The Sierra High girls soccer team celebrated 25 years of success Friday night, and for all of that success – 493 team wins, 15 Valley Oak League and five Sac-Joaquin Section girls titles and one SJS boys title – Manuel Pires.

Pires, who has been the only coach the girls Timberwolves have even known, was awarded a commemorative plaque Friday in front of the numerous alumni who came for the celebration.

“I am super happy,” Pires said. “I have been blessed to have so many great coaches over the years. The school has really provided great support for me from Day 1 when Vern Gebhardt gave me an opportunity to coach here. This has been a great run.

“I still love what I am doing. This was great to see all the alumni back here tonight. There were no easy roads to achieve what we did. This was about the teamwork, great coaches and great players and how they left everything on the field and how hard they played, regardless of skill level.”

A 2000 graduate Ginny, Wertman (Teunissen) was on the first SJS championship team.

“This makes me miss it,” Wertman said. “It’s wonderful to see the girls playing and doing what we did – we winning.

“We won the first title for the school in 1998 and we won it in Division I.”

Melissa Willson (Corriea) graduated in 1999 and her daughter is on this year’s team.

“I am back here every day because my daughter is a sophomore on the varsity team,” Corriea Wilson said. “I think I am the first alumnus to have a child play, and every day I come out and I am reliving those days.”