The Kewanee soccer team played Mendota Wednesday night in the Mendota Regional championship game, but Kewanee lost 4-0, putting an end to their historic season.
“Losing is never easy, but we fought hard,” said Coach Jesus Bermudez. “Everybody wanted to win and we gave our best. I couldn’t have asked for anything more from this team,” he added.
The Boilermakers (11-8-2) faced Mendota (21-2-2) earlier in the season and lost 5-0. The Trojans are the 2023 TRAC champs with a 6-0 conference mark. The Boilers placed third at 3-2.
“We knew we were facing a tough team, but the guys weren’t intimidated,” Bermudez added. “Most of the play was at midfield. We defended pretty well, but they were able to take more shots.”
On a high note, three Kewanee players were named to the All-Regional First Team and three were accorded Second Team honors.
Those named to the First Team were a trio of seniors, Cristian Cazares, JJ Roginski and Jack Coombes. Second Team honors went to Tony Moran (senior), Michael Bermudez (freshman) and Dillon Price (junior).
The team will say goodbye to six seniors who have had a positive impact on the Kewanee soccer program (Cazares, Roginski, Coombes, Moran, Christian Bretado and Jesus Zepeda).
“It’s sad in a way, like a chapter is closing, but I’m excited that I’ll get to see some of the guys play at the next level,” added Bermudez.
They leave some big shoes to be filled, but Bermudez is optimistic. “It’s gonna be hard, but not impossible. We (coaches) see a lot of raw talent and potential on next year’s team,” Bermudez noted.
The Boilers will return nine juniors, four sophomores and eight freshmen. The coaching staff is also excited about a few eighth graders that’ll come into the fold next season.
