Cretin-Derham Hall coach Viktor Adamcsek knows Cesar Cruz has soccer skills that sets the Raiders’ senior midfielder apart from nearly every player in the state.

Cruz isn’t fast but he has vision, creativity and foot skills, Adamcsek said. 

“When (Cruz) feels it, there is almost a rhythm to his play,” Adamcsek added. “Nobody can really stop him. He can do things with the ball that not many people in Minnesota can.”

The way Cruz plays reminds his coach of a former FIFA World Player of the Year. 

“He’d be more close to Messi’s style (of play).” Adamcsek added.

Cruz showed off is Messi-like play Tuesday, scoring two goals and helping the fourth-seeded Raiders rally for a 2-1 victory over fifth-seeded Stillwater in the Section 4AA quarterfinals at Cretin-Derham Hall High School. 

“It was just my day,” Cruz said. “I was just feeling it. I just felt like it was going to be a good day.” 

Cruz scored his first goal with less than 13 minutes remaining in the first half, pulling the Raiders even with the Ponies at 1-1. He recorded his second goal seven minutes into the second half.

Cretin-Derham Hall needs Cruz to continue playing at a high level if the Raiders want to get out of Section 4AA and into the state tournament. The section includes East Ridge and Woodbury, the No. 1 and No. 4 ranked teams respectively in the latest Minnesota State High School Soccer Coaching Association’s Class 2A poll. 

The Raiders take on the Raptors, the section’s top seed, Thursday at East Ridge High School.

“East Ridge will be a heck of a challenge,” Adamcsek said. “They’re an unbeaten team. They have some really good players, but we played them tough during the regular season.” 

The Raptors defeated the Raiders 2-1 on Sept. 11.

Cretin-Derham Hall hopes this postseason won’t be a carbon copy of last year when they defeated Woodbury 2-1 in the section quarterfinals before losing to top-seeded North St. Paul 2-1 in the semifinals. 

The victory over the Ponies, however, gives the Raiders the type of positive outlook they need to be more successful in the section tournament, Cruz said.

“Just winning this (game) gave us more confidence because a lot of us didn’t have that much confidence before this game, so each win would just bring our confidence more up, which means we play better as a team,” he said. 

The upperclassmen also have a role in the team’s success, Adamcsek said.

“Some of my key players now are seniors,” Adamcsek said. “They were key players last year, but they didn’t feel that ownership. Now they’re dominating.”

Cruz believes the Raiders have the talent to make a long run in the section playoffs and into the state tournament.

“We have a lot of skilled players that can take us there and we’re starting to work better as a team each game as the season goes on,” Cruz said.

Senior midfielder Cesar Cruz scored two goals to help fourth-seeded Cretin-Derham Hall rally for a 2-1 victory over fifth-seeded Stillwater in the Section 4AA quarterfinals Tuesday at Cretin-Derham Hall High School.

Tashi Tsering gave the Ponies a 1-0 lead seven minutes into the first half when the senior midfielder scored off a 15-yard free kick from sophomore midfielder Mason Bartosh.

With less than 13 minutes to play before halftime, Cruz received a long ball in the box and put it over the head of Stillwater senior goalkeeper John Talbot to tie the score 1-1.

Cruz scored the game-winning goal seven minutes into the second half. He outdueled a Stillwater defender for a loose ball at midfield and outran the defense before firing off a quality shot from 10 yards out that found the back of the net.

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