CLASS 4-1A GIRLS SOCCER PLAYERS TO WATCH IN 2025
 

ELLIE BOWER, MCPHERSON
 
Bower was the Ark Valley-Chisholm Trail Division III-IV MVP last season, scoring 17 goals and adding eight assists as the Bullpups finished third in Class 4-1A. The senior center forward is a four-year starter and team captain, and is coming off a year in which she earned All-4-1A first team. Bower has shown her ability to take over games early this season with seven goals and five assists in McPherson’s first five games.
 

SAMANTHA BROOKS, BUHLER
 
Brooks has been a team leader on the back end for the Crusaders, serving as captain each of the last two seasons. Her work in goal produced All-4-1A and All-Ark Valley-Chisholm Trail Division III-IV second-team recognition last season as Buhler posted a 11-6-1 record, falling in the regional finals to eventual third-place state finisher McPherson. Brooks took over in net toward the end of her freshman season and has been a mainstay ever since.
 

 
CARSYN BROXTERMAN, HAYDEN
 
After a strong freshman season in 2023 in which she scored 11 goals and was a second-team All-Centennial League pick, Broxterman moved up to first-team all-league honors last season. She also was a second-team All-Class 4-1A selection. She upped her offensive production to 14 goals and six assists.
 

 
KELLYANN CHADA, CAIR PARAVEL
 
After serving as more of a complement to leading scorers Zahra Friess and Katherine Keys as a freshman in 2023, Chada took over as the Lions’ top goal scorer last year. She more than doubled her goal total last year as a sophomore, going from 13 goals scored as a freshman to a team-leading 31 goals last year. She also led the Lions in assists, helping Cair Paravel reach the Class 4-1A state championship match where they fell 1-0 to Bishop Miege in double overtime for the highest finish in program history. A junior forward, Chada was a first-team All-Kaw Valley Conference and first-team All-Class 4-1A selection for the Lions last year and will be counted on even more for her scoring this season with the graduation of Keys and transfer of Friess to Washburn Rural.
 

 
HEMI DUEHRING, CAIR PARAVEL
 
Duehring was a key part of a Cair Paravel defense that allowed just one goal per game last year and finished the season with nine shutouts. Only three of those goals allowed came in the postseason as the Lions reached the Class 4-1A state championship match for the first time in program history, settling for second after a heartbreaking 1-0 double-overtime loss to Bishop Miege in the finals. Duehring was a first-team All-Kaw Valley Conference selection and had two goals and one assist last season.
 

ROWAN EPPS, BISHOP MIEGE

Epps earned All-State first-team honors for the second straight season as she helped lead Miege on a dominant stretch to end the season with the program’s eighth straight state title. The only streak longer than that for the Stags is the number of consecutive seasons reaching double-digits for shutouts with nine. Miege only had three shutouts through the first 13 games last season before posting seven shutouts over the final nine matches, including all five in the postseason. The Stags accomplished that last year with a defense filled with seniors who earned All-State honors, including 4-1A goalkeeper of year Livi Shull. Now, Epps will need to help lead a defense which took a majority of the Stags' graduations from last year if Miege wants to extend the streak of seasons with 10 or more shutouts. She'll need to help bring along a back line that will include multiple returning players who are transitioning from other positions, as well as a promising freshman in Paige Jackson.
 

HALEY GREEN, WICHITA TRINITY
 
The versatile Green can play center back or forward for the Knights while also providing leadership as a two-year team captain. The senior scored seven goals and added four assists last season and was named to the All-Class 4-1A second team as a defender. As a sophomore, Green scored 10 goals and added 10 assists, and helped Trinity post a second-place finish in 4-1A.
 

JOJO HENDERSON, WICHITA TRINITY
 
Henderson, a junior, has moved from forward to center back, where Knights coach Andy Hackett is tapping into her experience to assist Trinity’s defense. Henderson scored 18 goals and added five assists playing up front last season. She earned All-Class 4-1A second-team honors. As a freshman, Henderson scored 10 goals and helped the Knights reach the state title match, where they fell to Bishop Miege.
 

 
VERONICA IGNOTO, CAIR PARAVEL

Ignoto was a rock in goal for the Lions last year, particularly in the postseason as Cair Paravel allowed just three goals in four playoff games on its way to a runner-up finish in Class 4-1A, the best showing in program history. Ignoto allowed just five goals in her 25 starts and recorded 62 saves. She was a second-team All-Kaw Valley Conference selection and second-team All-Class 4-1A pick as well.
 

KYIA KELLY, ROSE HILL
 
The Rockets are looking to Kelly, a junior, for continued offensive production after she led them with 12 goals and seven assists last season, helping Rose Hill reach the state semifinals for the first time in 13 years. A three-year starter, Kelly was an All-4-1A second-team and All-Ark Valley-Chisholm Trail Division III-IV first-team selection at forward. Coach Shelby Kaba calls Kelly “our high-motor forward, combining speed, technical skill and effort.”
 

NEVAEH KELLY, ROSE HILL
 
Kelly, a senior center back, was a big part of Rose Hill’s potent defense last season that posted nine shutouts and yielded just one goal in three other matches. A four-year starter and team captain, Kelly scored four goals a year ago and earned All-4-1A and All-Ark Valley-Chisholm Trail Division III-IV first-team honors. Kelly’s composure and consistency have been assets for a Rose Hill squad that graduated just one senior last spring. “We rely on her to set the tone on defense and contribute to our attack when opportunities arise,” Rose Hill coach Shelby Kaba said.
 

GREER KICE WICHITA CLASSICAL
 
Kice will take her goalkeeping skills to the University of Nebraska next season, but first she’s trying to build on a strong junior campaign in which she was voted the Kansas High School Soccer Coaches Association’s Class 4-1A goalkeeper of the year. The 5-foot-11 Kice registered nine shutouts in 15 games, blanking the likes of Wichita Southeast, Buhler, Mulvane and Wichita Independent. Kice, a captain and four-year starter, made 112 saves last spring (7.5 per game) and yielded eight goals (0.53 goals-against average). Kice was voted All-4-1A second team as a sophomore and received honorable mention her freshman year.
 

OLIVIA MCGAUGH, BISHOP MIEGE

On a team filled with experienced upperclassmen on the front and back lines for the Stags last season, McGaugh stepped up as a freshman to provide playmaking in the midfield. McGaugh led the team in assists with 12, a mark that tied her for the seventh best single-season assists total in team history. She also scored four goals. McGaugh is now an important piece for the Stags as they attempt to break the all-time state record for consecutive state titles by any program. Miege tied the record last year when the team won its eighth straight.
 

JADE SMALLWOOD, MULVANE
 
Smallwood, a midfielder, entered her senior season with 30 career goals and 10 assists as a contributor since her freshman year. She led the Wildcats last season with 15 goals and three assists to earn All-Class 4-1A second-team and All-Ark Valley-Chisholm Trail III-IV first-team honors. Smallwood earned all-state and all-league first team as a sophomore, and makes up part of a potent offensive duo this season with freshman Brittani Peschel.
 

ELLA SWEARINGEN, ROSE HILL
 
Swearingen was part of a talented group of Rocket midfielders last season, earning All-Class 4-1A first-team honors while her classmate and fellow returnee Paige Winter was voted on to the second team by the state’s coaches. Swearingen, a center mid and four-year starter, led Rose Hill with 10 assists and added five goals as the Rockets earned their second trip to the state semifinals in program history. “Ella is the engine of our midfield, capable of excelling in any central midfield role,” Rose Hill coach Shelby Kaba said.
 

ROWAN YOWS, LOUISBURG

Yows led Louisburg in assists with 17 while also scoring 12 goals during her junior campaign. The senior midfielder will try to lead the Wildcats once again, now under new head coach Jordan Roquemore, who will be the team’s third head coach in the last four years. With Roquemore bringing in a 4-2-3-1 formation, Yows will get the chance to play central attacking midfielder in an offense that allows for lots of creative ways to score. She’ll have opportunities to fire the ball ahead to her senior forward Baileigh Johnson, who scored 15 goals last season. Yows could also send the ball to the outside to either junior Mena Fercho or senior Riley May as outside midfielders running down the flanks. In those situations, Yows will get the chance to press forward and join Johnson in what essentially becomes an attack with four forwards.