Living Your mainelove

Living your mainelove: Hearts of Pine's Colby Quinones' Soccer Story

• jeannie assimos • Season 1 • Episode 4

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In this inspiring episode, mainelove's Jeannie Assimos sits down with Colby Quinones, standout defender for the Portland Hearts of Pine soccer team, to talk about passion, perseverance, and what it means to truly live your mainelove.

Colby opens up about his journey from a nervous kid holding his mom’s hand at his first soccer practice to playing in front of 7,000 cheering fans in Portland. He shares how moving from Colorado to New Hampshire shaped his competitive spirit, how his father’s influence as a coach fueled his growth, and how joining the Revolution Academy at 13 gave him a glimpse of the professional world that would become his reality.

Listeners will love Colby’s down-to-earth honesty about what drives him, not just talent, but an unrelenting work ethic and the desire to outdo even his dad, a former semi-pro player. He talks about the close-knit brotherhood of Hearts of Pine, the electric energy of home games, and the pride he feels representing Maine, the state where he was born.

Colby also shares advice for aspiring athletes: stay honest with yourself about your goals, embrace the grind, and never lose sight of the joy in the game. His perspective on failure is refreshingly humble,  seeing mistakes not as setbacks but as opportunities to grow both on and off the field.

From favorite pre-game meals (egg sandwiches on a bagel) to cheat-day cookie dough binges and choosing Messi over Ronaldo, this episode is full of fun moments, heartfelt reflections, and genuine Maine spirit.

Jeannie :

Welcome to Living Your mainelove, the podcast that celebrates the people who are living with passion, purpose, and a whole lot of heart. Each month we'll sit down with people who are following what lights them up in Maine and beyond. Welcome to another exciting episode of Living Your Main Love Podcast. And today we are fortunate enough to have Colby Quinones from the Portland Hearts of Pines soccer team. He's an amazing defender with the team. And this team has just taken Maine by storm. Like it's what everybody's talking about everywhere. So we're very lucky to have him here today. And I'm excited to just find out more about you and how you've like achieved where you've where you've come to in your life. I think it's an amazing most people want to be a pro athlete, but they never make it there. So we're gonna find out how you did this. But first, we're gonna start with a little rapid fire session just to kind of like get to know Colby on a different level.

Colby Quinones:

Perfect.

Jeannie :

Are you ready, Colby?

Colby Quinones:

I'm ready. Yes.

Jeannie :

He's like ready or not, here we come. Okay, Messi or Ronaldo?

Colby Quinones:

Messi.

Jeannie :

Ooh, reason why?

Colby Quinones:

Uh I grew up watching him. Um, and I love the way he dribbles, and um Messi just stands out more than Ronaldo for me.

Jeannie :

For you. Pre-game breakfast of choice.

Colby Quinones:

Uh I usually make some egg sandwiches, two egg sandwiches, um, with bacon if I have it or sausage. But uh, if I can get it on bread, fine. But I love to make it on a bagel.

Jeannie :

Nice.

Colby Quinones:

That's my pregame breakfast.

Jeannie :

That's a good one. That's a good got the protein in there, a little bit of carbs. Summer or winter?

Colby Quinones:

Winter.

Jeannie :

Winter. Really?

Colby Quinones:

Yes, winter. I love the outdoor activities you can do in winter. Um, summer, I love the heat, but sometimes it just gets too hot, and that's just not for me.

Jeannie :

Do you worry in the winter with like skiing as to like injuring yourself or not really?

Colby Quinones:

Uh no, I haven't skied or snowboarded in a little bit. Um, I sled, I love sledding and going on that with my little brother. That's super fun. So yeah, I would say winter.

Jeannie :

It is beautiful in the winter for sure.

Colby Quinones:

It is, especially over here, definitely.

Jeannie :

It's gorgeous. Um, let's see what else do we have. Oh, coffee or energy drink or main love.

Colby Quinones:

Uh well, maine love, but I've been getting into an energy kick before games recently. So I've been doing some Red Bull. Oh, it's not the greatest for you.

Jeannie :

Yeah.

Colby Quinones:

Um, I've been trying it, I've been okay with it. Yeah, right now I would say energy drinks.

Jeannie :

So you're not a coffee guy?

Colby Quinones:

Not really.

Jeannie :

Yeah.

Colby Quinones:

Um, occasionally in the past offseason, I tried it a little bit more. Um, but I think right now I'm on an energy drink, right?

Jeannie :

I'm gonna hey, I'm I'm with you. I'm a Celsius. I used to be Red Bull now, I'm switched to Celsius. Somehow I feel like the marketing's convinced me it's healthier.

Colby Quinones:

I don't know why.

Jeannie :

Uh TikTok or Instagram?

Colby Quinones:

Instagram. I don't have TikTok, so I just use Instagram.

Jeannie :

Instagram all day long.

Colby Quinones:

Yeah.

Jeannie :

Oh, favorite cheat day meal, like The Rock. You know a rock. Have you seen The Rock's like Sunday cheat day? No. Oh, he has like pancakes and like a crazy pizza, and like he eats like probably 20,000 calories. But what's your favorite cheat day meal?

Colby Quinones:

Favorite cheat day meal. I don't even know if you can consider this a cheat day meal, but like orange chicken from Trader Joe's, I love that. Um, and then honestly, a big cheat of mine is I just go to the grocery store and buy a tub of cookie dough. And I just I eat that all. So it's it's a lot, it's not healthy for you at all, but so you don't cook it, you just eat it raw. I don't cook it, no, I just eat raw cookie dough. That's that's my cheat meal for sure.

Jeannie :

That's that's a good one. Yeah. Um, let's see. Oh, turf or grass?

Colby Quinones:

Grass.

Jeannie :

Okay, yeah, I know. Who would want turf, right?

Colby Quinones:

Yeah, no, yeah, grass.

Jeannie :

And then funniest teammate.

Colby Quinones:

Well, funniest teammate, probably right now, JT. Uh reason being is he is always so serious about things, but everybody thinks of it as a joke. Oh, it's kind of like you don't know when he's serious or when he's playing or laughing, and you just default to laughing at the end of the day. So he always makes you crack up.

Jeannie :

I love it. So well, thank you for playing the rapid fire. I know it's very exciting. Okay, we're gonna dive into like your journey to becoming a pro soccer player. Um, as a kid, do you remember what you wanted to be when you grew up?

Colby Quinones:

I don't, I know early on I had dreams of being like an architecture builder type of guy, but I think that phase kind of went away quickly. Um, so ever since I can remember, soccer's always been a part of my life. Um, so I always knew I wanted to do something revolving around soccer, whatever that may be.

Jeannie :

Do you remember your first game?

Colby Quinones:

No. I honestly I don't remember my first game.

Jeannie :

Or like when you started playing?

Colby Quinones:

When I started playing, yes. I've heard stories when um my parents took me to my first soccer practice, um, and I was in tears. My mom had to hold my hand while I was out there going to kick the ball with my buddies. So, you know, to be honest, I think I I didn't really want to be there. Um, but I think pretty quickly I was like, you know what, this game's actually pretty fun, and you know, I just kind of kicked off from there.

Jeannie :

So how like how does it go from you being scared on the field to like where you are now? I mean, did you when did you realize that wow, like I'm really good at this? I'm gonna, you know, take this seriously. Do you remember that sort of transition?

Colby Quinones:

Uh a little bit. Uh I think I was around maybe 11 or 12. And at that point, you know, I moved from Colorado to New Hampshire. And it was still, you know, every day was a grind with my dad because he was into coaching and he still is, um, and my older brother. So every day I'd be around the sport and around, you know, my dad, who is a coach, and you know, he gives me his tips and tricks on how to make it to the next level, which I'm super grateful for. And not a lot of players have that.

Jeannie :

Yeah.

Colby Quinones:

So every day I was just getting insight on how I can get to the next level. Um, and then having an old older brother who, you know, taller, bigger, stronger, everything is just, he's just better than me. So, you know, I had to learn from an early age to play with people that are that are like that. They're just better in general.

Jeannie :

Yeah.

Colby Quinones:

Um, and then you could kind of just tell around that age that, you know, when I would train back at my own age level, that I was just a, you know, a step ahead of them just because of what my daily life was like. And it got to the point once when I was 13, um, when I joined the Revolution Academy, that was when it was like, it was tangible. It was like I was in a professional environment. I could actually see what professionals do on a daily basis. Um, so very quickly I could set a goal for myself to be like, that's where I want to go. And just being in that environment, I knew the sacrifices that needed to be made in order to get there. And you know, it's all I've ever really known. So I kind of just took that in stride and and made little goals at a time to the point of where we are now.

Jeannie :

Wow. So it was like one step and then the next step and the next step.

Colby Quinones:

Yeah, it was it was just baby steps. Yeah. Really, you can't think too far ahead. Yeah. But I think the exposure to the professional game at such a young age really kickstarted my career.

Jeannie :

Yeah. It was called Revolution. What was it called? Revolution.

Colby Quinones:

It was Revolution Academy. Okay, and that was a school for athletes, or it was, well, the Revolution is their own MLS team.

Jeannie :

Okay.

Colby Quinones:

Um, and I was in their youth program. Um, so when I was 13, I was able to go there, um, train with the youth kids, if you will. Um and at the same time, I could see firsthand what the first team players were doing. Um, so it was very tangible. You know, I could see what needed to be done to get there.

Jeannie :

That's awesome.

Colby Quinones:

So yeah.

Jeannie :

Thinking back, like, what do you think was driving you each step of the way? Like, is it was it family? Was it like internally, or like I want to do this? Do you remember like what the sort of driving force was for you? And how's that changed?

Colby Quinones:

Yeah, honestly, I've always been a competitive person. Um, and I've never been the most skillful player or the most talented player on the field. Um but you know, something that kind of kept me going is just the the work rate that you know my parents made sure to instill in me.

Speaker 1:

Yeah.

Colby Quinones:

And I guess it's very satisfying when you can come off of the soccer field and you say, you know, you worked harder than everybody else.

Jeannie :

Yeah.

Colby Quinones:

Um, and having that type of mindset was able to um just to keep me going, uh, no matter the difficulties I was going through, just making sure you're putting your best out effort out there made a world of difference. Um and I think, you know, my dad, you know, played semi-pro back in the day, indoor. So I think one of my goals um was to make it farther than he did. I love that. Competitive. And yeah, I guess you can it goes back to being competitive.

Jeannie :

Yeah.

Colby Quinones:

But I remember our early days. Um, you know, my dad would always be on trips, um, whether it be for soccer, for coaching. Um, you know, he'd always be away traveling to different countries, and I enjoyed that. Like I I loved that he was able to do that.

Jeannie :

Yeah.

Colby Quinones:

And, you know, growing up now, you know, it's always my competitive nature to be like, okay, you know, my dad did that, and I look up to my parents a lot, and especially my dad, because we can relate to soccer, to where it's like, I want to beat my dad in that, in a way. Even though he's helping me do it, it's like just pushing past his milestones is something that that drives me.

Jeannie :

Yeah. So when you're on out on the field now at the Hearts of Pine team, like what are you what are the thoughts that go through your head you walk out on that field? Are you sometimes just like, I can't believe I've made it here? Like, or is it just you always knew how long you're gonna make it here? Do you ever have sort of moments that like pinch me?

Colby Quinones:

Yeah, absolutely. Especially at Hearts of Pine now. It's like, you know, the pregame ritual when the flan the fans are doing the clapping before the game. Like you you get goosebumps in those, you know, 10 seconds that that's happening. Yeah. Um, and it just kind of brings you back down to earth to make sure that you remember what you're doing, why you're doing it, and just to kind of admit to yourself that you know this is pretty cool what you're doing. I wouldn't have expected to have come this far.

Speaker 1:

Yeah.

Colby Quinones:

Honestly, especially when you go out there on a Saturday night and you have 7,000 people chanting for you and cheering you on. Like it's it's just such an awesome feeling.

Jeannie :

Yeah. What advice would you have for someone that sees you and says, I want to be like him? Like that is like how has he done that? Like, what what would what advice would you want to give people with aspirations like that?

Colby Quinones:

With aspirations to be a pro soccer player, honestly, I would recommend you sit down with yourself and have a good heart to heart and ask yourself if this is truly what you want to do. Um and if it is, then you have to understand the sacrifices that needed that needs to be made in order to get here. And also with that to enjoy the process. Um, it's not easy, it's hard, you put in long hours, um, and you really have to make it a lifestyle. But I can tell you it's super rewarding when you get to this stage. Um so for those that are younger trying to make it and don't know where to start, you know, I would just say ask yourself if this is what you want to do. And if the answer is yes, then you know, start training and don't stop, honestly. But just make sure you enjoy it.

Jeannie :

Yeah, key, right?

Colby Quinones:

Yeah, that is key.

Jeannie :

Yeah, because you are living your main love through soccer, which is like amazing. Yeah, that's pretty awesome. And tell me, okay, so when you heard about that they were gonna start a team in Maine, a soccer team, what did you think? Were you like, I like me, or like what was your what was your action?

Colby Quinones:

That was exactly me, please. Um, you know, I loved my time at the revolution. Um, but when I heard this team was up and coming and I saw all the promotions for it, I was like, that is just so cool. And you know, I made sure to find out as much information as I could right away. Um, and it was on the top of my list to try to come here. And I'm so happy it did because I'm enjoying every second of it.

Jeannie :

Because you're born, and we were talking earlier, born in Biddeford.

Colby Quinones:

And yeah, so being born in Biddeford, you know, I like to say I'm a Mainer.

Jeannie :

Yeah.

Colby Quinones:

Even though I was only living here for three years, so I don't quite remember anything. But there's just something in the soul that's like, yes, I'm connected to this place. Yeah. Um and I I feel at home.

Jeannie :

Yeah. Yeah. Tell me about like your love for Maine and like what makes it special to you.

Colby Quinones:

Uh for me, well, you know, besides the fact that, you know, I was born here and raised three years here, you know, moving here in the middle of January, um, I wasn't quite sure what to expect. Um, seeing all the promotions online and on social media, it's like, okay, but you know, any anybody can put anything on social media. Yeah. I didn't quite know what to believe. Um, and I really wanted to experience it for myself. And those first couple of weeks, you know, interacting with the community, um, just walking around and people stopping you, asking you if you play for Hearts of Pine and the excitement that goes around with it and the love that everybody has for each other, yeah. Um, and the community, it's just that's what makes Maine so special is the community and how everybody just supports each other no matter what is going on.

Jeannie :

Totally agree. And I'm curious about the social media component. Like, what's it like navigating social media being like a a pro athlete? Do you get lots of DMs? Do you get like it's like is it weird to deal with or not so much?

Colby Quinones:

Not so much. I, you know, when you put professional soccer player next to your name, you know, people automatically think you're some hot shot, but it's it's really not like that. You know, the top maybe 0.5% of the top 1% of players are actually like that. Yeah. So I'm not one of those players at all.

Jeannie :

Right.

Colby Quinones:

It's nice to say I'm a professional soccer player.

Jeannie :

Yeah.

Colby Quinones:

Um, but to answer your question, no, it is not hard. It's not hard to navigate because there's not much to navigate in the first place. Right, right. It is not like that.

Jeannie :

And being part of this team, like how like how is it different than the other teams you've been a part of in the past? Like, it just feels like there's such a like brotherhood there, just from an observer standpoint.

Colby Quinones:

Yeah, I think you know what makes one this team stand out from say the revolution is that here, you know, there's no moving up or down. So when you're in an MLS club, especially on a second team standpoint, you can you have the opportunity to move up to play with the MLS team, and then you also have academy kids who are younger than you who will come up to play with you. So there's always a rotation that's happening within the whole organization.

Speaker 1:

Yeah.

Colby Quinones:

And that's great. That has its you know, pros and cons, as everything does. But something that I would say when you're at a USL club like Portland Hearts of Pine would be that there's no academy right now. There's no first team. We are the only team right now. So every day you are with the same 24, 25 players, and you're spending your five, six hours a day with them. So it is very easier to create such a bond and a close-knit group than it is at um at an MLS club, um, if that makes sense.

Jeannie :

Oh, totally, yeah.

Colby Quinones:

So I really enjoy it.

Jeannie :

Yeah.

Colby Quinones:

So just creating that brotherhood that, you know, I never fully got at the revolution. Right. I think it's so refreshing. And um, when you go every day playing professional soccer and traveling on the weekends, you know, it's it's sometimes hard to create that balance between, you know, soccer and your friends. So I think this is a way that it's like your soccer teammates are also your friends and your brothers. And so there's on the weekends if you have time off, you get to spend it with each other.

Jeannie :

Yeah.

Colby Quinones:

And you know, you can act like friends, you can act like brothers, and that makes it so special.

Jeannie :

That is amazing. So, what do you think? Like, what do you see next for yourself? Like, do you are you a person that's like living in the moment, or do you go, I got the five and ten year plan?

Colby Quinones:

Yeah, I was, you know, I've been that person who've who likes to plan for the future. I've been trying super hard this year to stay in the present because I know the moment we're in, the opportunity that we have. Um, we're part of history being a part of a first year club. So I'm trying my very hardest to stay in the moment and not think about next year. And honestly, I think I've been doing a pretty good job with it.

Speaker 1:

Good.

Colby Quinones:

Um, I've been happier. So I would say that I don't know what's gonna be next. Yeah. Um, I hope I can stay here with the hearts. That would be cool. I'm loving every minute of it, but you know, I don't know to be honest, and I'm okay with not knowing. That's good. Um, I just know that I'm where I'm supposed to be right now, and and to me, that's all that matters.

Jeannie :

I think also being open to like whatever the universe is supposed to bring is also great. You know, like like this is where I am, I'm enjoying it, I'm in the moment. I'm not thinking about, you know, why think about tomorrow when you're in like being today, right?

Colby Quinones:

Absolutely. That's awesome.

Jeannie :

So do you think, I mean, do you hope to play soccer for like the rest of your career, like for a long time?

Colby Quinones:

I do, I do. I mean, as everybody does. Yeah, more and more though, I am seeing what else is out there. Yeah, and in my spare time, you know, I'm I'm gonna be coaching, you know, I'm interested in finance. So there's other things that interest me as well as soccer.

Speaker 1:

Yeah.

Colby Quinones:

Um, I know for sure in my heart that I want to stay around soccer, whether that's as a player or whether that's as a coach, whatever it may be, I want to stay around the game. Um so I hope I can still be a player for many years to come. But if not, you know, it's it's not the end of the world.

Jeannie :

It's okay. Yeah, great attitude, Colby. I love it. Is there anything else you would want to share about the team or about yourself or say anything to the fans?

Colby Quinones:

No, well, you know, obviously a big thank you to the fans, to whoever is whoever's watching or listening to this. Um, it doesn't go unnoticed, the support that we have right now. Um, every day we are reminded of the fact of that we are so lucky to be here. Um, so many players would love to be in our position right now. So we don't take it for granted. And you know, we absolutely love the support that we're getting for our home games.

Jeannie :

Yeah, it's it's crazy. I mean, I because I'm in LA, I haven't seen the game, but I see the video and I'm like, oh my god, it's like a thing. Like it is like epic, right?

Colby Quinones:

Absolutely.

Jeannie :

Nothing like a home game, right?

Colby Quinones:

There's nothing like a home game, especially here.

Jeannie :

Yeah.

Colby Quinones:

Um, so yeah, I think just I hope the fans keep coming out. We're gonna keep doing our best to get results for them and make those nights as special as they have been.

Jeannie :

I do want to ask you one question I just thought of. Um, you know, when it comes to failure, like we all have off days, we have days where I'm sure we don't play as great. How do you manage that sort of aspect of life?

Colby Quinones:

Well, in terms of a soccer standpoint, you know, there's not one team that will go a year without any losses. Um, there's not one team that plays a game that doesn't make any mistakes. So with that, you have to know coming into it that failure will happen. Um and you know, it's totally fine to fail as long as you as you learn from it. Um and honestly, you can't take it too seriously because we're playing soccer, you know. It's right. It's just a game. So mistakes are gonna happen, just you know, laugh about it and move on.

Jeannie :

Yeah.

Colby Quinones:

Um, you know, at the professional level, yes, some mistakes can cost you more than others, but you know, I've been playing for a couple years now, and in the moment, when you make mistakes and you quote unquote, you know, fail in that moment and it leads to a goal, like it hurts and it stings for a couple days. But when the year's over and you look back with your teammates, there's not one person who is still mad about it. Like everybody just laughs about it and you just remember that moment. And so, and in terms of life, you know, whether it's with careers or whether it's with you know, moving from different teams within soccer, it's like we're all kind of in our 20s and 30s. So I really don't see anything as failure. Like it's all moments to grow. It's not supposed to work out, you're not supposed to get everything right at this moment. So I would just say, if you're an overthinker like myself, yeah, you know, try to just embrace the moment, whether it's a positive or a negative, just take it in, take a moment, and say, How can I learn from this moment? And just move on. That you know, that's just life. We're not gonna get it right. Um, and we just have to do our best.

Jeannie :

Even in your 40s and 50s, that will happen. I'm sure the lessons continue, Colby, for sure.

Colby Quinones:

I'm sure. I'm sure they do.

Jeannie :

Yeah. So well, you have an awesome perspective. And I just I'm so you know, it's been so fun chatting with you and just learning. And I can't wait to see what you do next. And yeah, thank you. Cheers, cheers, thank you. Thank you guys. Yeah, cheers with me. Cheers, everybody.