As Fall sports roll to an end, there comes time to reflect on the successes of the previous season. This was the case for the Manitou Springs Boys’ Soccer Team as they gathered for their annual end of the year banquet.

This year, boys’ soccer was filled with ups and downs, moments of glory and painstaking defeats. The players’ grit and perseverance were greatly appreciated by Head Coach Ben Mack. As per usual, the banquet began by players, families and coaches alike lining up to serve themselves a meal before the main event of the night began. After eating, JV Coach Nathan Johnson began his speech by recapping his team’s season, as well as saying a little summary of each individual player. Following him was a similar speech by Mack. He also took time to recognize his choices for this season’s awards.

Asher Schoepflin (11) started off by winning Defensive Player of the Year, followed by Séamus Lowe (11) winning Offensive Player of the Year. The Most Improved Player was awarded to Spencer McCumber (10), while Ryan Bergsten (12) took home the Tiger Blood award, given to the player who showed the most grit and gave outstanding effort day in and day out. To finish of the team awards, Cullen Coté (11) received the Most Valuable Player award. Along with these feats, Schoepflin also was awarded All-Conference Honorable Mention and Coté was named First Team All-Conference and All-State Honorable Mention.

“I was focused on playing for my teammates. With such great people surrounding me throughout the season I felt like I owed it to them to play my very best and create plays on their behalf,” said Lowe on account of his offensive achievement.

The boys’ soccer team finished with seven wins and nine losses and ended their season in an overtime loss in their playoff game against third-ranked Colorado Academy. The team will be looking to improve on the foundation set this year and strive to make a deeper run into the playoffs.