Bryce Perkins honored his assistants when earning Trans-Valley League Coach of the Year, and two of his on-field generals get nods for top awards.

Senior midfielder Maddy Winter was voted Most Valuable Player, while fellow captain Gabbi Ilardi received Most Valuable Defense.  

The Indians went 10-0 in capturing a third straight league championship and finished 20-4 overall. Ripon’s girls team has six all-league selections in all, while the boys have one.

Rufina Vera of Livingston received Most Valuable Offense. Listed alongside Perkins for Coach of the Year are assistants Aubree Pelon and Devon Denhart, former Ripon players. Pelon was Co-MVP of the league in 2019.

“It’s the most wonderful group of young people,” Perkins said. “They helped me a lot in the offseason and is just a dedicated staff — they make it so easy for me.”

The same can be said for Winter, the lone senior on the squad. The midfield maestro and two-time All-TVL selection was Ripon’s second leading scorer with 17 goals and 17 assists for 51 points. Two her three hat tricks came in league play, but she was much more than a scoring contributor for the Indians.

“Maddy was the adult in the room for our team, almost like a third coach” Perkins said, lauding her as the best leader the program has had in the 20-plus years he has coached. “She was so solid in terms of her team management as a captain.

“When she was on the field, she set people up and was so unselfish. Just the ultimate team player who was key in transition and control of the game. She gave us everything every day that she was there and it was an absolute joy to coach her, especially this year.”

A golf standout in the fall, Ilardi anchored the back line in her first full varsity season. She also got to chip in offensively, netting one goal and two assists.

“She is one of the most intense athlete I’ve ever known,” Perkins said. “She is so focused in how she studies what she’s doing so that when she goes after it, seldom is she wrong. Both Maddy and Ilardi were 80-minute players; we never took them out. Even in blowouts when we’re rotating a bunch of players in, we kept them in the middle to control the game.”

Ripon freshman striker Olivia Maragos also made all-league, amassing 29 goals and eight assists for a team-high 66 points. Junior midfielders Jaydin Kroutil (nine goals, six assists) and Ines Rodriguez and sophomore defender Katie Rhodes round out the Indians’ all-leaguers.

Makenna Pokorny, Elena Parenti-Gomez, Katie Martin, Kaitlyn Espinola, Ariana Daniels and Alysa Harvey earned honorable mention.

For the boys, Ricky Langenfeld is Ripon’s lone representative on the all-league team. Hayden Beier receiver honorable mention.