The Tribune

It’s not every day that an athlete makes a successful transition from one sport to the other.

Michael Bethel, the goalkeeper for the Bahamas men’s national beach soccer team, is one of those rare gems, having made the crossover from playing baseball.

“I started playing baseball, but in 2015 when I was playing soccer on campus with a couple of my friends, I really got involved,” said Bethel, who was attending Southeastern Christian Academy in Fort Lauderdale, Florida at the time. “My reflection from baseball really helped me to play soccer.”

It wasn’t until two years later that Bethel found himself immersed in the game at the junior level. But in 2019, he got his first opportunity to play on the men’s national team when they travelled to Mexico for a CONCACAF qualifier.

Making the transition from “seeing baseball thrown from 80-90 miles per hour” to having a “big beach ball coming at you” was rather easy for Bethel.

“It was just learning the small rules because there’s a lot of small rules that you have to be able to do and once I could react to the ball, I didn’t have any problems,” Bethel said.

Unlike grass soccer, in beach soccer the goalkeeper is probably the most essential player on the team and for Bethel, he was able to handle the situation really well.

“We don’t get a lot of credit for it, but we control the tempo of the game,” he pointed out. “If the game is going at a slow pace, I can change it up, so I play a huge role.”

For Bethel, who started in all six games The Bahamas played from Monday to Sunday in the 2023 CONCACAF Beach Soccer Championship at the Malcolm Park beach soccer facility, he felt he handled his role very well. “I think I got better as the tournament went on,” he stated.

“But the sky is still the limit for me. I think I can do a whole lot better.”

Bethel helped the Bahamas to finish the Group B round robin with a 2-1 win-loss record, winning in sudden death play over Guadeloupe and routing Belize 6-2 before dropping a 5-4 decision to Mexico.

After a rest day off, the Bahamas returned on Friday for the playoffs, doubling up Panama 4-2 to advance to the semifinals. But in a hard-fought match on Saturday, the Bahamas lost 3-2 and missed out on the opportunity to qualify for the World Cup.

The Bahamas came back on Sunday and lost 3-2 to Mexico to settle for fourth place in the 12-team championship.

Despite the performances, Bethel said he had an opportunity to play a lot better and if he did, the Bahamas could have been on their way to the 2023 FIFA Beach Soccer World Cup in the United Arab Emirates in August.

“I think I could have been a lot more composed,” he admitted. “I think there were times I got caught up in the game. The game either got too fast or it was slowed down way too much.

“But in understanding the game a little more, I think I could have controlled the speed of play a lot better. If I could have done a lot better in that regard, we would have been in a better situation.”

Bethel, however, said Team Bahamas went out there and gave it their best shot. They just fell short in the end.

“We just shot ourselves in the foot,” Bethel said. “Teams like Mexico and El Salvador, if you make one mistake, they make you pay for it. I just think we shot ourselves in the foot because no team really took us a part.”

Bethel, 24, is currently residing in Miami, Florida where he’s playing and coaching beach soccer. He hopes to continue to sharpen his game and be ready for the next opportunity to represent the Bahamas.

At 5-feet, 8-inches, Bethel was one of the shortest goalkeepers in the tournament, but he didn’t allow it to deter him.

“There are some cons and pros about being my height,” Bethel said. “I don’t allow it to get to me. What I lack in size, I make up in my agility and ability to jump to retrieve the loose balls.”

Although baseball was his first love, Bethel said he has now made beach soccer his ultimate sport. But if the opportunity presents itself for him to field and hit the smaller baseball, he will gladly return to the diamond.

But for now, he said he prefers to stick to running barefoot in the deep sand controlling the tempo of beach soccer and doesn’t really feel like he could suit up for a game on grass.

“We’re not sure what’s going to happen for beach soccer, but whenever I get the call, I will be willing to come home and compete again for the Bahamas,” he summed up.

Bethel said he’s delighted that his mother, Katie Adderley-Bethel, was there on the sidelines cheering for him and Team Bahamas, especially on Mother’s Day Sunday. “It was really nice to see her,” said Bethel, whose father is Michael Bethel Jr. “I just want to wish her and all of the other mothers, Happy Mother’s Day. I just wished we had won the game.”