Prep Athletes of the Week: Erik Aasheim leads Orono boys soccer into state tournament

Aasheim didn’t play a minute in the Spartans’ season opener. He wasn’t even in their starting lineup at the midway point of his senior year. He used it as motivation.

“It upset me,” Aasheim said. “It motivated me. I had to work hard to beat out a teammate. My teammates were very supportive of me.”

The senior striker stepped up when it counted most for the Class 2A, No. 4-ranked Spartans (11-4-2). He scored all four Orono goals in a 4-2 victory over Delano for the Class 2A, Section 6 championship.

“That was the best I’ve ever played in a game,” Aasheim said. He was relegated to the junior varsity a year ago because of the Spartans’ senior-heavy state tournament team. “I didn’t know if I would ever make it here.”

Now that he has, Aasheim was determined not to let his teammates down.

“I wanted to win, not just for myself but for my teammates,” Aasheim said. “To win the section championship and get to the state tournament is massive. Soccer means a lot to me and my teammates.”

Aasheim finished the regular season as the Spartans’ leading scorer with 12 goals.

“Erik has been an essential part of the team this year and stepped up massively for us in our section final,” Orono coach Grant Steine. “It’s been fun to watch Erik grow over the season in different areas of his game, all while staying consistent in his calm and collected approach to the game. He’s all business all the time and has consistently shown up when his teammates needed him most.”

The senior ran a personal-best 17 minutes, 57 seconds to earn medalist honors and lead the Scots to the St. Paul City Conference championship over the 5K course at Highland Park Golf Course. Lewis-Mosher is the No. 4-rated individual for the top-ranked Scots in Class 2A. “Grace has elevated the standards on an already highly competitive team through her relentless offseason work and consistent preparation,” Scots coach Brad Moening said. “Her grit and competitive spirit ensure that she is always ready to perform at her best when it matters most.”

After being sidelined because of an ACL injury during the Knights’ Nine-Player tournament runner-up finish a year ago, Reiland has come back with a vengeance. The senior running back rushed for 366 yards on 17 carries with five touchdowns and also caught a 45-yard touchdown pass in Kingsland’s 38-28 victory over Houston in the regular-season finale. “Sitting out last year was extremely tough for Zach but he brought a great attitude to practice each day and helped the team in any way he could,” Knights coach Matt Kolling said. “He spent many hours in the weight room getting his knee and his body ready for this year.”

The junior attacker shines in timely situations. Tovar scored six of her 11 goals in three Class 2A section tournament games. She had a hat trick in an 8-0 victory over Two Harbors, both goals in a 2-1 come-from-behind triumph over No. 3-rated Woodbury and the first goal in a 3-2 upset victory over No. 1-ranked White Bear Lake in the section final. During the regular season, Tovar scored the lone goals in 1-0 victories over Rosemount and No. 8-ranked Stillwater. “Reese has had a lot to do with the success of our team this year,” Raptors coach Latcho Kostadinov said. “She has scored very valuable goals.”

Thom has made a fluid transition from the soccer pitch to running through the woods. In only his second season with the Cougars’ cross-country team, Thom has been a medalist in his past four races. He won the Big 9 Conference championship with a time of 15:47.4 over the 5K course at the Brooktree Golf Course in Owatonna. It came 12 days after winning the Ev Berg Invitational on the same course with a personal-best time of 15:46.3. He is ranked seventh in Class 2A. “Audi has a fun-loving and approachable personality but is unrelenting during workouts,” Cougars coach Chris Ward said.

Kennedy is enjoying an outstanding senior season. The Class 1A defending champion in diving has established the school records for six dives with a mark of 275.05 and 11 dives with a score of 459.70. “She came back for her senior year very driven to keep improving,” Packers diving coach Anna Anderson said. “She works hard every day doing conditioning and water practice.” In 2023, Kennedy won the Class 1A meet with a mark of 432.45. “Alayna had an amazing meet at state and hit every single one of her dives to come away as the state champion,” Anderson said.

The playmaking senior captain is a big reason the Millers (14-0-3) are ranked No. 2 in Class 3A and headed back to the state tournament, its first appearance on the big stage since 2019. Walthour, a midfielder, had one goal and one assist in the Millers’ 4-0 shutout victory over Hopkins in the Section 6 championship. He has five goals and 12 assists this season. “He has a tremendous all-around game,” Millers coach Aaron Percy said. “Elliot has been one of our leaders all year and without his playmaking abilities, the Millers would not be in the state tournament.”

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