Prep girls soccer season preview: Teams and players to watch

With the high school girls soccer season underway, here’s a look at some of the top local teams and players to watch this fall.

TEAMS TO WATCH

Archbishop Murphy

The Wildcats completed one of the most dominant prep soccer seasons in Snohomish County history last fall, storming through Wesco 3A/2A and piling up a staggering 125-7 goal differential while riding a perfect 23-0-0 campaign to the 2A state title. Archbishop Murphy graduated six of its nine all-league selections from last year’s juggernaut team, including five 2A all-state picks. Among the departures were University of Montana-bound midfielder Reeve Borseth and a trio of all-state forwards in Jordyn Latta, Taylor Campbell and Jojo Chiangpradit that combined for more than half the team’s scoring. But the Wildcats still return some key pieces, highlighted by University of Oregon-bound senior midfielder Cameron Bourne and all-state senior defender Claire Esping. Despite a pair of one-goal losses to Wenatchee and Shorecrest early this season, the defending state champions should once again be a major factor both in Wesco 3A/2A and at the 2A state level.

Cedarcrest

The 2A-level Red Wolves have also experienced success in Wesco 3A/2A since moving up with Archbishop Murphy to the predominantly 3A league in 2018. They’ve gone 29-11-3 in conference play over that span, including a 10-4-1 league record last season. After reaching the 2A state tournament in 2019, Cedarcrest fell two wins short of state last year. The Red Wolves graduated a pair of all-league players, but returned all-league senior midfielder Leah Cammarano and a handful of all-league honorable mentions. Cedarcrest is off to a 3-0 start this fall, with all three victories coming against conference opponents and by multiple goals.

Glacier Peak

The Grizzlies have had a success-filled past three seasons. In 2019, they claimed the Wesco 4A title and reached the 4A state tournament. During the COVID-shortened 2021 spring season, they went 7-1-1. And last fall, they split the Wesco 4A crown with Jackson and reached the 4A state quarterfinals. Over that span, they went a combined 20-2 in Wesco 4A play. Glacier Peak has some major pieces to replace after graduating a pair of all-state selections in midfielder Chloe Seelhoff and defender Kate Sprink. Seelhoff, now on the University of Washington team, scored or assisted nearly half the Grizzlies’ goals over the past three seasons. But there’s still plenty of returning talent. Glacier Peak brought back four of its seven all-league selections, including a senior trio of first-teamers in standout forward Ryann Reynolds, University of Idaho-bound midfielder Izzy Thoma and defender Alyssa Montgomery. The Grizzlies are off to a 1-1-2 start against a challenging non-league slate, including a win over crosstown rival Snohomish.

Kamiak

The upstart Knights have raced to a 5-1 start in non-league play, while racking up a 25-3 goal differential. That includes a 3-2 win over a Woodinville team that’s outscored Kamiak’s top three Wesco 4A foes — Glacier Peak, Lake Stevens and Jackson — by a combined 18-3 margin. The Knights went just 6-9-2 last year, but they returned four of their five all-league selections, including University of North Carolina Greensboro-bound senior midfielder Bailey Gourdine. They also added talented freshman forward Campbell Bovey to their attack. Gourdine, Bovey, returning all-league junior midfielder Aliya Boonsripisal and senior forward Mariyah McCrae have each scored at least four goals for Kamiak this fall.

Mountlake Terrace

The Hawks are in the midst of a program upswing. After back-to-back one-win campaigns in 2018 and 2019, Mountlake Terrace went 5-3-1 during the COVID-shortened 2021 spring season. The Hawks then took another step forward last fall, finishing 9-6-3 for their most wins since 2014. Mountlake Terrace returned three of its four all-league selections from last year, including standout junior forward Natalie Cardin and Sacramento State-bound senior goalkeeper Sierra Sonko. The Hawks are off to a strong 4-0-1 start with a 22-2 goal differential this fall, highlighted by a signature 2-1 victory over perennial league power Snohomish. It’s early, but Mountlake Terrace looks capable of contending for the Wesco 3A/2A crown and its program’s first state tournament berth since 1990.

Shorecrest

After entering last year’s 3A District 1 Tournament as the No. 8 seed, the Scots made a run to the 3A state tournament’s round of 16. All four of their postseason wins came in elimination matches, including a pair of district upsets over Mountlake Terrace and Edmonds-Woodway that earned them their ninth state berth in the past 10 full-length seasons. Shorecrest returned three of its seven all-league honorable mentions from last year — including senior forward Nora Patterson, who has six goals in four matches this fall. The Scots are off to a 4-0 start, highlighted by a 2-1 victory over defending 2A state champion Archbishop Murphy that snapped the Wildcats’ 17-match Wesco 3A/2A league win streak.

Shorewood

The Stormrays are coming off a success-filled 17-4-0 campaign last year. They took second place in Wesco 3A/2A, behind eventual 2A state champion Archbishop Murphy. They captured the 3A District 1 Tournament title. And they advanced to the 3A state quarterfinals for the second time in the past three full-length seasons. Shorewood has a lot to replace after graduating four of its five all-league selections, including the standout Manalili twins. Kaitlyn Manalili and Morgan Manalili, who are now both playing Division II college soccer, combined for nearly half the Stormrays’ goals last year. But Shorewood returns all-league junior midfielder Amelia Severn, along with all three of its all-conference honorable mentions. The Stormrays are off to a 3-0 start, with a 15-1 goal differential.

Snohomish

Over the past five full-length seasons, the Panthers’ perennially strong program has earned four 3A state tournament appearances, three trips to the 3A District 1 championship match and two Wesco 3A/2A titles. That stretch includes a trip to the 3A state quarterfinals last season, which marked the program’s deepest playoff run since 2010. And with three of its five all-league selections returning, Snohomish looks positioned for more success this fall. The Panthers are led by returning all-state senior midfielder Sara Rodgers, who netted a whopping 31 goals last season. She’s complemented by returning all-league senior midfielder SJ Hammer, returning all-league senior defender Jenna Edelbrock and returning all-state junior goalkeeper Catherine Greene. Despite a pair of one-goal losses to Glacier Peak and Mountlake Terrace early on, Snohomish once again looks capable of making plenty of noise in both Wesco 3A/2A and the postseason.

PLAYERS TO WATCH

Cameron Bourne, sr., MF, Archbishop Murphy

Bourne, a University of Oregon commit, totaled 20 goals and 16 assists last year while helping lead the Wildcats to a perfect season and the 2A state title. The returning all-state midfielder figures to take on an even bigger role this fall after Archbishop Murphy graduated a trio of all-state forwards.

Natalie Cardin, jr., F, Mountlake Terrace

Cardin totaled 16 goals and seven assists last season, scoring or assisting nearly two-thirds of the Hawks’ goals. The returning all-league forward has already netted eight goals in four matches this fall, including five in a rout of Marysville Getchell and the go-ahead score in a signature win over Snohomish.

Claire Esping, sr., D, Archbishop Murphy

Esping is a returning all-state defender who helped anchor a unit that allowed just seven goals in 23 matches during last year’s perfect season and 2A state title run.

Bailey Gourdine, sr., MF, Kamiak

Gourdine, a University of North Carolina Greensboro commit, is a returning all-league midfielder. She’s scored four goals through six matches this fall.

Alyssa Montgomery, sr., D, Glacier Peak

Montgomery is a returning all-league defender from last year’s 4A state quarterfinal team. She helped anchor a defense that yielded just 1.0 goals per match, including just two goals in eight league contests.

Ryann Reynolds, sr., F, Glacier Peak

Reynolds totaled 15 goals and 10 assists while helping lead the Grizzlies to the 4A state quarterfinals last season. The returning all-league forward figures to take on an even bigger role in Glacier Peak’s attack this fall, after the graduation of standout midfielder Chloe Seelhoff.

Sara Rodgers, sr., MF, Snohomish

Rodgers is coming off a massive junior campaign, racking up 31 goals and five assists while leading the Panthers to last year’s 3A state quarterfinals. The returning all-state midfielder netted five hat tricks last season and scored or assisted more than half her team’s goals.

Amelia Severn, jr., MF, Shorewood

Severn provided six goals and 18 assists during the Stormrays’ run to the 3A state quarterfinals last year. The junior midfielder is Shorewood’s lone returning all-league selection.

Sierra Sonko, sr., GK, Mountlake Terrace

Sonko is a Sacramento State commit and a returning all-league goalkeeper for a Hawks program that’s looking to continue its recent rise.

Izzy Thoma, sr., MF, Glacier Peak

Thoma, a University of Idaho commit, is a returning all-league midfielder from last year’s 4A state quarterfinal team.