Everybody wrote Aldine off before the 2019 Playoffs even began.
Entering the postseason as the No. 4 seed out of your district will do that. The No. 1 seed, which is the District Champion of the opposing conference, is typically the first match.
No one thought Aldine would get past The Woodlands. Then they did. "Everybody was doubting us," Aldine senior Bryan Alvarez said. "They thought we would make it easy for them because we were a four seed. We proved them wrong."
Edwin Rodriguez added: "After that game we were like 'we can do it'. We can do anything against whoever." Aldine continued its magical run in 2019 all the way to the Regional Finals – for the second time in program history – where it fell to College Park.
Now, in 2020 with an experienced senior class, Aldine has carried the momentum of last year over with a good chance of winning District 16-6A and entering the playoffs as the No. 1 seed.
"This year is our year," Alvarez said. "We're not hoping to, we're going to make the dream come true. This is the year we're going to state."
There is an aura of confidence when you talk to Alvarez and Rodriguez. The seniors know how good they are – sitting at 7-0-1 through eight district contests at the beginning of March with a plus-17 goal differential in district play.
And also, how much better they can become. "Once preseason started everyone got their mindset right for the game," Alvarez said. "This is not just a team, it's a whole family."
Their hope is to become the second-ever team from Aldine ISD to make the state soccer tournament – joining only MacArthur, which did it back in 1996.
For these seniors, it is state championship or bust in 2020.
"We're going to try our hardest to be state champions," Rodriguez said. "We're always working hard for that."