When the soccer state tournament started nearly two weeks ago, the Caesar Rodney Riders had high hopes and great expectations as the No. 2 seed.

    But as head coach Darrell Gravatt said, “Soccer’s a frustrating sport sometimes.”

    After storming past Seaford, 4-0, in the first round Nov. 5, the Riders were knocked out of the tourney in the second round, falling to No. 10 Caravel, 1-0, Nov. 8.

    “It’s never pleasant to lose,” Gravatt said. “Tournaments are tough, and I tell my guys that it’s tough. You just hope for the best.”

    CR failed to score in its final game of the season, something they did only two other times this year.

    Gravatt said he was surprised the Riders weren’t able to put the ball between the pipes, and that his expectations of scoring had him calm for most of the Caravel game.

    “We haven’t had hardly any problem scoring all season,” he said. “I thought we were going to break through. I want to credit Caravel. We had a hard time getting the shots in close.”

    Senior co-captain Wayne Tiller, attack, said getting knocked out only two rounds in was a tough pill to swallow, but that he is trying to remain positive about the season as a whole.

    “It’s disappointing that we lost,” Tiller said. “But we improved from last year when we got knocked out in the first round.”

    Gravatt echoed his leading scorer’s sentiments and said he tells his team they can’t judge their season on the one loss that ended it.

    He added that the achievements far outweigh the disappointments.

    “Overall, it was a great season,” Gravatt said. “We were 14-3-1. That ranks up there in one of the top four records in the state. Plus, we won the conference for the second year in a row, which is hard to do.”

    Tiller also had an outstanding year, leading the Riders in goals with 29 and being named for the second straight year to the first team all-state.

    “I was pretty proud of myself,” Tiller said. “I didn’t think I’d get that many goals.”

    “Wayne finished with 81 career goals for CR, which is a CR guy’s record,” Gravatt said. “He had a marvelous career.”

    A problem facing the Riders now, however, is that Tiller along with five other starting seniors will be graduating, opening up six of the 11 starting positions.

    Joining Tiller are Alvenso Honore, co-captain Kelly Jaywork, David Staley, Patrick McCleary and the team’s keeper, Christian Wydeven.

    Honore, along with Tiller, was named first team all-state, while Jaywork and Staley were named to the second team.

    Based on how good those players were this past year, Gravatt said it is going to be difficult to replace them. However, he said the leaders that are graduating left a good framework for the young guys to step into.

    “We’ll have some new stars next year,” Gravatt said. “Guys have kind of been waiting in the wings for their turn.

    “I believe those young guys will be ready to lead next year. But we’re losing a lot of great players.”

    Tiller said he knows it will be a major transition for the Riders, but is confident that the remaining starters from this year’s team, plus the good players coming up from JV will help CR stay on top of its game next year.

    “We had six good seniors this year along with some good underclassmen,” he said. “Along with the kids coming up next year, they should get the job done.”

Email Brian Citino at brian.citino@doverpost.com