Despite title loss, Rams girls soccer looks to stay in the picture

ALBUQUERQUE — Rio Rancho striker Kieara Trujillo-Garcia sat on the grass at the University of New Mexico Soccer Complex after coming up short on a long run against Eldorado.

Sophomore Sophia Smith helped her fellow striker up off the ground. Needing some goals to tie up the championship match, the two looked tired. Starting in the heat of August to now, it has been a long season and a long playoff run.

While it was a small moment amidst a major match, it was a moment of symbolization.

A symbol of how far this program has run.

Rio Rancho’s magical season ended via a championship loss to the Eldorado Eagles, 2-0, on Nov. 7.

The season may not have ended in a blue trophy, but if you told the Rams a year ago that they would be in the state final in 2025, they probably would give you a strange look.

Rio’s 16-5-2 record marks its first winning season since 2021, along with it being the first for Head Coach Jenna Sievers. Once former coach Uwe Balzis exited the program after that 2021 season, the program was in a bit of a fog.

But now, Sievers has made Rio Rancho history, crossing a milestone that Balzis nor any other former coach has achieved: making the state title game in just her second season.

“The girls played really great against Hobbs and Volcano Vista (RR’s other playoff opponents),” Sievers said. “We didn’t have our best day in the championship game, and Eldorado played really well. But as a whole, it was really amazing to see. We went from not having even made it to state in four years to making a run for state.”

The 16-win season marks the program’s winningest season since 2014, a season that also ended in a state championship appearance.

After a middling 3-2 start to the year, the Rams started to turn some heads in September, winning eight straight matches — streak that catapulted them to a second-place district finish, only finishing behind Volcano Vista, a team they knocked off twice this fall.

“I think when we beat Volcano in that first round of district, that was really validating,” Sievers said. “I think it really spoke to what we could potentially do and what we’re capable of.”

Rio Rancho will also be bringing a majority of its roster back, graduating only seven members of the 21-player team. Six of the seven top goal scorers this season were all non-seniors, a talented young bunch that now has playoff experience under its belt.

“Having that experience for those younger girls is huge,” Sievers said. “A lot of them have experiences like that in club (soccer), but doing it in high school, it’s a different atmosphere and environment. I think having that experience will make a difference as we move forward into the future. If we’re in that position again, that experience is really, really valuable.”

Clutch goals and win streaks aided the Rams’ run to the title game. But maybe their most important asset was something you couldn’t find on the stat sheet: team chemistry.

“It’s really easy for something like drama to tear a team apart, and this team was really exceptional at whatever we were going through,” Sievers said. “We came out stronger as a team every time. I think that’s a big key moving forward, which it’s one of those things that it’s not one of the soccer aspects, but it really makes a difference when they have that team chemistry, both on and off the field.”

Whether it’s scoring goals on the field or building chemistry off of it, one thing seems certain: This Rams program is back in the state picture.