Feature Photo By: Toli Geshow – Sophomore Christian Valdez goes for the ball against Thornton on September 18th. The varsity program had 4 underclassmen this season: Ehadji Diallo, Christian Valdez, Ivan Serrano, and Eric Cerna.

Once the soccer season ended, the boys varsity team finished with a 12-5 overall record and a league record of 9-1 — the best in the 5A league.

Some may say that if the Raiders did not have a diverse roster ranging from sophomores to seniors, they would not have won their league. Many say the Raiders had a successful season.

“The future is bright for the Raiders,” said head coach Victor Strouse, “Rashid [Seidu-Aroza] scored the most goals for us and Ivan [Serrano] played the most minutes, so it gives the program a lot of depth.”

The Raiders had a similar record last season finishing 12-4-1 and losing in the 2nd round of playoffs to Hinkley; however, last season was different — the roster was primarily made up of juniors and seniors. The mixture of youth gave the team depth especially late in the season as stated by many.

Sophomore Ehadji Diallo said, “The upperclassmen have passed down knowledge to us to help us in the future; having underclassmen on the team helps for the future as they experience and know what to expect from the varsity program.”

The boys made it to the 5A playoff bracket for the 2018 season. They ranked 19th overall in the conference behind teams: Grandview #3, Arapahoe #8 (winner of the 5A league this year), and Fairview #1. They won their first playoff match against Mountain Range 3-2, but the Raiders lost their rematch against Grandview in the second round.

“I learned that everyone has responsibilities,” said junior forward Rashid Seidu-Aroza, “We let two goals in because we weren’t marking the opponent — Grandview was a really good opponent.”

Many say the future is bright for the Raiders; the potential is there and another season is on its way.