Before heading off to play big-time college soccer, Boulder’s Xander Sevian wanted to have one more chance to share the pitch with his childhood friends.

The senior returned to high school soccer after playing exclusively for a development academy as a junior and led the Panthers to their most wins in seven years. He finished the season with the state’s fifth-most points (74), second-most assists (26) and 11th-most goals (24), helping guide Boulder to its third semifinal appearance since 2018.

“I wanted to come back to Boulder and play four months with the kids I grew up with,” the Daily Camera boys soccer player of the year said. “I just really enjoyed my time with the game and it was exactly what I hoped for. It was a blast.”

The Panthers not only rolled out win after win during a 17-1-1 campaign, but they often overmatched their opponents. And Sevian was a big reason why.

Tallying points in 18 of 19 games, he had multiple points in 17 of them. Across six games in the newly formed Rocky Mountain League, he totaled 30 points as the Panthers won their league, outscoring opponents 43-0.Then in the Class 5A postseason, he scored in all four of Boulder’s games, finishing with six goals and five assists. He scored a hat trick in an 8-0 win over Fountain-Fort Carson in the opening round and the team’s lone goal in its 2-1 loss to Broomfield in the semifinals.

Because of it, he was the fifth player in Boulder history to be selected as a United Soccer Coaches All-American. He was also one of five players from the Boulder Valley School District to be named to CHSAA’s 5A first team. Broomfield’s Evan Kulstad, Cole Martin, Adam Thresher and teammate David Bojorquez were the others.

“He is extremely hard-working, but he’s an exceptional leader,” longtime Boulder coach Hardy Kalisher said of his star player earlier in the fall. “We had 100 kids try out for this program, and when I was checking in each kid for tryouts there was one set of hands clapping for every kid, saying ‘You got it. Let’s do it. You got it.’”

Next, Sevian is headed to play for Clemson University. The Tigers have won four NCAA titles, including two under head coach Mike Noonan since 2021.

Sevian has been verbally committed to Clemson since the fall of his junior year.

“They, for one, were really interested in me and that was a really big thing for me in my recruiting process,” he said. “The coaches are amazing guys, both super nice, and I really do think they want what’s best for me. The team is all really nice and the facilities are as good as you could imagine. And they play in the ACC, which is a great league. So, it’s all green flags.”