By VERNON ROBISON
The Progress
A Virgin Valley High School soccer star recently signed to play the sport at the collegiate level this fall.
Last month, VVHS 2024 graduate Alejandro (Alex) Rivera signed a letter of intent to play soccer for Dakota Wesleyan University in Mitchell, South Dakota.
I am really excited about it,” said Rivera in an interview last week with The Progress. “It has been a dream of mine and it is a long time coming.”
Alex began playing organized soccer when he was 12 years old. That year he joined a middle-school-age club team in Wendover, Utah where his family was living at the time. He was the youngest player on the team and the only 6th grader.
It turned out to be a great experience for him. That was when he began to dream about continuing to work on his soccer game through middle school, high school and then going on to play in college, he said.
“I shared my dream with my dad and he was really supportive,” Alex said. “Shortly after that, he passed away.”
By seventh grade, Alex had moved to Mesquite with his mom. But he continued to play club ball through middle school. When he entered VVHS as a freshman, he made the varsity soccer team. He played for the Bulldogs all four years of high school as a starter.
During his senior year, Alex scored a total of 19 goals, an average of 1.1 goals per match. He also chalked up 16 assists for the season.
Rivera said that he began sending emails to coaches at colleges across the country.
“In the meantime I was just playing as hard as I could and waiting until I had my shot,” he said.
Alex got a few responses back from coaches. But something about the Dakota Wesleyan University program caught his eye.
“I talked to the coach and he was very friendly and showed a lot of interest,” Alex said. “We kept in contact throughout the year and he kept pushing the process to bring me there. So I decided that this was the program for me.”
Alex will be the only player from Nevada on the team. He plans to major in Business Administration at the school.
Alex expressed appreciation to VVHS head coach Junior Flores, who is also his brother-in-law, for his encouragement throughout his four years of high school.
“He always emphasized that, if I worked hard, I could do something with it,” Alex said of his soccer playing. “He taught me to always play like (a college recruiter) is watching. That inspired me.”
Alex is the son of Martha Rivera and the late Ramone Rivera.
