DOBSON — Surry Central coach Blake Roth isn’t going to harp on his team’s season-ending loss in the NCHSAA western finals to Shelby Wednesday night. And why should he? He’s too excited about next year.

The Golden Eagles (23-3) bring back all but two of 11 starters. Next season’s lineup will feature seven seniors and four juniors. Missing will be senior goalie Jose Diaz and Northwest Player of the Year Jose Antonio Talavera.

Several school records were claimed by this season’s Golden Eagles, including most shutouts (13, or half the amount of games played), consecutive wins (15), most all-conference nominations (six), most wins in a season (23) and fewest goals allowed (21).

This season came to an end Wednesday after regulation, two sudden-death overtimes and penalty kicks. The score was officially 2-1 and Shelby won 5-4 on penalty kicks. The game remained scoreless until the 93rd minute, when the visitors’ Edwin Alonso found the net to give Surry Central a 1-0 lead. However, Shelby answered two minutes later.

After two scoreless overtimes, it went to penalty kicks. It was then Roth went with Talavera in net instead of keeper Jose Diaz.

“He is a heck of a goalie, too,” Roth said of Talavera, “and he’s got a little more acceleration off the line. It was a coin flip between him and Diaz.”

With the score knotted at 4-4 after the first five kicks for each team, it went into sudden-death kicks. The Golden Eagles’ Raul Vallaeres went first and deposited a beautiful shot on the ground angled toward the post.

“Unfortunately for him, their keeper is all-state, 6-foot-2 or 6-foot-3 and really athletic and was able to get just enough finger on it to block it and that was the game,” Roth said.

The Golden Eagles got penalty kick goals from Bernardo Leandro, Ed Lira, Talavera and Joel Gonzalez.

After entering the season with lofty expectations, Roth said his team lived up to the hype.

“I believe we did,” he said. “We knew how far we could go. Were we expected to finish in the semifinals? I don’t know about that. We took what was given to us and we ran with that.”

And now the focus is set on next year, when expectations will be just as high, if not moreso. The bitter loss to end this season will be the driving force for next year, Roth said.

“If there is a silver lining in the ending from (Wednesday) night, it was the fact we did lose on such a sour note,” he said. “The sense of urgency, their careers coming to an end, is definitely hitting them.

“We’re looking to make some noise next year. I guess you could say it’s Raleigh or bust next year.”

Contact Ed Phillipps at ephillipps@mtairynews.com or 719-1921.