Greene Central Rams Capture Third Consecutive Eastern Plains Conference Soccer Championship
Greene Central Rams Capture Third Consecutive Eastern Plains Conference Soccer Championship
SNOW HILL, N.C. – October 28, 2025 – The Greene Central Rams stood atop again on Monday night, hoisting another Eastern Plains Conference trophy for the third straight year after a 5-1 victory over Beddingfield sealed a flawless 10-0 league campaign.
The final whistle marked the end of a regular season that saw Greene Central outscore conference opponents 81–5, post a 14-4-2 overall record, and ride a 12-game winning streak into the NCHSAA playoffs. It is the program’s 32nd consecutive conference victory dating back to the 2023 season.
Senior forward Miguel Zavala etched his name into the record books with 52 goals and 11 assists across 20 matches for 115 points—averaging 2.6 goals and 5.8 points per game. Junior midfielder Angel Contreras dished out a state-leading 31 assists while adding 8 goals of his own. Senior Josh Osorio, limited to 15 games by injury, still managed 20 goals and 13 assists.
The Rams’ depth showed in double-digit goal tallies against every conference foe: 15–0 at Kinston, 10–1 at Tarboro, 9–0 vs. Kinston, 9–0 at Ayden-Grifton, 8–0 vs. Tarboro, 7–0 vs. Ayden-Grifton, 5–1 vs. Farmville Central, 5–1 vs. Beddingfield, 4–1 at Farmville Central, and 9–1 at Beddingfield.
Non-conference play tested the Rams early. They opened with a 2–2 draw at North Pitt on August 20, followed by a 4–4 tie against J.H. Rose the next night. Losses to C.B. Aycock (5–3 away, 6–3 home), J.H. Rose (3–1 away), and D.H. Conley (3–1 away) dropped Greene Central to 0-4-2 before a 4–2 win at Washington on September 3 sparked the turnaround. Wins over D.H. Conley (4–2), Spring Creek (4–0 home, 4–3 away) rounded out the slate.
Senior goalkeeper Erick Rodriguez started all 20 games, facing just 33 shots on goal, making 94 saves, and posting a 1.55 goals-against average with two shutouts. He stopped the lone penalty kick he faced. Sophomore Giancarlo Diaz and Alan Borja provided relief in seven and five contests, respectively, combining to allow two goals on 11 saves.
Additional scoring came from Samuel Carrillo (5 goals), Luis Trejo (4), Sebastian Mendez (3), Emerson Lopez (3), Oziel Trejo (2), Eli Borja (2), Cameron Raycraft (2), Kedin Rodas (2), Andree Herrera (2), Diego Munguia (2), Alex Martinez (1), Jeferson Garcia (1), Josue Antonio (1), and Giancarlo Diaz (0 goals, 1 assist). The Rams recorded 86 assists on 110 goals, with Contreras, Osorio, and Zavala accounting for 55 of them.
Head coach Jacob Baird reflected on the journey: “The season has gone well—I’m real proud of the boys. We’ve set some goals for ourselves and we’re working toward all of them. The guys have worked really hard for this; we’ve battled some adversity and some injuries, but they’ve brought it every game, and that’s all I can ask for. We’re looking forward to the playoffs with this new format and a new classification. We’re excited and getting back to 100 percent healthy, so we’re ready to go!”
The Rams enter the postseason fully healthy for the first time all year. The NCHSAA bracket, reshaped by reclassification and a new playoff structure, will be released later this week.
Snow Hill now turns its eyes to a deeper run—the playoffs are coming…
