Prep boys’ soccer: Rio Americano powers past Granite Bay to win section championship

No matter the sport, one of the best ways to make an impact is through versatility. In the Sac-Joaquin Section Division II boys’ soccer final, there was no player more versatile than Rio Americano captain Michael Rossi.

The senior forward made an impact all across the field when it mattered most. He stepped up in the biggest game of his life, helping Rio Americano defeat Granite Bay high school 2-0 to finally claim the section title.

Rossi, who has played soccer since the age of 5, has developed quite the skill set. He has played multiple positions but seems to have found his home at forward playing on the outside.

“In the first half he was just a nightmare attacking,” said head coach Antonio Sutton. “From the right side and the left side he was the most dangerous player on the field. Then when we got the yellow card on our center back and a couple players got hurt, he’s well schooled enough that he can play in the back. He used to play for me as an outside back so I knew I had that confidence in him that I could put him anywhere. Up front or in the back. Even the middle. I also had faith in him defensively.”

The faith coach Sutton has in Rossi was earned when Rossi was pulled up to varsity as a freshman. It’s pretty rare Rio Americano takes a freshman onto the varsity roster.

Even though Rossi played exceptionally, Wednesday’s victory was earned by the effort of the entire team. The Raiders played phenomenally on both sides of the ball. They showed tenacity and Granite Bay was simply unable to match the intensity.

Both senior forward Aidan Ontiveros and junior forward Andrew Collins were able to capitalize on their chances and send home the sole goals of the match.

Senior defender/midfielder Landon Raftery, whom coach Sutton also gave a lot of praise to due to his unmatched energy, was a menace on defense. Every time the Grizzlies began to form an attack, he intervened and shut them down.

The list of Rio Americano players that made an impact is long. Everybody stepped up when it mattered.

“(Granite Bay) is a good team. A 2-0 lead is always very dangerous against them,” said Sutton. “But in the end, we had enough fight within us. Enough battle. Enough determination to keep them from scoring. You see we stopped a couple of balls off the line. That’s all heart. There is nothing tactical, there’s no skill about that. That’s just heart.

“Proud, I’m freakin proud of my boys. The way we’ve grown throughout the year and for us to be performing this well when the game matters most. I feel proud, nothing more.”

Next for the Raiders is the NorCal playoffs next week.

This story was originally published February 24, 2022 at 4:02 AM.