Quintet of Pioneer High School boys soccer players earn Golden Empire League awards

By Shaun Holkko on June 25, 2024

The Pioneer High School boys varsity soccer team placed fourth during its final year in the Golden Empire League and had five players receive individual league awards following the conclusion of the 2023-24 campaign.

The Patriots finished 12-5-1 overall and 7-4-1 versus GEL competition. Pioneer pounded Ponderosa 5-1 at home in the first round of the Division III CIF Sac-Joaquin Section Playoffs. The Patriots were eliminated following a 3-0 loss at league rival Rio Linda in the D3 quarterfinals.

"I'm proud of the season and how it went overall in terms of the playoffs. I think we could've done more. Looking back and watching videos of the games, it was just that we didn't finish and they did. We got the opportunities early in the game and didn't finish," recalled Pioneer head coach Adrian Perez. "It's just one of those things where I felt like we had the team to be able to compete with any team out there.

"I felt like, 'Darn, we could've done better.' But I'm really proud of the way that the team came together, the way they meshed and it was a really fun season for me, my assistant coach Abraham (Jimenez Sr.) and overall for all the players. It seemed like they really enjoyed it and I think that's what really helped us produce a lot of those high-scoring games. It was the freedom that they played in."

The Patriots' three starting forwards were selected to the All-GEL first team: sophomore Omar Ramos and seniors, Abraham Jimenez Jr. and Max Lopez. Senior defender Alejandro Canchola and junior FWD Rafael Lopez were chosen for the league's second squad.

Jimenez Jr. has committed to continue his career at the University of Olivet in Michigan. He ranked third in three GEL statistical categories by recording 36 points with 14 goals and 8 assists (tied). Jimenez was selected by Perez as the team's Most Valuable Player.

"What he brought was that he was somebody that is used to playing at a high level. He brought a lot of experience. He was someone that was just really dynamic down the wings. It was hard for teams to be able to adjust to a player like him," Perez recalled. "He would always beat his guys and create a lot of opportunities down that wing. If we were under pressure, we could play through him. He just brought a lot of experience into the team."

Pioneer senior forward Abraham Jimenez Jr. dribbles past a Ponderosa defender during a 5-1 win against the Bruins in the first round of the Division III CIF Sac-Joaquin Section Boys Soccer Playoffs on Feb. 9 at the Woodland Community & Senior Center. (Shaun Holkko/Daily Democrat)

Pioneer senior forward Max Lopez battles for possession during a 3-0 loss at Rio Linda in the quarterfinals of the Division III CIF Sac-Joaquin Section Boys Soccer Playoffs on Feb. 13 at Marion L. Adams Memorial Stadium. (Shaun Holkko/Daily Democrat)

Pioneer senior defender Alejandro Canchola prepares to pass during a 1-0 win at Casa Roble on Feb. 1 in Orangevale. (Shaun Holkko/Daily Democrat)

Pioneer junior forward Rafael Lopez dribbles up field during a 5-1 win against Ponderosa in the first round of the Division III CIF Sac-Joaquin Section Boys Soccer Playoffs on Feb. 9 at the Woodland Community & Senior Center. (Shaun Holkko/Daily Democrat)

Lopez tallied 20 points with 7 goals and 6 assists this season to earn a first team spot.

"Max is basically an attacking midfielder and also at times played a forward. Over the years, Max started out as a holding six, which is more of a defensive player, somebody that is really comfortable on the ball," Perez explained. "As he progressed through his junior and senior year, I moved him into more attacking because we could play through him as almost a false nine, he could hold possession, let us run behind him and he could send balls through.

"A lot of times when we were under pressure, we'd put a ball into him and let him hold for us, we were able to get our numbers up and a lot of times he was able to get a lot of space even though he was playing as a false nine."

Ramos racked up 32 points with 16 goals to earn a first team selection as an underclassman.

"In the formation that we played, we played two nines. What I'd consider him more is as one of those natural number nines. He just has a knack for scoring, being in front of the net and putting goals in. It just goes to show, to be a sophomore and be mentioned at that level just goes to show how talented he is," Perez said. "He's just a natural scorer. We had a lot of strong midfield play and wingers with Abraham, we were able to put dangerous balls for him near the goal area that he was able to finish. I'm excited for him over the next couple of years."

Canchola held down the backline this year. Pioneer outscored its opponents by a 3-1 ratio with a 63-21 goal differential. The all-league second team pick earned the team's Defensive Player of the Year award.

"He just has such a high IQ, knows how to read the game and anticipates balls really well," Perez proclaimed. "Anytime that we had teams countering us, he did so well on reducing the risk. He was somebody who everyone was really comfortable playing in the back with. He was a senior with a lot of experience who was really calm under pressure."

Lopez will join Ramos as the Patriots' top two strikers during the next campaign.

"Rafa was a utility player for me where I kind of moved him as an attacking player next to Omar, sometimes I played him in the midfield and wing," Perez recalled. "He's just a high IQ kid who understood how to create overloads in areas and really how to attack opponents. He's very much offensive-minded and did a really good job of putting himself in dangerous positions. That's why he had quite a bit of assists too though. He seemed like he got along and worked really well with a lot of the players. That gave me the ability to really move him around to a lot of positions."

Nine Pioneer student athletes graduated earlier this month. The other six include: Daniel and Jovany Chavez, Jaime Guerrero, Jesse Junez, Edgar Martinez and Javier Ortiz.

"The senior class means a lot. We're losing a lot of experienced players, guys that have been apart of this club for a long time. We have Martinez who has been a varsity player since his freshman year. We've had other folks on there that just contributed quite a bit like Javi. He was somebody that started a lot on the defensive side for us, who just had great energy out there. The seniors were the players who showed a lot of heart and character throughout the games.

"I'm really attached to them. As a coach, you really enjoy spending time with your players, so it's sad that they're moving on. But I'm also excited for their soccer careers and their lives going forward."

The Patriots will join the Monticello Empire League this winter.

"We have such a lot of talent in the younger JV group and the existing varsity players that we've had. We're basically waiting for opportunities to get starting spots. I think we're going to have a really competitive team. We have a lot of our existing midfielders returning. Omar is a starting forward who can produce a lot of goals and has chemistry with Rafa. We have a lot of players that are going to be returning. We're still really strong for next year. My hope is that we can bring in some younger JV players from last year that will help us be more dynamic as well."