Rickards Boys Soccer Team to Play for Regional Championship

The Rickards Raiders boys soccer team is looking to make more school history.

Rickards finished the regular soccer season 9-1 and headed into the postseason with momentum looking to secure the 4A District 1 title. Although they beat Bay High School in a penalty shoot-out in the quarterfinals, they ultimately came up short losing to West Florida 3-0 in the semi-finals.

This loss did not stop the Raiders from finding more success deeper into the post season.

As the 5th seed in the FHSAA 4A State Tournament, the Raiders took on 4th seeded Bishop Kenny in the first round. Rickards went up 2-0 in the first half with goals from Caleb Elistene (Jr.) and Neifren Gonzalez (Jr.). The Rickards defense helped secure the win by only allowing one goal in the second half, sending them to the regional semi-finals against a familiar opponent.

On Feb. 7, Rickards found themselves facing off against West Florida (1 seed) once again, hoping for a different outcome than the last time these two teams met in the district tournament. The Raiders had more success on offense and defeated the Jaguars 3-2.

Now the Raiders will play in the Regional Finals for the first time in school history. The Raiders will take on Fort Walton (2 seed) on Feb. 12.