2023 GIRLS SOCCER PREVIEW
 

CLASS 6A
 
2022 State Champion: Blue Valley West
 
2022 State Runner-up: Washburn Rural
 
2022 Review: The 2022 season had a bit of deja-vu to it for Blue Valley West. Not only did the Jaguars win their fifth consecutive Class 6A state championship, but for the third time in the last four of those titles, they topped Washburn Rural in the championship match. After beating Rural 1-0 in both the 2018 and 2019 title matches, the Jaguars had a slight bit more breathing room in the 2022 final, taking a 2-0 win. West scored five minutes into the title game and then added insurance midway through the second half, each goal coming from senior Reiss Wood. The title capped a 16-3-1 season for the Jaguars, who suffered two of their three losses to undefeated 5A champion St. Thomas Aquinas. It also was the sendoff for Jaguar coach Alex Aiman, who retired following the season. Rural posted its third runner-up finish in four years and finished 17-3-2 while Olathe Northwest topped Manhattan for third place.
 
2023 Contenders: Blue Valley West has been on about as dominant of a run as there could be in Class 6A, winning nine state titles since 2005 while also posting three runner-up finishes. Last year’s crown was the Jaguars’ fifth straight. To make it six in a row, the Jaguars will not only have to replace five seniors, including 6A co-midfielder of the year Grace Bartlett and fellow midfielder Reiss Wood, who scored both goals in the 2-0 championship match win over Washbur nRural, but also longtime coach Alex Aiman, who retired after the season. New coach Kyle Conley built Louisburg into a 4A power and takes over for Aiman, inheriting a team that returns the bulk of its starters, including first-team All-Class 6A defenders Reece Walrod and Lydia Ungahick as well as leading scorer Alexis Morrison. Washburn Rural has been knocking on the door of getting its first state title, finishing runner-up to Blue Valley West three of the last four years by a total of four combined goals. Two of the Junior Blues’ three losses last year in a 17-3-2 season came to West. Rural will have to do a bit of reloading after the graduation of two-time 6A midfielder of the year Belle Kennedy, its leading scorer, as well as fellow first-team All-6A midfielder Reagan Allen. The Junior Blues graduated seven seniors overall, but return third-leading scorer and shared assist leader Mackinly Rohn as well as first-team All-Centennial League goalkeeper Hailey Beck, who posted 11 shutouts and surrendered just 11 goals all season. West’s top challenge could come from 6A newcomer Mill Valley, which finished runner-up in Class 5A last season, falling 2-1 in the championship match to St. Thomas Aquinas. The Jaguars handed West one of its three losses a year ago and return all four of their first-team All-Class 5A selections – midfielders Delaney Reishus and Kate Ricker and senior defenders Olivia Page and Acacia Wells. Only four players graduated for Mill Valley, which finished 18-3-0 overall and were Sunflower League champions for the second straight year. Reishus was the league midfielder of the year and Page was the league defender of the year. Third a year ago after beating Manhattan 5-0 in the third-place game, Olathe Northwest only loses five seniors off last year’s 15-5-1 team. The Ravens return Sunflower League forward of the year Mimi Hallier, a Michigan State commit who had 19 goals and 13 assists last year and was 6A’s co-forward of the year, as well as senior midfielders Keaton Coad and Aspen Patterson, who were second-team all-league picks. The Ravens’ third-place showing was their second since 2019, both trips ending with semifinal losses to Rural. Manhattan was runner-up to Rural in the Centennial League and finished fourth at state, going 15-5-1 overall. Like Northwest, the Indians only lost five seniors to graduation but return plenty of firepower. Junior Emery Ruliffson was the team’s leading scorer last year as a sophomore while sophomore Jada Dibbini was second and earned Centennial League newcomer of the year honors. Goalkeeper Taylor McHugh earned first-team All-Class 6A honors and overall the Indians return their top-four goal scorers. Blue Valley came the closest to ending Blue Valley West’s title run, falling 3-2 in overtime in the state quarterfinals after tying the Jaguars during the regular season. The Tigers have a premier goal scorer in senior Bella Field, who was co-forward of the year in 6A with Northwest’s Hallier, but lost running mate Miranda Miller to graduation. Senior defender Mia Yang joined Field as a first-team All-6A and All-Eastern Kansas League pick while three other all-league selections also return. Olathe West was the No. 1 seed in the east in the quarterfinals last year before getting upset 3-0 by Olathe Northwest. The Owls not only will be hungry to get to the final four this season, but also loaded to make a serious run at the championship. Three first-team All-6A selections are back – 6A defender of the year Lily Hendrickson, senior forward Jordyn Wilson and senior defender Kira Stambaugh. Shawnee Mission East was 11-5-2 last year, falling to Blue Valley in the regional finals, but could be poised to take the next step with the return of All-6A forward Ashley Koch and All-6A midfielder Mary Long, the latter the lone freshman on last year’s All-6A first team. Shawnee Mission Northwest was 12-5-1 and Shawnee Mission South was 11-7-0, each making regional finals. Both return first-team All-6A players in senior forward Julia House for South and senior midfielder Samantha Lockett for Northwest. Wichita Northwest and Garden City each made the quarterfinals a year ago before losing to Rural and Manhattan, respectively. Northwest returns three honorable mention All-6A selections (Payton Benoit, Anahi Ibarra-Arevalo and Keilann Heath) and Garden City will be led by first-team All-Western Athletic Conference pick Andrea Aguilar.
 

 
CLASS 5A
 
2022 State Champion: St. Thomas Aquinas
 
2022 State Runner-up: Mill Valley
 
2022 Review: The most dominant soccer program in the state, St. Thomas Aquinas added another championship to its already impressive resume, turning in one of its most impressive seasons in program history. The Saints won their second straight Class 5A championships, their ninth since 2010 and 18^th overall, edging Mill Valley 2-1 in the championship game. After a scoreless first half in the championship match, Mill Valley struck on a goal by Hadley Lockhart two minutes into the second half. The goal not only gave the Jaguars a 1-0 lead, but also put Aquinas behind for just the second time all season. The Saints, however, responded like champions. Junior Sydney Watts got the equalizer with roughly 22 minutes left in the game and then she scored the game winner with 4:03 left to give Aquinas the title. It capped a 17-0-2 season, the first undefeated season for the program and one in which the Saints outscored their opponents 76-9 on the season. Mill Valley finished the season 18-3-0. Eisenhower finished third, beating Maize South 1-0 in the third-place game to cap an 18-2-1 season while the Mavericks finished 16-3-2.
 
2023 Contenders: While graduation did hit two-time defending champion St. Thomas Aquinas hard with the loss of 10 seniors, including 5A midfielder of the year Abby Hansen and 5A defender of the year Assa Kante, the list of 5A title contenders always starts with the Saints. The program won its 18^th state title last season, going without a loss for the first time in its rich history – the lone ties coming against Class 4-1A champion Bishop Miege and fellow Eastern Kansas League rival St. James Academy. Reloading is the norm for the Saints, who do return 5A forward of the year in senior Sydney Watts, who scored 35 goals last year, including both in the 2-1 win over Mill Valley in the championship game. Junior midfielder Andi Rylance joined Watts as a first-team All-5A pick while junior midfielder Jane Hansen and sophomore midfielder Anisten Cabantac were second-team All-5A picks, giving the Saints a powerful returning attack from a team that scored 76 goals last year. The biggest holes are defensively with the loss of Kante, defender Shandon Carr and goalkeeper Maria Jensen. With last year’s runner-up Mill Valley moving up to 6A this season after giving the Saints all they wanted in last year’s title game, Aquinas’ top threat for its three-peat bid could come from either of last year’s other two semifinalists. Eisenhower took third last year, going 18-2-1 with its lone losses coming to Mill Valley in the semifinals and to Andover early in the season, a loss the Tigers avenged twice including in the state quarterfinals. The lone tie came against Maize South, whom the Tigers topped 1-0 in the third-place game. Eisenhower boasts one of the top playmakers in the state in junior midfielder Bella Smith, who scored 24 goals last season and was the Ark Valley Chisholm Trail II player of the year. The Tigers will have to replace seven seniors, including first-team All-5A midfielder Abby Bachman and the heart of a defense that allowed just 11 goals last season, but enough returns to keep Eisenhower in the hunt this season. Like Eisenhower, Maize South only suffered one regular-season loss before winding up fourth and finishing the season 16-3-2. In addition to the final four losses to Aquinas and Eisenhower, whom the Mavericks tied in the regular season, Maize South only fell to Valley Center in the season opener. The Mavericks were the highest-scoring team in the state with 104 goals led by Kyndal Ewertz’s 34. She’s already the school’s career goals scorer in just two seasons and last year was the Ark Valley Chisholm Trail I player of the year as a sophomore. Ewertz was the Mavericks’ lone first-team All-5A pick last year, but second-team defender Rachel Riley also returns as does junior honorable mention pick Olivia Oenning. St. James Academy was one of the few teams to push state champion Aquinas last year and very well could be the Saints’ top challenger this season as well. The Thunder tied Aquinas 1-1 during the regular season and went 15-3-1 overall, falling 2-1 to Mill Valley in the state quarterfinals. Junior goalkeeper Addison Tauscher was a first-team All-5A pick and the Eastern Kansas League keeper of the year. She’s one of three returners for the Thunder who earned All-5A honors with senior forward Kendal Radke and senior midfielder Lauren Steinlage second-team picks. The Thunder lost first-team All-5A picks Connor Rylance and Lexi Watts. After finishing as state runner-up in 2021 with an overtime loss to Aquinas in the title match, Blue Valley Southwest only advanced to the regional finals last season, losing 4-0 to Mill Valley. The Timberwolves were young last year as they had to replace a stellar 2021 senior class. They still went 11-6-0 overall and return virtually everyone this season, led by first-team All-5A picks Hope Kim, Addy Lang and Hannah Palmer, all three juniors. Fellow junior Finely Bates was a second-team All-5A pick and teams with Kim at the forward spot to give Southwest a strong attack. Andover dealt Eisenhower its only regular-season loss last year and finished the season 15-4-0, falling in the state quarterfinals to Eisenhower. The Trojans very well could replace Eisenhower as the team to beat in the AVCTL II this season, returning six players who were first-team all-league selections – senior forwards Brinklee Bell and Carley Smith, senior midfielder Rose Loyal, junior midfielder Katelyn Aue, senior defender Jasmyn Brown and junior goalkeeper Brooklin Lynch. Like Andover, Maize was 15-4-0 as well. Unlike Andover, the Eagles were hit much harder by graduation, losing first-team all-league selections Haley Rogers, Brekkyn Pierce and Alayna Runck to graduation with Rogers also a first-team All-5A selection. Maize does return all-league goalkeeper Karsyn Fraser-Slothower and three others who earned all-league honors. Spring Hill reached the state quarterfinals last year, falling to Aquinas to end a 14-4-1 season. The Broncos lost a pair of first-team All-5A picks in defender Makenzie Hood and midfielder Reagan Downes, but return first-team All-5A forward Payton Vogelbacher and second-team All-Frontier League picks Veronica Farris and Jessica Russo. Shawnee Heights was 13-5-0 and Seaman finished 11-6-1, each falling in regional finals to St. James and Aquinas respectively. Heights returns six players who were first- or second-team in the United Kansas Conference, led by senior Emily Loy and sophomores Isabell Van Fleet and Lailah Benz. Seaman has a 1-2 punch in seniors Brooklyn Yingling and Jaycee Schumann, who each scored 11 goals last year. Andover Central, Valley Center and Goddard all won 11 games last year, while Bishop Carroll was 13-5, losing 1-0 to Maize in the regional finals. Carroll returns first-team All-5A defender Lindsey Maul and two other first-team All-Greater Wichita Athletic League selections. Hays was 13-4-0 last year and returns standout Katie Dinkel.
 

 
CLASS 4-1A
 
2022 State Champion: Bishop Miege
 
2022 State Runner-up: Buhler
 
2022 Review: With its sixth straight Class 4-1A state championship last spring, Bishop Miege is closing in on St. Thomas Aquinas’ state record for consecutive titles of seven, which the Saints set from 2010-16. The Stags had no trouble in securing title No. 6 in a row, beating Buhler 5-0 in last year’s championship match. Well, it wasn’t quite as easy as the final score made it appear. Buhler was more than game in trying to end the Stags’ streak, battling them to a scoreless first half before Miege unloaded in the second half. Senior Lissy Fahlstrom scored just a couple minutes into the second half and the Stags hit Buhler with a burst of four goals in a 10-minute span to break the game open. The Stags finished the season 15-5-1 and now have won 31 consecutive postseason matches. No. 30 of that run was arguably the toughest of them all as Miege needed penalty kicks to beat McPherson in last year’s semifinals, holding a 5-3 in the PKs after the team had battled to a 1-1 tie through regulation and the overtime periods. McPherson bounced back from the heartbreaking semifinal loss to beat Cair Paravel 3-2 for third place and finish the season 16-4-1.
 
2023 Contenders: Is history in the making this year as Bishop Miege seeks to match St. Thomas Aquinas’ state record of seven consecutive state titles? Well, the Stags do have to replace 4-1A defender of the year Ella Howard and fellow first-team All-4-1A selection Mayah Haug. But only three other Stags graduated and Miege returns three other first-team All-4-1A picks, including goalkeeper of the year Livi Shull, who helped the Stags to 11 shutouts and allowed just 17 goals all season against arguably the toughest schedule in the state. First-teamers Rose Lenihan, Dory Latenser and Kate Pedrotti also return and the Stags rode balance all season a year ago with 15 different players scoring goals. Miege has reached the state semifinals each of the last eight seasons. McPherson may not have made the state finals last year, but there was no doubt the Bullpups were Miege’s toughest test a year ago in 4-1A, falling in penalty kicks in the semifinals after taking a 2-1 loss to the Stags in the regular season. The Bullpups are more than equipped to be a serious threat to the Stags’ streak again this season, returning all but five seniors off last year’s team. The graduation losses were big ones, however, with 4-1A midfielder of the year Lauren Labertew and fellow first-team All-4-1A picks Megan Everhart, Olivia Rodriguez and Sydney Achilles four of the five who must be replaced. That leaves some big holes for veteran coach Chris Adrian, who shared coached of the year honors in 4-1A with Miege’s Nate Huppe. Forwards Ellie Bower and Baylee Simmelink were second-team All-Ark Valley Chisholm Trail III-IV selections last year as a freshman and sophomore, respectively, while senior Kelcie Kynaston also was a second-teamer. If the next wave can come of age in a hurry and fill those big voids, McPherson will continue its run of success that’s seen the program reach the semifinals five times since 2015. Ravaged by injuries early last season, Buhler came on strong at the end to reach the state championship match. The Crusaders were just 5-7-1 going into the final week of the regular season before winning seven straight matches, including a 2-1 upset of top-seeded Mulvane in the state quarterfinals and a 2-1 win over Cair Paravel in the state semifinals. Buhler will have to replace 4-1A forward of the year Aubrey Tanksley and fellow first-team All-4-1A selections Maren Lackey and Abby Yutzy among seven graduated seniors. Junior midfielder Ashlynn Adcock leads four returnees who earned All-Ark Valley Chisholm Trail III-IV honors last year as the Crusaders look to get back to the state semifinals for the third time in the last four seasons. Even in ramping up its regular-season schedule, Cair Paravel enjoyed the best season in school history last year, going 15-5-0, three of the five losses coming to Miege, Mcherson and Buhler. Still, in just their second year as a KSHSAA member, the Lions have reached at least the state quarterfinals each of those seasons and fell 2-1 to Buhler in last year’s state semifinals. Cair Paravel could take the next step this year, returning its entire roster from last year. Junior Katherine Keys and sophomore Zahra Friess give the Lions a serious scoring combo with Friess scoring 31 goals last year and Keys 30. Friess was a first-team All-4-1A selection and was joined by Keys, junior Trinity Childs,  and senior Sage Schwartz as first-team All-Kaw Valley Conference selections. The Lions are still extremely young this season with just three seniors on the roster. Circle nearly saw its youth serve up a big upset last year as the Thunderbirds fell 3-2 in double-overtime to McPherson in the state quarterfinals to finish the season 12-6-1. Circle had four freshmen a year ago who earned first or second-team All-Ark Valley Chisholm Trail III-IV honors with two of those, forwards Milan Hunter and Londyn Soto, also earning second-team All-4-1A honors. Hannah Stipp, a first-team All-4-1A selection at goalkeeper, graduated at semester and will be missed, but the Thunderbirds return five players overall who earned All-4-1A honors of some kind. Mulvane was the top seed in the west bracket last season, but was upset 2-1 by Buhler in the state quarterfinals after having beaten the Crusaders 4-0 during the regular season. The Wildcats return first-team all-league defender Teagan Garrison as well as five other players who earned some kind of all-league honors, but must replace first-team All-4-1A midfielder Emma Kolbe and Ark Valley Chisholm Trail III-IV player of the year Karlie Kanaga, who tore an ACL in Mulvane's basketball opener. Hayden handed Cair Paravel one of its three regular-season losses but saw the Lions turn the table in the state quarterfinals with a 2-1 victory. The Wildcats finished 10-7-1 overall and lost leading scorer Kate Roeder, but return second-team All-Centennial League selection Lauren Sandstrom. Baldwin also reached the state quarterfinals before losing to Bishop Miege and end the season 10-6-2. The Bulldogs graduated first-team All-4-1A picks Riley Smith and Abigail Patterson, but return junior standout forward Fisayo Afonja and fellow second-team All-4-1A pick Nora Prather. Louisburg was the No. 2 seed in the east bracket before getting upset by Hayden 1-0 in the regional finals, ending the season 13-5-0. The Wildcats return a pair of first-team All-4-1A selections in junior forward Alexis Hampton and junior midfielder Lola Edwards. Olathe Heritage Christian also was victim to a bit of an upset in the east bracket, taking a 12-5-0 record into its regional finals before losing to Baldwin 2-0. The Chargers return a trio of players who earned All-Class 4-1A honors, led by first-team selection Hannah Thong.