A dominant season on the pitch saw the Powell Middle School boys’ soccer team go undefeated, as the Cubs finished with six wins and only one draw on their record for the 2026 season to claim the conference title.

The season opened in early April with what proved to be the only blemish on the record for the season, as the Cubs played to a 2-2 draw against Worland on the road.

Worland took the lead early, before the Cubs scored behind a Paele Rapp penalty in the first half and a goal by Reese Ouellette in the second half to claim the lead.

The hosts scored with two minutes left to snatch the draw at 2-2.

“It’s (the season) a really positive outcome for the group, but more importantly, it reflects the work they put in day-to-day,” coach Justin Waterworth said.

A week later, the Cubs had a dominant victory 7-1 over Riverton at home.

Luiz Meza scored in the first minute, sparking the scoring outburst as Ouellette had four goals and Rapp had two goals.

Against Rawlins the Cubs had the scoring started by Ouellette, followed quickly by Ethan Bowie and Rapp for a 3-0 first half lead. Marco Esparza, Ouellette and Rapp scored in the second half to earn the 6-0 victory.

In a chilly rematch the Cubs welcomed in Worland in mid-April, as Ouellette opened the scoring and Esparza added a second, but Worland added a strong goal before the break as it was 2-1.

Ouellette put two more in the back of the net in the second half to give Powell a 4-1 win.

Ending the home schedule the Cubs took on Lander, as Ouellette recorded another hat-trick, Rhett Goolsbey added two goals and Jack Tietema added a sixth as Powell won 6-0.

The Cubs clinched the conference title with one game left, as a dominant 5-1 victory over Riverton gave Powell the crown.

Riverton scored first, but Meza scored before the half to tie it 1-1.

Ouellette scored two in the second half, Meza added a second and Goolsbey added a penalty to finish the game 5-1.

Ending the year the Cubs defeated Lander 4-1, as Meza scored early, but Lander scored shortly after and that score remained for much of the game.

In the final five minutes, Paxton Hernandez scored, before Meza added a second and Tucker Kovach finished the scoring to earn a 4-1 win.

A number of Cubs contributed to the cause all season, led by a 15 goal campaign by Ouellette.

“Reese had a fantastic season,” Waterworth said.

That number is now the single season record for the middle school program, as he finished with 25 over two years to also set the career record.

Rapp led with nine assists for the season, setting the single season record and tying the career record for the Cubs while still having one more year to play.

“What I liked was how we could hurt teams quickly,” Waterworth said. “We often scored in short bursts, and that comes from good movement and players understanding each other. For instance, in our final game versus Lander we scored three times in the last 10 minutes for a 4-1 victory. That can be very demoralizing, but it also shows that the team reads the game well and can find and exploit weak spots in a formation.”

He said that the team improved their decision making and composure, creating more chances while controlling the tempo of the game.

Controlling the tempo started with the backline as well as Tietema in midfield.

“Jack and the defensive four (Hernandez, Nano D’Alessandro, Corbyn Davis and Garrett Henley) controlled the tempo and the physical nature of the game and frustrated opponents all year,” Waterworth said. “Defensively, to concede just seven goals is a big achievement. That’s effort and organization from everyone.”

He added that Tietema had a strong addition with assists from his position, as well as a long throw-in that led to two goals directly.

Waterworth said that just a year ago the program only had five wins in its early existence, only scoring 15 the whole season and conceding 19.

That turned around this year to see the team score 34, and concede only seven.

“That’s a culture shift,” Waterworth said. “Everybody loves the goals. Everybody remembers the highlights. But this team defended, they competed, they communicated. They learned how to control games instead of surviving them.”

He said with that culture shift this group could compete in the future at the next level and beyond.

“This is where the foundation is built. Winning the conference is great, but it’s about what comes next,” Waterworth said. “Continuing to work, improving technically and understanding the game. If they keep that mindset, they give themselves a real chance to compete for a state championship one day, or even push further if they stay committed.”