With top-ranked Johnson’s boys set to play for the Class 4A state championship against No. 2 Westminster on Thursday at McEachern High, it comes as little surprise that the Knights were well-represented when the All-Region 8-4A boys teams were released Tuesday.

Senior midfielder and team captain Jorge Sandoval was voted as the Boys Player of the Year by the region coaches, after posting 11 goals and 13 assists during the regular season.

Meanwhile, Knights coach Frank Zamora shared Region Coach of the Year honors with East Hall’s Chris Henry, who guided the Vikings to a region runner-up finish and a berth in the quarterfinals of the state playoffs.

A total of dozen Johnson players were named to one of the three All-Region teams, including seniors Sandoval, goalkeeper Kristian Hernandez, defender Landon Avalos and midfielder Christian Robles on the first team.

Meanwhile, Hall County’s other teams in the region were also well represented, East Hall putting nine players in total on the team, including first-teamers Amado Valladarez, Yerli Mejia and Jonathan Torres.

Other Hall County players named to the first team include Iori Vazquez and Jair Bonilla of Chestatee, Giovanni Alquicira of Cherokee Bluff and Harley Nycz of North Hall.

Later in the day, the Knights (20-0) were brought up to the No. 1 spot nationally by the United Soccer Coaches. 

For most of the season, Johnson held the No. 3 spot. 

The Knights are looking for back-to-back state championships for the first time in school history. 

The full list of Hall County’s All-Region 8-4A representatives is as follows:

REGION 8-4A ALL-REGION SOCCER (HALL COUNTY REPRESENTATIVES)

BOYS

PLAYER OF THE YEAR:  Jorge Sandoval, Johnson

CO-COACHES OF THE YEAR: Chris Henry, East Hall; Frank Zamora, Johnson

FIRST TEAM

GK Kristian Hernandez, Johnson

D Landon Avalos, Johnson

CDM Christian Robles, Johnson

CAM Jorge Sandoval, Johnson

MF Amado Valladarez, East Hall

MF/F Yerli Mejia, East Hall

MF/F Jonathan Torres, East Hall

MF Iori Vazquez, Chestatee

D Jairo Bonilla, Chestatee

MF Giovanni Alquicira, Cherokee Bluff

D Harley Nycz, North Hall

SECOND TEAM

F Edgar Vazquez, Johnson

MF Juliann Pimentel, Johnson

F Ramon Aguilar, Johnson

MF Alex Gonzalez, Johnson

CDM Miguel Dominguez, East Hall

D Oscar Barcenas, East Hall

GK Kenny Barrera-Paz, East Hall

F Javi Rebollar, Chestatee

F Nick Felix, Chestatee

F Jackson Davenport, Cherokee Bluff

F Brian Flores, North Hall

HONORABLE MENTION

Daniel Trujillo, Johnson; Jalil Chavez, Johnson; Miguel Duran, Johnson; Andres Galicia, Johnson; Junior Sesmas, East Hall; Ainor Romero-Turcios, East Hall; Eden Castrejon, East Hall; David Diaz, Chestatee; Paul Lesutis, Cherokee Bluff; Sam Wilson, North Hall; Conner Harwood, North Hall; Angel Suarez, North Hall.