Former Olathe soccer star leads MidAmerica Nazarene to NAIA national title in Wichita

Taylor Eldridge
·2 min read

One of the best Kansas high school soccer players to come out of the state added one more accomplishment to a storied career.

Olathe native Jony Munoz, who led Olathe West to the program’s first Class 6A state championship in 2019, was a starter on the MidAmerica Nazarene men’s soccer team that claimed the NAIA national championship in Wichita on Monday afternoon.

Munoz, the first Kansas native to win the National Gatorade Boys Soccer Player of the Year award, was named to the all-tournament team and in the starting 11 for MidAmerica Nazarene in a 2-1 win over Milligan (Tenn.) at the Scheels Stryker Sports Complex.

“I think everyone dreams of getting to a final and winning a championship, especially a national championship,” Munoz told NAIA social media after the win. “Really all I can say is that I’m grateful for God. There’s a reason why he has me here. There’s a reason why he brought me back home. It’s an honor and a privilege to be able to win this and represent Christ doing it all.”

He wasn’t the only Kansas native who helped contribute to the win, as junior midfielder Enrique Morales (Wichita Northwest) and senior midfielder Dennis Palacios (Olathe North) were both brought on as substitutes.

MNU’s roster was also littered with more Kansas natives in Abdullah Ahmed (Wichita East), Connor Turner (Manhattan), Brayan Guzman (Kansas City Wyandotte), Quentin Nutt (Blue Valley North), Alejandro Perez (Kansas City Sumner), Aleksander Zdravoski (Blue Valley West), Jaxon Slaven (Olathe South), Erick Mompin (Olathe North) and Riese Runde (Blue Valley Northwest).

Milligan struck first on Monday, taking a 1-0 lead in the 25th minute on an own goal by MNU. But it didn’t take long for the Pioneers to find the equalizer, as junior forward Rick Hovinga, who was named the tournament’s Outstanding Offensive Player, netted his 15th goal of the season just before halftime.

The Cinderella run by Milligan, which orchestrated four straight upsets as the lower seed to reach Monday’s final, ended in the second half when sophomore forward Guilherme Galvao scored the game-winning goal for MidAmerica Nazarene with 26 minutes remaining.

It was the first national championship in program history for MNU, which is located in Olathe and had previously lost in the 2015 finals.

MidAmerica Nazarene senior midfielder Nicolas Theberge, who had five goals and six assists this season, was named Most Valuable Player of the national tournament, while Milligan defender Greg Anderson was voted Outstanding Defensive Player.

MidAmerica Nazarene had five different players voted on the all-tournament team, which included Theberge, Hovinga, Munoz, senior goalkeeper Enzo Carvalho and junior defender Duarte Chapelas.