The soccer pitch was one of the most successful spots for Aurora in the fall, as 22 players earned all-league first team accolades — including two league players of the year — 20 more made second teams with double digits in honorable mention.
The 2024 Aurora Sentinel All-Aurora Boys Soccer Team — which is picked by the Sentinel in conjunction with balloting of city coaches — is a mix of standouts from the area’s five qualifiers for the Class 5A state playoffs.
A heavy presence comes from Regis Jesuit (14-2-2), which lost only one time to a Colorado team and that came to eventual state runner-up Broomfield in the quarterfinals.
Coach Rick Wolf’s senior-heavy Raiders had the second-most potent offensive duo in 5A in senior striker Jack De Simone and senior midfielder Charles Sharp, who tallied a combined 116 points on the campaign (trailing only 125 of the duo of Xander Sevian and David Bojorquez of Boulder).
De Simone won Player of the Year honors in the Continental League and a spot on the 5A All-State first team as selected by the Colorado High School Soccer Coaches Association in the wake of a season in which he accumulated 59 points. He scored 24 goals (2nd most in 5A) and also ranked eighth in the classification with 11 assists. De Simone — who scored 40 goals in his varsity career — is headed to West Point.
Sharp was an All-Continental League first team pick and CHSCSA All-State second team selection in the midfield in which he piled up 57 points. Sharp scored four of his 19 goals in the postseason — including a tally that gave the Raiders an early lead in the quarterfinals — and he had two hat tricks. Sharp also was far and away the leader among Aurora-area players with 19 assists.
The Raiders also had the top keeper in the area in senior Thayer White, who earned All-Continental League first team distinction with his play. Regis Jesuit surrendered just 11 goals in 18 games with 10 shutouts, while only two opponents (Missouri powerhouse Rockhurst, which scored three in a Jesuit Classic game and Broomfield, which scored two) had multiple goals. That defensive effort was helped by the play of senior defender Reed Garcia, who provided a steady presence as the Raiders turned over much of their backline. Garcia contributed a pair of goals as well.
Grandview was the only other team besides Regis Jesuit to win a game in the postseason and its first round upset of Fairview came courtesy of a goal by junior midfielder Alex Kedzierski. Three of the All-Centennial League first team performer’s six goals were game-winners, while he tied with senior Andrew Harwell for the lead in assists with five for the Wolves, who played for the last time under retiring head coach Brian Wood.
Aurora Central graduated a lot of its firepower from a 5A state playoff team in 2023, but returned to the postseason with the help of a massive contribution from Miguel Vazquez. The senior captain (the Colorado League’s Player of the Year) played all over the field for coach Rudy Villagomez’s Trojans, as he started on the back line before he shifted forward to help the attack. Vazquez finished with a team-high 11 goals, while he also had nine assists on his way to 31 points, fourth-most among Aurora players.
Gateway fell short of postseason qualification in 2024, but surged from 4-11 in 2023 to 7-6-2 with help from a big season from versatile senior Brandom Funez. Funez had at least a goal or an assist in nine games for Olys and he finished with 15 goals to lead the Colorado League. The all-league first team pick scored five of those goals in head-to-head matchups with other Aurora programs, while he also dished out two assists to finish with 32 points, more than any other local player not from Regis Jesuit.
Hinkley suffered a big loss to graduation in the midfield in Devyn Mena, but had a more than suitable replacement in senior Chris Leon. Leon managed to surpass Mena’s 22-point 2023 season with a 23-point campaign that included six goals and 11 assists (which made him one of only three Aurora area players to reach double figures in that category). The All-City League first team performer had a point in all four games in which the Thunder faced Aurora opponents.
Smoky Hill improved its competitiveness significantly from the previous season and upped its win total by one to 6-7-2 with help from an offense that scored four more goals than in 2023. Senior Elliott Kaganer played a large role in that with nine goals tied him for second-most in the loaded Centennial League. The All-Centennial League first team pick — who had game-winning goals against Doherty and Rangeview — also had an assist.
Courtney Oakes is Aurora Sentinel Sports Editor. Reach him at sports@sentinelcolorado.com. Twitter/X: @aurorasports. IG: Sentinel Prep Sports
