Surry Central's Cesar Guerrero signs with Mars Hill

Surry Central’s Cesar Guerrero will continue his soccer career at Mars Hill University.

“It feels good to be able to go to college when that’s the thing I’ve been working toward for a long time,” Guerrero said. “It’s a good university and I always wanted to go there, so it’s kind of surreal.

“Most importantly I want to thank God, as well as my family, friends, and my coaches as well. Just everyone who supported me and everyone who went out to the games and motivated the team. I want to say thank you to everyone.”

By signing with Mars Hill, Guerrero follows in the footsteps of 2020 Surry Central graduate Nolan McMillen. Despite not overlapping as teammates at Central, Guerrero cited McMillen’s signing as an impactful moment in his pursuit of a collegiate soccer career.

“It inspired me to see that this small school could really get attention,” Guerrero said. “It showed we could really make it out there, and that was added motivation to make it there. It’s cool to keep the trend going.”

“To see that come full circle is incredible,” said Surry Central coach Adan Garcia. “Nolan set the bar high, and to see Cesar get to that bar was just incredible. They’re going to get the pleasure of playing together, and now you can add Cesar to that list of players setting that example that Surry County can indeed produce college-level soccer players.

“He definitely won’t be the last.”

As he progressed through high school, Guerrero’s narrowed his overall goal of playing in college to attending Mars Hill specifically. Thes school invited him to a camp in the spring, and when the offer came in soon after Guerrero didn’t think twice about accepting.

“It was the location, the team…really everything,” Guerrero said on what made Mars Hill so appealing. “It just seemed like a good program. When I went there for a visit it just felt like it was home, so I knew that’s where I wanted to go and held off waiting for that offer. We got it done, so it feels great to know that hard work paid off.”

Guerrero was a three-year varsity player that moved into the starting lineup as an upperclassman. As a junior he helped the team to a 12-8-2 record, a runner-up finish in the Foothills 2A Conference and an appearance in the 2A State Playoffs.

Following a full offseason with the team, Guerrero came back as a senior and had what he called his “breakout year.” While the season looked remarkably similar on paper as Central finished 12-7-2, finished second in conference and made it back to the playoffs, Guerrero said the season felt like a turning point that made him truly believe playing in college was more than just a dream.

“I agree with him and think this year was his breakout year,” Garcia said. “A portion of his junior year was about implementing his play style to what we were now accustomed to. Then his senior year he started to settle in and was an example to these other kids on how to play as a winger, because it’s one of the hardest positions to play on the field.”

On his career at Surry Central, Guerrero said: “It had its ups and downs, but it worked out in the end and was a good experience. I couldn’t have asked for a better group. We’ve all known each other since middle school or younger, and it’s just a good feeling sharing the field with my friends.”

In terms of realizing his true potential as a collegiate player, one of the most impactful games of Guerrero’s high school career was a playoff match against Lincoln Charter.

“I think that was one of the major turning points where he realized he could play at the next level,” Garcia said. “Lincoln Charter is an incredible program, and Cesar went out there and was still playing at his best if not better; he found another gear and he helped us out so much. Unfortunately, we didn’t get the result we wanted as a team, but the fact that he was able to play at that level and compete against that team was a huge confidence booster.”

The end of Surry Central’s 2023 season was far from the end of Guerrero’s high school soccer career. He had a two-week break in November, then immediately began playing his first-ever season of travel soccer with Rush Triad. Travel season continued through winter and into spring.

“I put in a lot of effort when I realized I could make it somewhere, and when I joined travel a lot of opportunities opened up,” Guerrero said.

Guerrero wasn’t the only Surry Central player to compete on Rush’s league-winning team, which Garcia said only adds to the motivation younger players will get from watching Guerrero play.

“The crazy part is this is definitely just the tip of the iceberg for Cesar,” Garcia said. “I’ve been going to some of his travel games, and you can see he’s taken the things he’s learned over the years and applying those every time he takes the field. He’s learned a lot and is pushing himself to keep getting better, and I know he has even more potential at the next level.

“He’s become a great example for the younger kids that want to play in college. I couldn’t be prouder of him for all he’s accomplished and will accomplish.”