Players who will shape the NCS Boys Division II semifinals

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The semifinals in the North Coast Section's Division II playoffs are full of bluebloods. Richmond is a program that is powerful every single year. Las Lomas is becoming one of the most feared and respected programs in the Bay Area, Bishop O'Dowd seems to always make a run in the playoffs and Ygnacio Valley has been an excellent program for over a decade.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Those teams boast some great players, and here are some that should make an impact on Tuesday. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='79826' first='Andres' last='Araujo'], Richmond, Sophomore, Midfielder</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Araujo has great soccer awareness and intelligence. He understands the game well and his intuition generally leads him to doing the right thing. His instincts allows him to recover the ball well when Richmond is not in position, and once he has the ball he is very good at setting up strikers. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Mikulas Derer, Las Lomas, Junior, Keeper</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Derer does what a keeper should and that's protecting the back of his net. He is a strong and decisive keeper who allowed just .31 goals per game this season, and kept 13 clean sheets.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Mason Lisi, Las Lomas, Junior, Midfielder/Forward</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Lisi can play centrally in the midfield, or move into the attack as the No. 10 or play as the No. 9. Lisi is very selfless, as he will often not find himself starting, but comes off the bench and plays his role to a tee. He is one of the team's leading points scorers, scoring goals and giving out assists. He is instant offense when he comes off the bench.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Brandon Lopez, Richmond, Junior, Forward</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Lopez is a very crafty wide player for the Oilers who makes his impact on the game by getting behind the defense with timing and speed, or using his ability to understand the space and driving inside of the defense and finding pockets. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Ronald Lopez, Ygnacio Valley, Senior, Striker</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Lopez is a machine up top for YV. He has 16 goals and eight assists this season, and it's because he is tenacious in front of the goal and extremely dangerous with the ball. He is very skillful, he can use both feet and is extremely strong on the ball. In addition, he is a great leader.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Emilio Martinez, Ygnacio Valley, Junior, Central Midfielder</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Martinez is on another level when it comes to his skill and his mentality. He has a great presence and great composure and is the glue on the pitch for YV. He is a true box-to-box midfielder who is as good defensively as he is offensively.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Nathan Palavos, Las Lomas, Junior, Holding Midfielder</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Palavos is a dynamic player, who is also unselfish. He can play on all three lines, but has spent most of this season rotating with another talented No. 6 in Odin Miller. Palavos is a very strong defensive midfielder who makes good decisions and works very hard to protect his back line.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Julian Renteria, Ygnacio Valley, Senior, Central Defender</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Renteria is a tall and athletic center back, and he is just the high level defender you need anchoring the back line. He dominates in the air and he uses his speed and his instincts to position himself well against oncoming attackers. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Kevin Romo, Richmond, Senior, Attacking Midfielder</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Romo has been so important to Richmond during his time in the program, and has shown once again he may be the best player in the North Coast Section. He is a very clever, crafty and smart player. He can create and go alone, or create and set up his teammates. He leaves an indelible impact on every game he plays. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Fernando Villanueva, Richmond, Junior, Striker</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Villanueva has provided exactly what Richmond has needed to take off. He is scoring goals in bunches and finds a variety of ways to do it. He's very good in front of goal after receiving a pass or he can create an opportunity himself. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p> </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->