Manteo High School men’s soccer team wins 2A state championship in historic program first

The Manteo High School men’s varsity soccer team smiles with their medals and trophy after winning the state 2A championship game against Gray Stone Day with a score of 1-0 on Friday, Nov. 21, 2025, at Guilford College in Greensboro. (Photo courtesy Edward Estrada-Tovar)

By Corinne Saunders

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MANTEO — Manteo High School’s varsity men’s soccer team made history when it won the North Carolina High School Athletic Association 2A State Championship with a score of 1-0 against Gray Stone Day on Friday.

To watch Outer Banks Insider’s video interview, click here.

This was the first championship title in Manteo High School men’s soccer program history, according to multiple sources, including the Raleigh-based HighSchoolOT.com, which is part of the Capitol Broadcasting Company.

Twenty years ago, the last time the men’s soccer team made it to the state playoffs, the 2005 season ended with that team becoming the state 1A runner-up after a 4-3 loss in overtime.

This year’s team of 23 players, including seven seniors, finished its season with an overall record of 20-4, meaning 20 wins and four losses.

The team’s three captains—all 17-year-old seniors—each said they grew up playing soccer from age 4 or 5 and frequently played together, from club soccer to their four years on the high school team.

When asked about what it meant to become state champs their senior year, Eli Jones, an attacking midfielder, responded, “I think it’s everything.”

“It’s unreal, to be honest,” Erick Hernandez-Torres, a center back, opined.

They both noted how the team had been working toward this moment for a long time, including year-round training and practicing on their own time.

“I feel like the whole reason you do high school soccer is, like, to get that state title,” Hernandez-Torres said. “It’s not just like a one-year process. We’ve been working for it for a while, and I think we accomplished that and feel very proud of this team.”

Manteo High School senior varsity soccer team captains Scott Castaneda-Ramirez, Eli Jones and Erick Hernandez-Torres (l-r) stand on the school soccer field with Head Coach Ralph Cleaver on Monday, Nov. 24, 2025. The team won the state championship match on Friday, with Jones scoring the only goal of the game on a penalty kick. (Photo by Corinne Saunders)

All three senior captains described feeling nervous during the nearly five-hour bus ride out to Greensboro for the championship game. They said they each had to remind themselves to enjoy the experience. On the way back, though, the mood was joyous, and more boisterous.

“The bus ride there was getting people nervous,” said Scott Castaneda-Ramirez, a defensive midfielder. He reminded himself, “[You] can’t take anything for granted, and just to enjoy.”

He added, “On the way back, it was just all fun and laughter. We were dancing, singing music, jumping, everything.”

At the team banquet last December, Head Coach Ralph Cleaver said he and the other coaching staff told the team that if they committed to working hard all year, they could bring home the state title.

“Credit to, particularly, our senior leadership group,” Cleaver said. “They really, truly bought in and made it a special season.”

Jones scored the only goal of the championship game with a penalty kick approximately 10 minutes before the game ended.

“I was pretty nervous, you know, stepping up,” Jones said. He recalled thinking: “This is it...this is probably deciding the game.”

He added, “I’ve taken penalties before, but not in state finals and not to win the game. I was just thinking in my mind, ‘Don’t kick it over’...and it went in; and after that, it was just smooth sailing.”

Eli Jones, a Manteo High School senior men’s varsity soccer team captain, reacts after scoring the only goal in the 2A state championship game against Gray Stone Day on Friday, Nov. 21, 2025, at Guilford College in Greensboro. (Photo courtesy Edward Estrada-Tovar)

Goalkeeper Hazael Alvarez-Navarro, a sophomore, was named the most valuable player (MVP) of the state championship game. The game also marked the fourth straight shutout—meaning the other team did not score at all—during playoffs.

“To, again, keep not only a clean sheet in that state championship game, but to keep four straight clean sheets and only give up one goal in all of playoffs, is a tremendous achievement for any keeper—at any level,” Cleaver said. “So I was just happy for him to experience that, because he certainly worked for it and earned it.”

Previously, the Manteo High School women’s soccer team won its first 2A state championship in spring 2023—the first state title for that program, also under Cleaver’s leadership.

“So now the boys have their bragging rights around school as well,” Cleaver quipped.

He was quick to share credit with assistant coaches Tony Calvio, Tim Butch, Ryan Caruso and Colin Roughton, noting the strength of the soccer program’s leadership.

“I think we have assembled one of the best staffs across the state, where if you show up at practice, all the coaches are out and they’re doing different things,” Cleaver said. “They’re a huge part of all of our success.”

He said he has coached the men’s team for nine years. He coached the women’s team for seven years, having handed that program’s reins to Calvio this year so he can spend time coaching his own kids.

Cleaver also thanked the whole community for its outpouring of support throughout the season and for contributing toward state championship expenses.

Residents and local businesses chipped in to allow the team to charter a bus and go out to Greensboro a day early and stay in a hotel for a more comfortable travel experience, he said. The team also got to practice kicking on a turf field the day before the championship game, as they do not experience playing on turf in this area.

The nonprofit MHS Soccer Goal Club’s fundraiser by Monday evening had reached about 70% of its $7,000 goal for purchasing state championship rings for the team, with donations still being accepted.

The captains, still processing their state win with a touch of incredulity, expressed their gratitude.

“I’m beyond grateful for this family that it’s built, the experience that I’ve had the last four years,” Hernandez-Torres said. “The last four years, the team bonding was amazing...being able to play this game with this amazing team was just a blessing.”

And their season ended in the best possible way.

“That’s what you hope for,” Jones said. “As a player, to go out on a win, I think that’s something that very few players [are] able to do.”

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