Rockford Raptors U15 boys soccer team gets first shot at national club championship

A local U15 boys soccer team is on the biggest tear ever in the club's history.

The Rockford Raptors' U15 team was the first to advance to an Elite Clubs National League (ECNL) Final 16 Tournament and now will be the first in a Final 8 tournament as well.

After winning in San Diego in late June, the Raptors head to Richmond, Virginia, for the final rounds of the U15 Boys National Championships, starting Monday.

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"These boys are special," coach Orlando Jimenez said. "They have a special kind of chemistry out there, and they all play for that one purpose: just to win the game."

The Raptors went 4-0 in San Diego, outscoring their foes 12-5 to advance with ease. The top three teams advanced to the Virginia finals.

The squad is 14-2-2, led by midfielder Aarón Jimenez, who was involved in nine of the 12 goals last month in California, with six assists. He will bid farewell to the organization following the tournament after signing with the Chicago Fire FC Academy's U17 program.

"I know he wants to finish his time with the Raptors off with some big wins," said Orlando, who also is Aarón's father. "They all do. And now's their chance."

The first two rounds of the tournament will be held Monday and Tuesday, with the finals on Thursday.

The team is comprised of: Goalies Dustin Emmert and Kale Syzdek; defenders Saul Santana, Gabe Moore, Fabian Vallejo, Graham Peat, Matthew Perez, Liam Nixon and Angel Landeros; forwards Romeo Salinas, Kage Guge, Diego Palacios and Nathan Gray; and midfielders Aarón Jimenez, Banks Denu, Mauricio Ruiz, Aiden Werner and William Prus.

Jay Taft is a Rockford Register Star sports reporter. Email him at jtaft@rrstar.com and follow him on X, formerly Twitter, at @JayTaft. Sign up for the Rockford High School Sports Newsletter here at rrstar.com. Jay has covered a variety of sports, from the Chicago Bears and Blackhawks to local youth sports, since the turn of the century at the Register Star.