Sport: County:

Ramirez-Cruz, Adams pull away in scoring race as Wayne Country Day takes over No. 1

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Neuse News boys soccer leaders graphic
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Neuse News boys soccer leaders graphic

Goldsboro sophomore leads the area with 36 goals; Chargers move to the top of the Neuse News boys soccer power rankings at 14-3

As of Tuesday, Oct. 13, 2026, 2 p.m.

By Neuse News Sports

Two weeks into October, the boys soccer scoring race in Wayne, Greene, Lenoir and Jones counties is a two-man fight, and the top of the power rankings has a new name.

Goldsboro sophomore Aiden Ramirez-Cruz has 36 goals in 15 games, according to stats posted on MaxPreps. That’s the most in the area. He also has nine assists, giving him 45 points, also tops in the area. Wayne Country Day senior Hilton Adams is right behind him with 31 goals and 12 assists for 43 points in 17 games, and his Chargers have climbed to No. 1 in this week’s Neuse News power rankings.

Wayne Country Day is 14-3 and has outscored opponents 93-7. The Chargers are 3-0 against teams on our list: they beat Wayne Christian 4-1 and Wayne Prep twice. Their only losses came against Harrells Christian (twice) and Greenfield. Spring Creek, No. 1 on the Sept. 23 board, slides to No. 2 but is still unbeaten against list teams at 6-0.

The scoring race

Jones Senior has two of the top four scorers. Senior Kevin Sanchez has 25 goals in 13 games and junior Joseph Sanchez has 23 in 14. Eastern Wayne has a pair of its own in junior Ezekiel Roberson (18) and senior Christ Yao (17). Bethel Christian junior Mason Wade has 16 goals in only nine games played. Spring Creek’s Bryan Esau Medina Rodriguez and Erix Sosa Rodriguez and North Lenoir sophomore Brian Gomez are tied for eighth with 13 apiece.

Assists and playmakers

Joseph Sanchez leads the area with 16 assists, and his 39 points rank third. Wayne Country Day sophomore Clem Livengood is second with 13 assists, and Adams and Medina Rodriguez are tied for third with 12. Medina Rodriguez has 25 points, sixth in the area. Southern Wayne‘s Otoniel Aguilon and Wayne Country Day’s Luca Guzman are part of a three-way tie at 10 assists with Roberson. Greene Central senior Angel Contreras has nine assists and 18 points in just six games played.

Goalkeepers

C.B. Aycock junior Owen Acorn leads the area with 143 saves and shares the shutout lead (4) with South Lenoir junior Benjamin Gonzalez. Greene Central junior Giancarlo Diaz is one save behind Acorn at 142. Southern Wayne sophomore Javier Lujano has 110 saves in 10 games. Rosewood‘s Camden Brown has 107 and North Lenoir’s Evan Smith has 101. Smith and Jones Senior’s Jesstin Crump each have three shutouts.

Power ranking notes

Eastern Wayne (up four to No. 3) has won four of its last five, including a 1-0 win over North Johnston on Oct. 8. North Lenoir also jumps four spots, to No. 5. The Hawks have won four straight and beat Eastern Wayne 4-2 on Sept. 17. Greene Central is the biggest story in the middle of the board: after a 1-8-1 start, the Rams have won six straight, outscoring opponents 38-6, and move up to No. 10.

South Lenoir drops three spots to No. 6 after Monday’s 2-1 loss to Heide Trask. Rosewood also falls three, to No. 15. The Eagles haven’t won in 11 games. Ambleside Prep and Kinston remain unranked.

Source: Records and stats are from MaxPreps and are submitted by schools and coaches, 2026-27 season to date as of Tuesday, Oct. 13, 2026, 2 p.m. Totals may lag games that haven’t been entered yet. Points are goals plus assists. Kinston has no player stats posted on MaxPreps. Arendell Parrott Academy is not included.

Neuse News Boys Soccer Leaders

Goals
1. Aiden Ramirez-Cruz, Goldsboro (So.) — 36 goals, 15 GP
2. Hilton Adams, Wayne Country Day (Sr.) — 31 goals, 17 GP
3. Kevin Sanchez, Jones Senior (Sr.) — 25 goals, 13 GP
4. Joseph Sanchez, Jones Senior (Jr.) — 23 goals, 14 GP
5. Ezekiel Roberson, Eastern Wayne (Jr.) — 18 goals, 12 GP
6. Christ Yao, Eastern Wayne (Sr.) — 17 goals, 12 GP
7. Mason Wade, Bethel Christian Academy (Jr.) — 16 goals, 9 GP
8. Bryan Esau Medina Rodriguez, Spring Creek (Jr.) — 13 goals, 16 GP
8. Erix Sosa Rodriguez, Spring Creek (Sr.) — 13 goals, 16 GP
8. Brian Gomez, North Lenoir (So.) — 13 goals, 15 GP

Assists
1. Joseph Sanchez, Jones Senior (Jr.) — 16 assists, 14 GP
2. Clem Livengood, Wayne Country Day (So.) — 13 assists, 17 GP
3. Bryan Esau Medina Rodriguez, Spring Creek (Jr.) — 12 assists, 16 GP
3. Hilton Adams, Wayne Country Day (Sr.) — 12 assists, 17 GP
5. Ezekiel Roberson, Eastern Wayne (Jr.) — 10 assists, 12 GP
5. Otoniel Aguilon, Southern Wayne (So.) — 10 assists, 13 GP
5. Luca Guzman, Wayne Country Day (So.) — 10 assists, 16 GP
8. Adrien Summers, C.B. Aycock (Jr.) — 9 assists, 16 GP
8. Aiden Ramirez-Cruz, Goldsboro (So.) — 9 assists, 15 GP
8. Alex Krochta, Goldsboro (Fr.) — 9 assists, 6 GP
8. Lorenzo Aguilon, Southern Wayne (So.) — 9 assists, 13 GP
8. Angel Contreras, Greene Central (Sr.) — 9 assists, 6 GP
8. Yeshua Perez-Gonzalez, South Lenoir (Sr.) — 9 assists, 16 GP

Points (G+A)
1. Aiden Ramirez-Cruz, Goldsboro (So.) — 45 points, 15 GP
2. Hilton Adams, Wayne Country Day (Sr.) — 43 points, 17 GP
3. Joseph Sanchez, Jones Senior (Jr.) — 39 points, 14 GP
4. Kevin Sanchez, Jones Senior (Sr.) — 33 points, 13 GP
5. Ezekiel Roberson, Eastern Wayne (Jr.) — 28 points, 12 GP
6. Bryan Esau Medina Rodriguez, Spring Creek (Jr.) — 25 points, 16 GP
7. Christ Yao, Eastern Wayne (Sr.) — 23 points, 12 GP
7. Clem Livengood, Wayne Country Day (So.) — 23 points, 17 GP
9. Yeshua Perez-Gonzalez, South Lenoir (Sr.) — 21 points, 16 GP
10. Angel Contreras, Greene Central (Sr.) — 18 points, 6 GP

Shutouts
1. Owen Acorn, C.B. Aycock (Jr.) — 4 shutouts, 14 GP
1. Benjamin Gonzalez, South Lenoir (Jr.) — 4 shutouts, 12 GP
3. Evan Smith, North Lenoir (Jr.) — 3 shutouts, 15 GP
3. Jesstin Crump, Jones Senior (So.) — 3 shutouts, 17 GP
5. Ty Kornegay, Wayne Preparatory Academy (7th) — 2 shutouts, 5 GP
6. Kendall Corbett, C.B. Aycock (So.) — 1 shutout, 7 GP
6. Bryan Guevara, Eastern Wayne (So.) — 1 shutout, 3 GP
6. Camden Brown, Rosewood (So.) — 1 shutout, 16 GP
6. Jethro Gonzalez, South Lenoir (Jr.) — 1 shutout, 14 GP
6. Kevin Sanchez, Jones Senior (Sr.) — 1 shutout, 13 GP

Saves
1. Owen Acorn, C.B. Aycock (Jr.) — 143 saves, 14 GP
2. Giancarlo Diaz, Greene Central (Jr.) — 142 saves, 16 GP
3. Javier Lujano, Southern Wayne (So.) — 110 saves, 10 GP
4. Camden Brown, Rosewood (So.) — 107 saves, 16 GP
5. Evan Smith, North Lenoir (Jr.) — 101 saves, 15 GP
6. Jesstin Crump, Jones Senior (So.) — 86 saves, 17 GP
7. Junior Barraza, Wayne Country Day (8th) — 79 saves, 17 GP
8. Bryson Sternbach, Goldsboro (Fr.) — 67 saves, 8 GP
9. Benjamin Gonzalez, South Lenoir (Jr.) — 66 saves, 12 GP
10. Jaxon Howard, Faith Christian Academy (Sr.) — 56 saves, 5 GP

Neuse News Boys Soccer Power Rankings (movement vs. Sept. 23)

  1. Wayne Country Day (14-3, GF 93-GA 7) ↑1 — 14-3 with a +86 goal differential and 3-0 vs. list teams (Wayne Christian once, Wayne Prep twice); all three losses are to Harrells and Greenfield.
  2. Spring Creek (11-5-2, GF 65-GA 33) ↓1 — 6-0 against list schools (Southern Wayne, North Lenoir, South Lenoir, Greene Central, Rosewood, Goldsboro); Monday’s 4-3 win over Midway avenged an earlier loss.
  3. Eastern Wayne (8-4, GF 56-GA 26) ↑4 — Won 4 of its last 5 games, including a 10-1 rout of West Craven and a 1-0 win over North Johnston; 2-2 vs. the list with a split against Goldsboro.
  4. C.B. Aycock (9-6-2, GF 42-GA 30) no change — 9-6-2; beat Goldsboro 8-2 and Greene Central 3-0, and bounced back from a 2-1 loss to Southern Wayne with Monday’s 3-0 win over Southern Nash.
  5. North Lenoir (6-5-4, GF 31-GA 24) ↑4 — Four straight wins; beat Eastern Wayne 4-2 and has ties with South Lenoir, Southern Wayne, Rosewood and Greene Central.
  6. South Lenoir (9-6-1, GF 54-GA 41) ↓3 — 9-6-1; beat Jones Senior 5-4 but lost to Goldsboro and Spring Creek, and dropped Monday’s game 2-1 to Heide Trask.
  7. Jones Senior (11-6-1, GF 70-GA 47) ↓2 — 11-6-1 with a +23 differential, but its list wins are over Rosewood and Ambleside; has split its last four.
  8. Goldsboro (8-8, GF 60-GA 68) ↓2 — 8-8 with the area’s top scorer; 4-3 vs. the list (beat Eastern Wayne, South Lenoir, Rosewood twice) and lost 9-0 at Wallace-Rose Hill on Monday.
  9. Southern Wayne (5-10-1, GF 32-GA 41) ↓1 — 5-10-1, but owns a 2-1 win over C.B. Aycock and a tie with North Lenoir.
  10. Greene Central (7-8-1, GF 42-GA 53) ↑4 — Hottest team on the board: six straight wins, outscoring opponents 38-6, after a 1-8-1 start.
  11. Wayne Christian (6-11, GF 35-GA 52) ↓1 — 6-11; 9-0 win over Wayne Prep and a 3-2 win over APA, but has lost three straight.
  12. Bethel Christian Academy (5-9, GF 42-GA 48) ↑1 — 5-9 and plays no list schools; Mason Wade (16 goals in 9 GP) keeps the Trojans dangerous.
  13. Faith Christian Academy (4-8-2, GF 28-GA 47) ↓2 — 4-8-2 as posted on MaxPreps; 1-6 over its last seven, its only list game a 2-2 tie with Ambleside.
  14. Wayne Preparatory Academy (5-10-1, GF 32-GA 68) ↑1 — 5-10-1; 0-3 vs. the list, but has won 2 of its last 3 games.
  15. Rosewood (4-11-2, GF 25-GA 69) ↓3 — 4-11-2 and winless in 11 straight; 0-5-1 vs. the list.

Unranked
NR. Ambleside Preparatory Academy (0-10-1) — 0-10-1; the lone positive is a 2-2 tie with Faith Christian Academy.
NR. Kinston (0-6) — 0-6 with 1 goal scored; no player stats posted on MaxPreps.