2023-All Star Soccer

  Blowout for Boys North and Girls South Take the Win in Double Header

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Fearing rain that never arrived, Sonoma County high school soccer fans gathered at Maria Carrillo High School on Friday April 7th for the 9th Annual Santa Rosa Kiwanis All Star Soccer Double Header which features North and South graduating senior soccer players, nominated by their own coaches, and selected by successful All Star coaches, to represent their high schools. This is their last chance to represent their high schools before moving on with their lives. The games often vary, sometimes tight and low scoring, other times one team dominates. This year had a little of both. 

 

The boys started with with a 5-0 blowout by the Boys North team. Leading scorer Jaxon Cho from Maria Carrillo scored 4 of the goals, assisted 3 times by Angel Arriaga of Santa Rosa High. Tony Pacheco of Piner scored the 5th goal. Cho was obviously named the MVP for the North Team.   Angel Perez was named MVP for the South team.  Herbert Lemus of Healdsburg High coached the North Team, while Daniel Garcia of Santa Rosa High coached the South.

The girls South team, coached by Vinnie Cortezzo of Casa Grande, eked out a tight 1-0 win over a scrappy North team coached by Maria Carrillo's Michael Cox. The lone goal was scored by Kalani Gonzalez of Montgomery High who was also named South MVP. Ashley Vigil of Cardinal Newman was named North MVP. 

 

The games always end in an emotional high for the players and their families as they say goodbye to other players who they probably have played against and with since they were young.

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Coach Lemus put it best:

   "Thank you for the opportunity to coach the Kiwanis Club All-Star Star Team North.  It was a pleasure and honor to do it. 

     I had faced/coach against every single one of those young men during the 2022/2023 season and there we were united as a team and not opponents.

     It is good that the Kiwanis Club puts together this event for these young men."