HOLLYWOOD, Calif. — Cristian Roldan scored 54 goals as a senior at El Rancho High School. Fifty-four. And yet it still felt like a surprise when he was named the Gatorade National Boys Soccer Player of the Year.

Stacked against a list of state winners that included U.S. youth national team players, high-level club players, and other athletes bound for top college programs, Gatorade selected Roldan as the best of the best for the 2012-13 season.

The teenager from Los Angeles, California soaked up the experience on Tuesday, as he attended the Gatorade Athlete of the Year banquet at the W Hotel in Hollywood. He ultimately came up short for the top honor (basketball player Andrew Wiggins collected that hardware) but he still got caught up in the surreal ride.

“It has been an unbelievable journey,” Roldan told TopDrawerSoccer.com on Tuesday at the Gatorade Athlete of the Year banquet. “Just to have my family, supporters, fans, my brother who plays with me, just to be involved in my life for all 18 years, it’s been a remarkable journey. And I really want to emulate these last couple of months in my near future.”

The future is what makes Roldan so exciting. Compared to those who have come before him as Gatorade Boys Soccer Player of the Year, he is a relative unknown.

Last year’s winner Emmanuel Boateng had national (and international) prominence thanks to his success at the club level and drawing the interest of some top academies across the world. Two years ago, Luis Rendon was a U.S. U18 Men’s National Team player before he was given the trophy.

Roldan does not have that same pedigree outside of his accomplishments with his scholastic squad. By his own admission, he tells his new teammates on the Washington Crossfire (Seattle, Washington) PDL squad that he played for “some local club” in Southern California. There is no Development Academy squad attached to his name.

“I’ve had a lot of distractions, which I am sure all of these athletes have too,” Roldan said about not playing for a Development Academy. “I had a lot of homework, I played another sport (volleyball), and I think I really didn’t have the time to play Academy. I think it did take me away from other scholarships, but, in the end, I am completely satisfied with the school that I am going to.”

And yet, it is hard not to be excited about the 18-year-olds prospects with the Pac-12 squad in Seattle.

Roldan moved to Seattle early to help with the transition process and also get in some training with Washington Crossfire. He started the last six games of the season for the PDL club where he scored three goals and helped the team to a 2-2-2 record.

“It is a quick transition. Playing PDL – bigger, faster players playing on small fields – it is something that I need to get used to. And I love it. It is living on my own. It is a different feeling.”

His outlook at the collegiate level is even more optimistic than the early success he has enjoyed with the PDL.

“Seeing the freshmen that came in this year, I really believe coach Jamie [Clark] did a really, really good job with recruiting,” Roldan said about Washington’s future. “I believe that I am playing with future NCAA Champions – whether it is one, two, three, or four years from now. I think Jamie did a tremendous job and I like that. I enjoy being surrounded by better players.”

Penciled in as the attacking center midfielder for the Huskies, Roldan has some big shoes to fill in Seattle this fall, but the talented midfielder appears ready to keep surprising people that have overlooked him. 

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