All-state soccer 2018: Cedar Rapids Washington's Keaton Woods a two-time first teamer

CEDAR RAPIDS — With superior speed and athleticism, Keaton Woods is a threat to score any time he touches the soccer ball.

He just had to perfect the art of finishing first.

'I know how to read the game better after watching all the tape,' the Cedar Rapids Washington junior forward said after being selected to the Class 3A boys' soccer all-state first team by the Iowa High School Soccer Coaches Association for the second year in a row. 'I learned better movements and my team figured out how to set me up a lot better. … I didn't play a lot my freshman year. … So after I got a couple of goals my sophomore year it got to where I am used to it now.'

Woods led 3A with 26 goals this season despite missing six games with strained right hip flexor. Now healthy again, Woods returned from Minnesota on Thursday where he participated in the three-day 2018 United States Youth Soccer Olympic Development Program Midwest Showcase.

'It provides a different challenge from what I am used to,' Woods said. 'In ODP, every team is strong normally and you are playing against the best player from different states so you get to see more talent from outside of just Iowa.'

Woods is mulling potential collegiate soccer destinations from a list that includes Colgate, Nebraska-Omaha and Pacific. Until then, there is club soccer in the fall – he has previously played at Cedar River Soccer Association, but that could change – and one more year with Coach JP Graham and the Warriors.

'He's always been athletic and he's always done a good job of using his speed to his advantage,' Graham said. 'Now, he can dribble even faster with the ball at his feet, but he really improved his shooting and his finishing. I give him a lot of credit for making the effort to do that.'

Two players from both Cedar Rapids Prairie (forward Mateus Lewis, defender Boston Riley) and Iowa City West (forward Gada Ambo, defender Harry Zielinski) were also named to the 3A first team, which also included Cedar Rapids Jefferson senior midfielder Cody Christoffersen and Iowa City High senior defender Jackson Meyer.

In Class 2A, Marion had two first-team honorees in sophomore forward Jaffer Murphy and senior defender Alex Whalen. Cedar Rapids Xavier senior Thomas Bean also made the 2A list.

There were eight area players named to the Class 1A first team, led by a trio — midfielder Luke Yetley, forward Jorel Justus and defender Nick Radcliff — from Solon.

First-time spring state qualifier Iowa Mennonite had two 1A representatives — midfielder Cole Ours and defender Reggie Borntrager — while Benton Community (midfielder Vance Bartelt), state champion Iowa City Regina (freshman midfielder Alec Wick) and Williamsburg (sophomore midfielder Matt Cronquist) each had one.

Four area girls' soccer players — Linn-Mar sophomore Abigail Santana (3A), Union Community senior Emma Rottinghaus (2A) and Center Point-Urbana senior teammates Raegan Dufoe and Allie Wooldridge (1A) — were first team all-state honorees by the IAHSSCA.

Dufoe, a Coe signee, and Santana, a Creighton commit, were also first-team selections by the Iowa Girls' Coaches Association earlier this month.

Class 3A boys

FIRST TEAM

Jordy Triana Vasquez, sr., midfielder, West Des Moines Valley

Cody Christoffersen, sr., midfielder, Cedar Rapids Jefferson

Kolby Raineri, jr., midfielder, Ankeny

Will Overberg, jr., midfielder, Ankeny Centennial

Justin Crawmer, jr., midfielder, Waukee

Wesley Sanders, jr., goalkeeper, Waukee

Gada Ambo, jr., forward, Iowa City West

Keaton Woods, jr., forward, Cedar Rapids Washington

Mateaus Lewis, jr., forward, Cedar Rapids Prairie

Boston Riley, sr., defender, Cedar Rapids Prairie

Jack Nurre, sr., defender, Ankeny

Jackson Meyer, sr., defender, Iowa City High

Harry Zielinski, sr., defender, Iowa City West

Lucas Gutierrez, jr., defender, Waukee

SECOND TEAM (area only)

Danny Peak, sr. midfielder, Linn-Mar

Alex Stone, sr., midfielder, Cedar Rapids Kennedy

Chase Harrison, sr., goalkeeper, Cedar Rapids Prairie

Andrew Hammer, sr., defender, Cedar Rapids Washington

HONORABLE MENTION (area only)

Caleb Halleran, jr., midfielder, Cedar Rapids Prairie

John Clark, sr. forward, Iowa City High

Class 2A boys

FIRST TEAM

Ethan Poulter, sr., midfielder, Pella

Tucker Kiley, jr., midfielder, Dallas Center-Grimes

Mason Lucas, soph., midfielder, Norwalk

Thomas Bean, sr., midfielder, Cedar Rapids Xavier

Eli Schwarzkopf, sr., midfielder, Adel ADM

Kevin Duque, sr., midfielder, Storm Lake

Garrett Nevshemal, jr., midfielder, Winterset

Brennon Woody, jr., goalkeeper, Dallas Center-Grimes

Matthew Yeager, sr., forward, Newton

Jaffer Murphy, so., forward, Marion

Gerardo Rosiles, sr., forward, Storm Lake

Joe Bacon, sr., defender, Pella

Ean Followill, sr., defender, Dallas Center-Grimes

Ethan Mayer, jr., defender Adel ADM

Hunter Ohannessian, defender, Knoxville

Alex Whalen, sr., defender, Marion

Lucas Warner, sr., defender, Pella

HONORABLE MENTION

Jake Muhlbauer, sr., midfielder, Decorah

Kolby Godbolt, fr., midfielder, Iowa City Liberty

Andrew Kozelka, sr., forward, Decorah

Ayi Ajavon, so., forward, Iowa City Liberty

Will Hanigan, sr., forward, Cedar Rapids Xavier

Class 1A boys

Vance Bartelt, sr., midfielder, Benton Community

Alec Wick, fr., midfielder, Iowa City Regina

Luke Yetley, jr., midfielder, Solon

Trent Fitzpatrick, sr., midfielder, Davenport Assumption

Blake Witty, sr., midfielder, Des Moines Christian

Cole Ours, sr., midfielder, Iowa Mennonite

Matt Cronquist, so., midfielder, Williamsburg

Bo McMahon, sr., goalkeeper, Denver

Christian Graber, sr., goalkeeper, Gilbert

Ben Webster, sr., forward, Des Moines Christian

Jorel Justus, jr., forward, Solon

Nick Radcliff, sr., defender, Solon

Reggie Borntrager, sr., defender, Iowa Mennonite

Carter Bremer, sr., defender, Nevada

Carlos Cruz, jr., defender, Postville

Luke Waters, sr., defender, Council Bluffs St. Albert

HONORABLE MENTION

Nick Pechous, sr., forward, Iowa City Regina

Class 3A girls

FIRST TEAM

Tori Ubben, sr., defender, Ankeny Centennial

Tia Martin, jr., midfielder, Dubuque Senior

Riley Whitaker, sr., defender, Ankeny

Rachel Van Der Hart, jr., goalkeeper, Urbandale

Olivia Brown, sr., defender, Ankeny Centennial

Melina Hegelheimer, jr., midfielder, Ames

Libby Helverson, sr., midfielder, West Des Moines Valley

Kelly Friedrich, sr., midfielder, Ames

Hannah Olson, sr., forward, West Des Moines Valley

Allie Williams, jr., forward, Waukee

Alexis Legg, sr., forward, Ankeny

Abigail Santana, sophomore, midfielder, Linn-Mar

HONORABLE MENTION (area only)

Piper Carey, so., forward, Linn-Mar

Olivia Hellweg, sr., midfielder, Cedar Rapids Kennedy

Class 2A girls

FIRST TEAM

Sydney Canney, sr., defender, Adel ADM

Siri Ott, fr., defender, Waverly-Shell Rock

Sarah Campbell, sr., defender, Waverly-Shell Rock

Megan Roberts, sr., forward, Norwalk

Madison Parks, sr., goalkeeper, Lewis Central

Kenzie Roling, fr., forward, Waverly-Shell Rock

Josie Lickteig, jr., defender, Pella

Isabella Smith, so., defender, Lewis Central

Isabel LaFollette, sr., midfielder, Adel ADM

Hadley Hill, so., defender, Lewis Central

Grace Guidry, so., forward, Lewis Central

Gabby Bruman, so., goalkeeper, Waverly-Shell Rock

Emma Rottinghaus, sr., midfielder, Union Community

Anna Forsyth, sr., midfielder, Newton

Class 1A girls

FIRST TEAM

Tillie Heim, sr., midfielder, Tri-Center

Teagan Blackburn, jr., forward, Council Bluffs St. Albert

Rebekah Hortsman, sr., goalkeeper, Pella Christian

Raegan Dufoe, sr., defender, Center Point-Urbana

Olivia Fain, sr., forward, Waterloo Columbus

Molly Gervase, sr., midfielder, Davenport Assumption

Makenna Shepard, fr., midfielder, Council Bluffs St. Albert

Lilly Dahir, jr., defnender, Tri-Center

Kalen Bloodgood, sr., defender, Creston

Emma De Costa, so., forward, Bondurant-Farrar

Emily Branson, sr., forward, Gilbert

Carly King, sr., forward, Davenport Assumption

Anna Van Zee, so., defender, Pella Christian

Alyssa Kellar, fr., forward, Treynor

Allison Wooldridge, sr., midfielder, Center Point-Urbana

HONORABLE MENTION (area only)

Tara Hansel, so., midfielder, Dyersville Beckman

Lauren Gaarde, sr., forward, Iowa City Regina

Lauren Dufoe, so., goalkeeper, Center Point-Urbana

l Comments: douglas.miles@thegazette.com