Student Athlete of the Week Santiago Nahas

Reaching the state playoffs was an important goal for Niwot High School boys soccer senior Santiago Nahas as it was for his teammates.

Nahas cracked Niwot's varsity roster for the first time this fall and was determined to capitalize on his lone season playing at the top. Unfortunately for Nahas and the Cougars, they hit a rough patch midway through the season, dropping three games in two weeks.

"During that time, we were even contemplating if we were going to make it to the playoffs or not," Nahas said.

Partly fueled by an eye-opening 5-0 loss against Fairview High School on Sept. 26, Niwot regrouped to win two of its final three regular season games. The Cougars' strong finish was rewarded with a Class 4A state tournament berth.

"We really decided to turn on our engines and try to win this season," Nahas said.

During that late push to reach the playoffs, Nahas enjoyed a "rewarding" moment when he scored a goal in Niwot's 2-1 win over Mead High School on Oct. 17.

"It was a unique experience, (scoring) a varsity goal," Nahas said. "It was very nice to celebrate with the team after the goal."

Nahas, who finished his senior season with two goals scored, relied on his speed to challenge opposing defenses. He took pride in being an outlet for his teammates who could make something happen with his wheels.

"What I try to do on the pitch is try to be accessible as much as possible," Nahas said. "My speed is one of my greatest strengths, which is why I'm a forward and I play at the top. My runs and the speed of play that I play at are my strengths."

Much of Nahas' love for soccer stems from being on a team striving toward a common goal.

"Finding a group of people who all share a common goal and learning to work together with all of them despite all the different personalities on the team, that was a great experience for me to learn in general, especially for the future," Nahas said.

While Niwot achieved its initial goal of reaching the playoffs, after winning its first round contest, the team suffered a second-round loss to rival Silver Creek High School on Nov. 6. Nahas took the 1-0 defeat hard knowing his high school soccer career had reached its conclusion.

"I was kind of heartbroken," Nahas admitted. "I thought we were really dominating that game overall. Especially after playing a good performance and then getting knocked out, that was really sad to see."

Still, Nahas is looking forward to the remainder of his senior year. He hopes to spend more time on classwork and with friends before graduating.

Looking to enter the world of engineering, Nahas is currently applying to colleges.

"I've always found it interesting how everything works," Nahas said. "I've really liked math and other things like that, and biology. I was thinking of a biomedical engineering [focus] or a field around there."