Athlete of the Week: Air Academy's boys soccer team

Back on top for the first time since 2018! The Air Academy boys soccer team won the 4A state title and have earned themselves a feature as our Athlete of the Week.

The Kadets captured the program's sixth state championship with a 1-0 win over top seeded Mullen. Air Academy was an underdog coming into this season, but tuned out the outside noise and locked in to finish the season as the best team in 4A.

"We had one goal and that was just to be the best we could be," said Air Academy's Head Coach Espen Hosoien. "We never really set out thinking we were going to win the state championship. There's been some state titles before where we were expected to win. This was not that group but we decided to work as hard as we can and see how far that gets us."

The game winning goal came from senior Ben Brown in the 63 minute of the match. Brown shot a laser from just across midfield and got it up and over the goalkeeper for the eventual game winning goal.

"It almost feels surreal like I want to pinch myself," said Brown. "I wasn't even sure it went in at the start. but it just went in and I mean I went to go celebrate. It felt amazing to be in that moment."

"That was a hit that would probably end up in Pueblo if the goal wasn't there," said Hosoien. "He can hit those and the emotions that go through you when that happens is pretty phenomenal."

Coach Hosoien has now been a part of five out of the programs six titles and he says the feeling never gets old. It's been five years since they have been to the title game, and six years since they've won it. He says it was time for them to do it again.

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