Girls Soccer
After a long playoff run taking the Warriors to the state championship in 2023, the expectations were high. Most of the starters were seniors last season, so this year’s team was young, without much varsity experience. The season started rocky with a few serious injuries to key players resulting in a couple of bad losses during non-league play. In non-league, the team was 3-6 after going against four of the eventual top 10 teams in the state: Jesuit, Tigard, St. Mary’s, and Central Catholic.
Sophomore striker and co-offensive PIL player of the year Ella Cohen missed six games before league play. She told the Clarion “My favorite moment was my first game back after my concussion, against Lincoln. I scored in that game, and it was just really fun being back on the field.”
In PIL play, the team went against two of the other top 10 including the no. 1 team in the state (and currently ranked top 30 in the U.S., according to MaxPreps). Against Grant, the Warriors only lost 2-0 in a neck-and-neck game, with many offensive chances and strong defensive performances from all the players.
By October, all the players were back and healthy. In league play, the team went 3-3 and their only losses were against top 15 teams. By the end of the regular season, they were ranked 24th in the state, securing them a spot in the playoffs. In the first round of the playoffs, the Warriors faced David Douglas, who went 7-1 in league play and earned second place in the Mt. Hood Conference. With hopes of an upset, they gave it their all but fell short, losing to David Douglas 2-1, ending their hopes of a playoff run.
Two of this year’s six seniors are committed to playing at the college level next year. Midfielder Lola Pierce is committed to playing at the Division I level for Gonzaga University. Goalkeeper Lloy Bartolotti is committed to Division III Lesley University in Cambridge, MA.
When asked how the season ended, Bartolotti said “I was happy to have played my last season with some of my favorite people.”
The team finished 6-10 overall and fourth in the league. Next year they hope to improve with more experienced players, who have made significant improvements this season. Overall, the team finished the year strong and is enthusiastic about the future of the program.
Boys Soccer
The boys’ soccer program has been improving more over the past decade and this year they continued that trend. After a second-round exit against league rivals Grant in the second round of playoffs last year, the Warriors were motivated going into the season. With 15 seniors graduating from the 2023 squad, few of the current players had much varsity experience going into this year.
This year started out better than ever, with the team going 4-0 and jumping up to no. 8 in the state just two weeks into the season. The team struggled in the end of non-league play, having a 0-2-2 record in the other four games. Going into league play, the team still had a solid winning record but didn’t have strong momentum.
Senior midfielder and captain Brendan Treat said, “Our defense was very strong but our offense struggled to score goals.”
This was clear in the first half of the season when in the first 10 games, they scored a total of 22 goals and the defense had only let in nine. At the end of the season, in the last four games of league play, they had a negative-five goal differential with the offense only scoring four goals.
Of the last four regular season games, all four of the teams they played made it through the first round of playoffs successfully. The strength of the Cleveland schedule is a big factor in helping the Warriors make the playoffs. During the Southeast Cup on Oct. 17, Franklin scored a last-minute goal against the Warriors to win 2-1. The Warriors ended up going only 2-5 in the league for sixth place.
In the playoffs, the Warriors were matched up against sixth-seeded South Eugene who easily won the Southwest conference. Cleveland, the underdogs, traveled to Eugene and played in the rain. Trailing 1-0 at halftime, the Warriors equalized with a screamer from Charlie Kibben just outside the box.
With less than a minute left in the game, Cleveland defended a freekick just outside the box. South Eugene got a good cross into the area and the Axemen were able to get a goal and end the Warriors’ season with a 2-1 loss.
Throughout the season the varsity team came up just a little bit short in close –winnable– games, mostly against the top teams in the state. The team has been a consistent winner for the past several seasons.
Coach Nick Yoder attributed this sustained success to the coaching stability.
“It’s about consistency. We’ve had coaches stay on from JV2 through varsity for many years now. It allows players to get familiar with what we’re doing here. Plus, the players here at Cleveland are fantastic, they’re fun to work with,” Yoder said.
