PLAYER OF THE YEAR
Reagan Heslin, JSerra
JSerra’s boys soccer team won everything it could win this season.
The Lions won the Trinity League championship, the CIF Southern Section Division 1 championship and the CIF Southern California Regional Division I championship.
The best player on Orange County’s best team was Reagan Heslin, and he is the Register’s Orange County boys soccer player of the year.
Heslin, a 6-foot-2, 175-pound senior forward, scored 17 goals with eight assists in 21 games.
He was chosen the CIF Southern Section Division 1 player of the year and MaxPreps.com’s state player of the year.
Among Heslin’s many highlights were scoring three goals in a 4-2 win over Fullerton in the CIF-SS Division 1 quarterfinals and scoring twice in a 3-0 win over Birmingham in the SoCal Regional Division I final.
During his four years at JSerra he played center-midfielder before settling in at forward on the left side. Heslin said playing different positions was beneficial to his success at forward.
“It sounds simple,” he said, “but paying attention in practice helps you play any position where you might be needed. If I have to play goalkeeper I have the confidence I could do it because I pay attention.”
JSerra coach Erik Kirsch said Heslin was at his best in the biggest moments.
“The way Reagan played in CIF and at the state level was at another level,” Kirsch said. “And at the same time, he was getting players around him to respond and work hard with him.”
Heslin said the season highlight was winning the CIF-SS Division 1 title after losing to Servite by one goal in the Division 1 final in 2022.
“The best achievement of the season was redeeming ourselves in CIF,” he said. “That was one part of the journey that was winning league, CIF and state. We were looking at winning those three the whole time. We were focused on each game individually but we were determined to win all three.”
COACH OF THE YEAR
Erik Kirsch, JSerra
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