Boys Soccer Takes State Title

Megan Geyer

The soccer team poses with their state championship medals, trophy, and winning tournament poster.

Matt Bice, Editor-in-Chief

Boys soccer won the Kansas state championship this past Saturday against Blue Valley West with a score of 2-1. The first goal being scored by junior Henry Curnow and the second by senior Jony Munoz.

“It’s a great feeling, it’s just unforgettable and unbelievable,” junior Ryan Sauter said. “Three long years of work put into that, and it all comes down to that one moment.” 

The boys played in the semi-finals Friday night against Dodge City and they won 1-0. They ended the season 20-1 with their only loss being to Blue Valley West, the very team they defeated to win the championship.

“We have a good chemistry, we worked well together and we know that if we better each other, we’re gonna better our team as a whole,” said Sauter.

However, this season did not come without its struggles.

“We went out to play Shawnee Mission East, we knew they were second place and that if they beat us, they would win the Sunflower League,” Munoz said. “In the game, they went up 2-1. Everyone stayed calm and we talked during the game.”

The team has had a very close bond in which they partially attributed to their chemistry on the field.

“Our brotherhood off the field has been amazing, but when we step on the field we know that we’re out to win,” Munoz said.

The soccer team will lose 11 seniors after this year. However, many are confident in the continuation of the program next year.

“The seniors really set a firm foundation and it would be really unjust of us to just lay that down and throw it aside,” Sauter said.

The coaches are also excited to see what the next season will bring.

“You’re always gonna miss the guys that graduate and what they contributed to the team,” varsity soccer coach Andy Weber said. “You also get excited to rely on the younger guys who now have the opportunity to fill those roles.”

The coaches and players are optimistic about the future of the program with the precedent set after a state title as a third-year school.

“It was mixed emotions,” Munoz said. “It was pretty sad, but we won state and that was the end goal. It was like a fairy tale ending.”