Sandia’s Connor Cousins, center, celebrates with teammates after scoring a goal in last season’s Class 5A championship match against Santa Fe. Cousins and the Matadors expect to be back in the mix in 2022. (Mike Sandoval/For the Journal)
Santa Fe, Albuquerque Academy and Sandia Prep are seeking to defend their 2021 state championships with the 2022 boys soccer season having begun in earnest last week.
CLASS 5A: The Albuquerque Metro Championships open Tuesday for the boys, and it will be the 5A season debuts of Cibola, Rio Grande and Volcano Vista.
Santa Fe, which edged Sandia 4-3 in a thrilling overtime state final last November — becoming the first school in the largest class outside the metro area to win state since 2013 — saw the state’s leading goal scorer, Alex Waggoner, sign in the offseason with the New Mexico United Academy. This certainly puts a serious dent in the demons’ chances to go back to back; Waggoner scored all four goals in the title game.
Atrisco Heritage, La Cueva and Albuquerque High are among the metro sides that coaches believe will challenge for a blue trophy in November, with Centennial and Hobbs generally rating most favorably outside the metro area.
“There’s more parity this year than there’s ever been,” noted Volcano Vista coach Billy Thiebaut.
Sandia and coach Ryan Sanchez will have a mostly new back line, and has a fresh face in goal, although Sanchez said the Matadors remain very much in the mix with the likes of senior midfielder Connor Cousins, senior midfielder Rider Pier and junior center back Jake Rivas.
La Cueva, a state semifinalist from last season, lost four players to NMUA in the offseason, but the veteran Bears still return 13 players, including five seniors. Junior forward Chris Lugones and junior goalie Mateo Nobrego are among the players to watch for La Cueva.
Eldorado certainly could be in the mix in District 2-5A with Sandia and La Cueva, led by senior goalkeeper Trey Smith, plus senior midfielder/forward Landon Gray and senior midfielder Paul Melendres. As with Sandia, the Eagles are rebuilding on the back.
West Mesa, Piedra Vista and Farmington, the other schools in District 2, each finished well under .500 last year.
District 1 coaches are enamored with the prospects of Atrisco Heritage, which is coming off a surprising postseason run last November that saw the Jaguars, the 12th and final seed in the 5A playoffs, surge late in the regular season and get all the way to the semifinals where they fell to Santa Fe. Atrisco Heritage already has victories this season against Sandia and Eldorado, and the Jags face Albuquerque Academy on Tuesday in an attractive metro opener.
“Last year we felt like underdogs,” Atrisco Heritage coach Javier Hernandez said. “This year, they have the experience. Since November, the kids have been mentally preparing for this moment.”
Tempo-setting junior midfielder Marco Lara and junior wing Jovany Ornelas — who already has two goals this season — head up the list of returners for the Jaguars, who only graduated three starters.
Volcano Vista has seven starters back, including senior MF/FW Keegan Monnheimer and senior forward Bryan Rivas (older brother Sergio plays for New Mexico United). Senior Jacob Schreiner could emerge as the regular presence in net.
Rio Rancho, the 2021 spring state champ (the fall season in 2020 was never contested), is a brand new group, coach John Shepard said, with only several players returning with varsity experience. The NMUA has impacted the Rams’ roster, as well.
Cleveland and Cibola both are looking to improve greatly from their tough 2021 fall seasons; the Storm shows some early promise after a narrow 3-2 loss to Centennial over the weekend. Bryan Ramirez, who had a team-best 16 goals for Cleveland last season, and the team’s second-leading scorer, Jack Marshall, both return and give the Storm reliable scoring punch.
District 5 features Santa Fe, with both Albuquerque High and possibly Rio Grande factoring into things come October.
The Bulldogs, who opened with a tie against La Cueva last week, are led by senior center midfielder Shane Pierson, senior center mid Foster Salvador and senior center back Oliver Reuben.
“They’re gonna be a really good group,” AHS coach Orlando Ramirez said. “I’m excited about what we’ve got.”
Rio Grande won 13 games in the regular season a year ago before getting bounced by AHS in the first round of the playoffs. The Ravens are one of 5A’s most under-the-radar programs, with another chance to reach the postseason.
Centennial and Hobbs are perhaps early-season favorites in their respective districts.
“Centennial,” Thiebaut said, “is probably the top team in the state.”
CLASS 4A: Three of the final four last season were from Albuquerque, including the Chargers, Highland and Hope Christian.
“Gutted” is how Academy coach Laney Kolek described this year’s roster, following spring graduation. Senior defender Jude Logan and senior midfielder Ethan Saiz represent the old guard on this roster.
“The is the first time I have ever been in a situation where we had so many underclassmen,” Kolek said. Academy has beaten Lovington the last two seasons in the 4A championship game. The Chargers this year are young but “highly tenacious,” she added.
Highland could prove to be one of 4A’s most interesting sides. The Hornets did lose standout goalkeeper Diego Ortega, a first-team all-stater who moved to a soccer academy in Spain a few months ago. But they return nine starters, and have several impressive newcomers, coach Nick Madrid said.
Fourth-year senior midfielder Yahir Jimenez, who dictates so much of the Hornets’ play, plus junior midfielder/forward Alberto Torres, one of the newcomers, are players to watch for Highland.
“We should be that team,” Madrid said, “that every team in 4A should be worried about.”
Highland, Academy and Valley are all making their season debuts on Tuesday at metros.
Hope Christian reached the state semis last season, losing at Lovington, and the Huskies only graduated three players off that squad. Hope has a seasoned group of 12th graders, including defenders Kaiden Giron and Josh Kelshaw, plus midfielder Tyler Burks and forward Brenden McMurry.
“I would hope we’ll be solid again,” Huskies coach Steve Kokulis said, “but we’re going to have to have the seniors perform like they’re capable of.”
He said Academy remained the frontrunner in 4A, and the Chargers and Hope are district rivals.
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Santa Teresa, Los Alamos and St. Pius were all in the state quarterfinals last season. The Sartans and coach AJ Herrera beat Artesia in the first round of state before falling to Academy.
Herrera likes his team which returns largely in bulk, led by senior midfielder Leo Vaughn and junior forward Edgar Rios, plus junior defender Javan Barela. St. Pius hopes to challenge Highland in that district.
CLASS 1A-3A: Sandia Prep defeated New Mexico Military Institute in the championship game last season. The Sundevils play at St. Pius on Thursday in their opener as they try for a third consecutive state title. Rebuilding the defense is, and has been, a key part of the offseason for longtime coach Tommy Smith, whose team again faces a daunting nondistrict slate.
But his top two scorers — senior midfielder/forward Finn Saunders and junior forward Leighton Dellabarca — are both returning.
District rival Bosque School lost to Sandia Prep in the state semifinals, but the Bobcats graduated a couple of their top scorers and have a new coach. The co-op between Oak Grove Classical Academy and Menaul also qualified for state out of that district.
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