The Warren County Middle School soccer team concluded its season with a third-place finish in the Central Tennessee Conference Saturday.

The Pioneers fell in the semifinals 3-0 to Shelbyville Harris before bouncing back to defeat Tullahoma 4-2 in the consolation game. Jay Woux scored twice in the victory, while Yesoshua PicRuiz and Cooper Bailey each scored once.

It was a nice finish for Warren County, which started to show steady improvement down the stretch. The Pioneers were particularly dominant in two victories leading up to Saturday, beating Franklin South 7-1 in the quarterfinals just two days after ending the regular season with a 9-0 victory over White County.

The team’s late success was spurned by two players who were honored as all-conference performers following Saturday’s tournament. PicRuiz, a midfielder, and keeper Bradley Dueñas were each named to the all-CTC team, a big reward for the pair of Pioneers.

First-year coach Alex Cordova thought both deserved the honor.

Speaking about PicRuiz, Cordova said, “He assisted on most of our goals. He was also a captain – he’s a very responsible kid. He made a really good impact.”

Dueñas was new in the net, but Cordova noticed his confidence growing as the year went along.

“It was his first year playing goalie. He started nervous, but by midseason he was one of the best goalies in the conference,” said Cordova.