In front of one of the largest crowds to ever descend on Warrior Stadium in north Turlock this past weekend, the greatest season in the history of the Stanislaus State men’s soccer program came to a close.
Struggling to generate much offense outside of the early stages of the first half of Sunday’s third round match of the NCAA Division II Tournament — the first time ever playing in the Sweet Sixteen of the national tournament — the No. 3 Warriors fell to by a 2-0 score to No. 8 Midwestern State (Texas) in front of 829 fans.
The Warriors, this year’s California Collegiate Athletic Association champions (8-1-1), totaled seven shots over the course of the 90 minutes of play, with five coming in the first half and four attempted through the first 20 minutes of play. Nevertheless, Parker Plaxco finished low inside the right post to give the Mustangs a 1-0 lead in the 39th minute. Midwestern State doubled its lead in the 72nd minute on a counterattack finished by Alan Rivera.
Goalkeeper Angel Ruiz-Hernandez, a graduate of Pitman High School who set the program’s single-season record with 11.5 shutouts this year, recorded four saves.
“I think we got a little frustrated that the goal didn't come right away,” said third-year head coach and Stan State alumnus John Powell, whose team scored 44 goals entering Sunday’s playoff match. “I think with this type of firepower (we have) — we've only been shut out one other time against Dominguez Hills — I think we're just so used to scoring goals, and typically, we've worked really hard to earn our looks early, and we've finished a lot of them. Today, it didn't happen. There's a lot of reasons (why), but ultimately, they were better than us on the day. It's part of the game. Sometimes it hurts to say, but it's the truth.”
The Warriors, made up predominantly of regional talent, finished the season with a 17-2-1 record (.917 winning percentage), marking the winningest season in school history. It was Stan State's third NCAA Division II Tournament appearance (2012, 2015, 2025), where it holds a 2–2 all-time record. The tournament run came after the Warriors secured its second CCAA Tournament title this fall in its sixth overall appearance. The conference crown was claimed just weeks after the program received its first ever No. 1 ranking on the national level.
As a collective, the 2025 Warriors allowed the fewest goals in a season (9). In addition to his season shutout record, the 6-foot-1, 190-pound Ruiz-Hernandez also ranks second in career shutouts with 17, third in wins with 23, sixth in saves with 128, and fourth in minutes played.
Offensively, the 44 goals scored by the Warriors were the third-most in history. The team’s 51 assists were most all time, led by senior Samuel Villanueva’s new single-season mark of 17. Villanueva, from Napa, ranks among the top 10 in career points with 29. Sophomore Adrian Yepez of Salida added seven assists, tied for fourth-most in a year.
Junior Emmanuel Duran, also of Napa, and his 10 goals ranks fifth-most by a Warrior in a season. Junior Gerardo Flores, an alumnus of Central Valley High School in Ceres, scored nine goals, while freshman Sebastian Carbajal of Napa scored seven goals — each ranking in the top 10 of the program’s all-time list. Flores (24 points) and Duran (23 points) each rank among the top 10 single-season point totals.
“I'm so proud of the team,” Powell said. “The boys have had a special season. They've rewrote every possible record… “(The loss) is still very, very fresh right now, nut I know how good of a group I have, and it was a pleasure coaching them.”
Powell also expressed appreciation towards local soccer fans, who filled the bleachers throughout the season. Despite the cold weather over the past two weeks, the crowds only grew larger as the wins kept coming. In last Sunday’s 2-0 win in the second round against Hawai’i Hilo, attendance was announced as 1,042.
“It fills me with a great sense of pride,” Powell said of the students, staff, faculty, alumni, local dignitaries, family, friends and local youth and high school teams who spent their weekends at Warrior Stadium.
“Being born and raised in Modesto, and both my parents went here (to Stan State), my wife and I met here…. I don't really have the words. A thank you isn't enough, but just thank you so much for the support and for filling the stands. I know it means a lot to my boys. It definitely means a lot to me, even though I'm the one yelling and screaming out there. To feel them behind us and see them and the social media support and the community out to help us, I’m just forever grateful.”
