouts does not define which team is better on the pitch because it can be anyone's game," says Medina, who was named to the All-City overall first team and All-City Division 5 team. "If it was over time like two 15-minute halves we could have definitely won because I feel like we controlled most of the game." 

Medina started playing soccer at 6 1/2 years old after seeing her brother so involved in the sport, and would later choose her high school destination at the school that's birthed on the campus of Los Angeles Harbor College.

"I was in A.V.I.D. from 7th-8th grade in middle school and my teacher Mr. Ortiz introduced me to the school," said Medina, who currently has a 3.4 GPA. "And I was interested since the very first time he told me about it because I knew it would be a great opportunity for both my education and sports."

In spite of Medina's individual brilliance, she is an integral part on what is a balanced, deep and determined Harbor Teacher Prep team that also featured the CIF-LACS Division 5 Player Of The Year, senior midfielder Andrea Aldama (30 goals, 15 assists), senior MF/D Marilyn Angeles (11 goals, 27 assists), senior defender Briana Eure (9 goals, 5 assists) and sophomore goalkeeper Marimar Calisto, who all made the All-CIF LACS Division 5 team.

In the Division 5 final against Community Charter, Medina scored twice and assisted on one of Aldama's goals as the Monarchs dominated the game from the outset, a stark contrast to what was an evenly-matched final a year ago against fellow Crosstown League foe Bright Star of Los Angeles, where Harbor Teacher Prep won 2-0.

"Overall we just had better team chemistry on the field which was one key component that was missing from last season," Medina said. "And just the fact that we doubled the score from last season's championship game."

The championship game itself doesn't even tell the whole story of how Harbor Teacher Prep did under three-year coach Mike Asfali throughout the 2015-2016 season.

December 18, 2015 marked a turning point in the Monarchs' future success, as they hosted neighbor Banning of Wilmington in a night game at Harbor College for Harbor Teacher Prep's homecoming. Medina slipped past a crack in the Pilots' defense to score a goal that eventually sparked Harbor Teacher Prep to a 2-0 lead, and they held on for a 2-1 victory, giving the Monarchs' an early marquee victory over a Marine League school.

"(Defeating Banning) was a great deal to us," Medina said. "Anyone in the stands could easily see that we wanted that win badly, and we got it so it felt like a mission accomplished."

That wouldn't be it for Medina and the Monarchs though, as they impressed mightily in the San Pedro Lady Pirate Cup just a few days later, winning three out of four games against Roosevelt of Los Angeles, Cabrillo of Long Beach and Marquez of Huntington Park, only losing 2-0 to host San Pedro, coming within a couple eyelashes of winning the Cup.

"We were still coming together as a team but we gave it our all and had great performances," Medina said. "Hopefully this upcoming season if we compete in the Pirate Cup again we could place higher than we did this past season."

Harbor Teacher Prep also gave perennial Crosstown League juggernaut Port Of Los Angeles a severe scare on January 25 with a scoreless tie, and narrowly missed out on winning the league title by a 1/2 game when the Polar Bears won the rematch, as the Monarchs finished 10-1-1 in league competition, before rolling through Discovery Prep, Camino Nuevo Daizell Lance Campus & USC-CAE in the Division 5 playoffs on the way to their second straight crown.

"My main goal going in as captain once again is to build on the team chemistry we had this season and to motivate the team to come out and give each game everything we've got," says Medina on what her main goals are going into her senior season at Harbor Teacher Prep.

Medina has high hopes for wanting to play college at the next level and also has high aspirations considering she's interested in the likes of UCLA, Loyola Marymount and La Verne.