PHOTOS BY STEVE BEARDEN/STC SOCIAL MEDIA COORDINATOR - STC junior Eli Cruikshank chases the ball down in the boys' opening round postseason win against Benton.

At the annual STC spring sports banquet, the head coaches of both the boys and girls soccer programs took time to celebrate their recently-concluded seasons.

For the boys program, the season was highlighted by a victory in the first-round of the postseason for a second year in a row. The Trojans beat Benton, 2-0, on May 18 in the Class 2A playoffs. First year head coach Andrew Walton then saw his squad conclude the season on May 27 after a second round playoff loss to Class 2A #1 ranked Gilbert.

“The season was full of highs and lows,” said Walton at the spring banquet. “Some games did not have the outcome that we wanted. But no matter what happened, the team kept showing up to practice and wanting to get better. And that’s all you can really ask for as a coach.”

The STC boys finished with an overall record of 5-11, with wins over West Delaware, Independence, Benton (twice), and Central Iowa United. According to statistics recorded on Bound, the Trojans were led in goals this season by junior Eli Cruikshank (8). They were led in assists by senior Jair Martinez (2), and in saves by sophomore Sam Garcia (62).

Walton praised Garcia’s play at the spring banquet.

STC junior Eli Cruikshank (left) prepares to throw the ball to junior Manny Cervantes (right) in the Trojan's postseason victory against Benton.

“Sam’s performance in the net all season — I wouldn’t trust anyone else in the goal. He did a really good job this year,” he said.

Earning WaMaC academic all-conference for the Trojans this season were juniors Eric Medina and Anthony Viramontes. The honor goes to juniors or seniors with a cumulative GPA of 3.5 or higher.

Walton saved his biggest compliments for STC’s six seniors on this year’s team.

“The seniors have helped lay a foundation for the younger players — showing what resiliency looks like in tough moments,” he said. “Great programs are not built overnight. They are built by players who set the standards — and that’s exactly what the seniors did this year.”

This year’s seniors included: Jovanie Perez, Isaias Flores, Omar Viramontes, Carlos Valle, Jair Martinez, and Cole Gustafson.

The STC girls soccer program concluded their season on May 26 when they lost to Central Iowa United, 3-1, in the Class 1A, Region 7 opening round of the postseason. The Trojans finished the season with a record of 0-16-1. Their tie this year came on May 14, when they matched up with the same Central Iowa United team at home.

At the spring banquet, head coach Morgan McFate noted the strides her team took this season. “If you only look at the final scores, you miss the most important story of our spring,” she said. ”Being a varsity athlete means showing up when things are hard. This season, we played some of the toughest competition there is. While the scoreboard didn’t always go our way, the transformation that took place between those whistles was undeniable. In the past, teams we played thought we’d be an easy out. But this spring, they found out that we became a team that fought. We started to look like a team that had a plan and the confidence to execute it.”

According to Bound, the Trojans were led in goals by junior Khloe Balderas (3). Junior Brooklyn Mitchell led the team in assists (1), while sophomore Annaleigh Davenport led the team with 198 saves in goal.

McFate announced that five athletes received the recognition of WaMaC academic all-conference: senior Maddalyn Brown, and juniors Madison Engler, Ioleta Kingbird, Yvonne Seremba, and Maria Tomas-Mejia. Seniors on this year’s team included Brown and Lilianna Duncan.