Bridgeport’s rise to the top of Texas high school soccer didn’t happen overnight.
It wasn’t built in a single season, or even across a few standout years.
It started on small fields with undersized goals in the Bridgeport Youth Association, where a group of kids, barely old enough to tie their cleats, began building something they didn’t yet understand.
Among them was Bridgeport junior forward/striker Jared Contreras.
“I started playing when I was about three years old,” Contreras said. “And I’ve pretty much been playing with the same group of guys ever since. We all grew up together.”
That continuity is rare in modern youth sports. It became the foundation for something much bigger.
Before they were state champions, and before they were even high school players, they were just kids in Wise County, learning the game side by side.
For Contreras, soccer wasn’t just a pastime. It was part of his family.
Two of his cousins – Jesus and Eric Aguilar – were stars at Bridgeport a decade ago. They were both part of the 2017 team that made a historic run to the state championship match in Bridgeport’s second season as a program.
At the time, Contreras was just a kid in the stands. But he was watching closely, taking in the moments – ones of joy and heartbreak – that he would find himself in years later.
“I remember being there, watching those games,” he said. “I’d think, ‘I want that to be me one day.’ I wanted to have that experience with people I already knew and grew up with.”
That moment stuck with him.
In 2017, Bridgeport fell just short of a title. For the younger generation watching, it wasn’t just a loss. Contreras said it was a spark; it gave them something to chase.
By the time Contreras was six years old, he began to realize soccer might be more than just a game.
“That’s when I really started getting better quickly,” he said. “I felt like I was playing at a level where people thought I could become something.”
But even as his individual talent developed, the identity of Bridgeport soccer remained collective. This wasn’t a program built on transfers or late additions.
It was homegrown.
“We all grew up together,” Contreras said. “Those are my brothers, and that’s what made it special.”
That shared history became a defining trait for the Bulls.
Through youth leagues, middle school matches and into high school, the core stayed intact. They knew each other’s tendencies, strengths and instincts without needing to say a word.
More importantly, they believed.
“What I’ll remember the most from this year is just how united we were,” Contreras said. “We had the skills, but it was also the teamwork. We believed we could do it.”
That belief didn’t waver, even in the face of setbacks.
Bridgeport came close in the years leading up to this season, including a trip to the state semifinals that ended in disappointment last season. It’s common for losses like that to linger, but as the Bulls proved, they aren’t a common team.
“We never lost that belief,” Contreras said. “Even last year, we knew we could do it. We just weren’t all there physically and mentally in that game.”
That confidence carried into the 2026 season, bolstered by the arrival of head coach Brandon Medrano.
While coaching changes can disrupt programs, Bridgeport’s foundation held firm.
The third Bridgeport coach in three years, Medrano didn’t come into the program to turn it upside down and establish a new way of life. He came to honor the past, maximize the present core and build a future the community would be even more proud of.
“When I met him, I felt like the season was going to go great. We told him about 2017 and how bad we wanted to win state, and how we needed his help to do it,” Contreras said. “He understood us — the Hispanic culture, the history — and knew how to connect with us. He really focused on getting us ready mentally and improving our technical skills.”
When Bridgeport reached the 4A Division II State Championship match, the parallels between this year’s team and the 2017 squad were impossible to ignore.
The same field, the same program, the same community and even the same color uniforms.
But this time, Contreras wasn’t in the stands. He was at the center of it all.
“We saw some people from that 2017 team in the stands, and we could see how important it was,” Contreras said. “It made the opportunity even more serious. We wanted to do it for them, too.”
But the state title match against Brookshire Royal didn’t start the way Bridgeport envisioned.
After a lengthy weather delay, the Bulls conceded a goal just seconds into the game.
But panic never set in, and Contreras helped make sure of that.
He scored Bridgeport’s first goal to even the match, keeping the Bulls within reach as the game wore on. By halftime, despite trailing 2-1, there was a growing sense that momentum was shifting.
“In the second half, I felt like we had control,” Contreras said. “Especially in the midfield, we were dominating them. They weren’t really getting past us.”
Bridgeport equalized early in the second half via Xxavier Garza, and from there, the match turned into a battle of endurance.
As regulation ended in a 2-2 tie, the game entered overtime — the same stage where the 2017 team’s dream ultimately fell apart in penalty kicks.
This time, the Bulls didn’t let a shootout determine what color medals they would go home with. Over the next 20 minutes, Bridgeport emptied its tank.
“I felt like once we got to extra time, it was ours,” Contreras said. “We had worn them down.”
What followed was a performance that will live in Bridgeport history, and beyond.
Six minutes into overtime, Contreras rose and fired a shot into the net to give the Bulls their first lead of the night. Just one minute later, he struck again — this time with a header — completing a hat trick on the biggest stage.
“In games like this, chances are limited,” he said. “Every opportunity is a chance to change the game. I just wanted to make the most of mine.”
By the time the final horn blew on a 5-2 victory, the long journey from youth fields to state champions was complete.
For Contreras, it was more than just a win. It was a full-circle moment.
The kid who once watched from the stands — inspired by his cousins and a team that fell just short — had helped lead Bridgeport to the top, earning state tournament MVP honors and setting a new 4A record for goals in a championship match.
But in the end, it wasn’t just about one player, or even one game. It was about years of shared experience — of practices, losses, wins and memories — that built something lasting.
“I’ll always remember how we came together in the biggest moments,” Contreras said. “We grew up together and got to play the game like we always have, but this time it was for state. It was special.”
On a field in Georgetown, nearly a decade after Bridgeport first came close, that bond delivered something the program had never had before: a state championship.
For Contreras, it was exactly what he had envisioned all those years ago. And he still thinks there’s more to be accomplished.
“We can do it again.”
Loading Comments