Eli Soehren of Oxford Hills High School in South Paris, who led the Vikings to this year’s Class A football state championship game, has been named Maine’s 2021-22 Gatorade Player of the Year.
The 6-foot-2, 201-pound junior quarterback and free safety passed for 1,904 yards and 25 touchdowns this season as Oxford Hills finished with an 8-2 record and earned its first trip to the state final since 1999.
The second-seeded Vikings lost that game to top-ranked and undefeated Thornton Academy of Saco 42-27.
Soehren, the son of Oxford Hills head coach Mark Soehren, also rushed for 903 yards and eight touchdowns while defensively contributing 20 tackles and four interceptions.
He previously was named the state’s Class A player of the year.
“Eli Soehren really hurt our team the most both running and throwing,” Bangor High School head coach Dave Morris said. “Eli was a leader as well. His team looked to him and he responded well in adverse situations.”
Soehren joins recent Gatorade Maine Football Players of the Year Wyatt Hathaway (2020-21, Leavitt Area High School of Turner Center), Zach Maturo (2019-20, Bonny Eagle High School of Standish), Anthony Bracamonte (2018-19, Thornton Academy) and Owen Garrard (2017-18, Scarborough High School) among the state’s list of former award recipients.