The 2023 Kewanee High School soccer program has had a number of milestones to celebrate this season. In terms of wins, this year’s team is the most successful since the program’s 2016 inception.
In regular season play, the Boilers have won 11 games, which is two more wins than the 2017 and ’18 teams. The 2017 team was 9-11-1 and the 2018 team 9-12-2.
First year Coach Jose Bermudez praised his predecessor Franky Grajeda for his efforts in laying the groundwork for the current team and its success.
“Franky left us in pretty good shape,” said Bermudez. “I give him a lot of the credit. I have a good staff too and that makes a big difference,” he added.
Bermudez was an assistant coach for five years during the Grajeda era. Serving as assistants under Bermudez are Eric Westerlund and Louis Nunez.
Boosted by the play of several experienced upperclassmen, the Boilers had first-time wins over Princeton, Depue/Hall and Streator Woodland. They also played a strong Alleman team to a 3-3 tie.
Another season highlight was the play of Kewanee’s talented senior Cristian Cazares. During the game against Streator Woodland, Cazares became the school’s all-time leading scorer, surpassing the previous record of 88 goals set by Santos Contreras in 2019.
Cazares scored four goals in the 6-2 win over the Streator co-op. His record now stands at 101 career goals heading into Saturday’s regional semifinal game against Roanoke (Benson)/Eureka.
Cazares has scored 42 of those goals this season and he has 10 assists as well.
“He’s a very explosive and very quick player,” Bermudez boasted about his senior leader.
His elusiveness makes him hard to contain. “He’s very smart too and he likes a good challenge,” added Bermudez. “He has a good, strong kick with both legs.”
Also contributing to the team’s success has been junior goalie Dillon Price. He’s recorded 116 saves on the season (6.8/game). Last year as a sophomore, he had 104 (5/game).
“I first saw him play in the park district league and I always thought he’d make a good goalie,” said Bermudez.
The coach admitted it took some coaxing, though. “At first he wasn’t quite sure, but we persuaded him and now it’s something he’s very passionate about,” he said.
“He’s grown a lot and he’s much more confident now. He’s also a really good communicator and provides good leadership.”
Bermudez also had high praise for senior James “JJ” Roginski, who has 12 goals and 19 assists on the season.
“He’s the engine of this team. Having JJ out there is like having a coach on the field,” noted Bermudez. “I give him the freedom to direct the team because sometimes he sees things on the field that I don’t see. He’s also good at motivating his teammates,” he added
Senior Jack Coombes is best known for his defensive prowess. “He speaks out on coverage and that’s a big help,” said Bermudez. “He’s the whole package — everything you could want in a good player. It’s gonna be really hard to lose him.”
Also a strong defender, junior Tyson Currie has been a welcome surprise for the coaching staff. “He’s a very smooth runner and he’s improved a lot,” said Bermudez. “He’s one of the reasons we were able to beat DePue this season. He took their best offensive threat out the game,” added Bermudez.
Sophomore Isidro Martinez has scored six goals and dished out 19 assists on the season. “His kick is amazing,” boasted Bermudez. “If he can improve on his running and speed, he has the potential to be a very good player.”
The No. 4 seeded Boilers are set to play No. 5 seeded Roanoke (Benson)/Eureka Coop Saturday at noon in the Mendota Regional semifinals. The Rockets are 8-7-1 on the season.
On the opposite side of the bracket are No. 1 seed Mendota and No. 6 seed Serena. The winners of the two semifinal games will play Wednesday at 7 p.m. in the Mendota Regional championship game.
