High school soccer season is almost here. The new year begins Monday, Aug. 10 in Kentucky and Friday, Aug. 14 in Ohio. Here are some (but not all) teams to watch in boys soccer this season based on information from coaches.
More: One stop for Cincinnati Enquirer fall high school sports coverage
Anderson
The Raptors were 14-5-4 last year and finished fourth in a tight race in the Eastern Cincinnati Conference, then reached the Division II state semifinals.
They took a huge blow over the summer when Villanova commit Nina Brandon tore an ACL and will miss her senior season. Brandon, an All-American, had 32 goals and nine assists in 2025.
Head coach Andy Boyd said the Raptors have four top seniors returning. Robert Morris commit Ava Bergman leads the offense with 11 goals and 14 assists. Maddie Boggess, a Dayton commit, has five goals and seven assists. Boyd calls her a “Swiss army knife” who can play in a variety of spots. Miraya Long had three goals and eight assists. Leah Peter returns in goal. The John Carroll commit had eight clean sheets in 2025.
Seniors Allison Black, Lexi Reyes, and Elle Rivard bring leadership, toughness, and experience to the back line.
“(Without Brandon), the Raptors remain optimistic about the year ahead,” Boyd said. “With a strong senior class, quality depth, and a team-first culture, the Raptors are excited about the opportunities ahead and look forward to competing for another successful season.”
Cincinnati Country Day
Local coaching legend and coaching hall of famer Theresa Hirschauer enters the season with a 481-158-53 record, putting her 19 away from 500. Last season, the Nighthawks were 9-9-3 and won a district championship, and return 11 seniors as they move up to Division IV.
Top players are senior Josie Hyden, Audrey de Alarcon, Roxy Vollmer and Nicole Hardesty. Hyden was an all-region and all-state selection and has committed to Valparaiso. De Alarcon was an all-city pick. She has committed to Middlebury. Vollmer and Hardesty anchor the defense. All are multi-sport athletes.
Harrison
The Wildcats were 14-2-2 last season and Division II regional runner-up.
They graduated some key seniors last year but will be able to build the offense around two talented players.
Junior Anabelle Wiesemann comes in from Franklin County (Indiana) where she scored 44 goals as a sophomore and 32 as a freshman. She is getting power-conference college offers.
Sophomore forward Olivia Neal had 12 goals and five assists as a freshman. Junior Mallory Oliver posted 10 clean sheets in goal.
Indian Hill
The Braves were 17-2-3 and Cincinnati Hills League champions and must replace 10 seniors.
They have a veteran defense who posted 15 shutouts and allowed only nine goals all season, led by seniors Allie McCauley and Emma O’Brien, and juniors Camilla Parr and Lilly Harris. McCauley was CHL co-player of the year, all-district and all-state. Wilkes had seven goals in 2025 and VanDemark five.
Little Miami
The Panthers were Eastern Cincinnati Conference champions a year ago and 11-5-4.
The defense is led by seniors Ella Cook and Lexi Willis. Cook, a center back, was the ECC defensive player of the year and first-team all-district. Willis had seven clean sheets in goal and a 96% save rate, helping LM allow only 15 goals for the season.
Senior Mackenzie Bailey had three goals last season.
“We return a strong group but will not have the depth from a year ago,” said head coach Dann Marketos. “Expecting some big contributions from some new faces.”
Oak Hills
The Highlanders were 13-3-3 last season and second in the GMC to Mason.
Junior Taylor Spille and senior Aleah Coster lead the offense. Both were first-team all-league.
Spille led the team with 18 goals plus 10 assists and was first-team all-district. Coster led the league in assists with 12.
Anchoring the defense are Layla Baker and Brynn Schreck, who were second-team all-league. Sarah Maly returns at outside and was second-team All-GMC. Oak Hills had 10 clean sheets and conceded 14 goals.
“(We) return a lot of key pieces from last year’s successful team, as well as add some newcomers into the mix,” said head coach Kevin Spraul. “Should be a well-balanced team, giving up few goals, while having the ability to score quite a bit this year. A lot of buy-in and experienced players who understand our identity and culture.”
Purcell Marian
The Cavaliers were 9-7-1 last year and have been building their program. They have three seniors as they pursue their first league championship.
Sophomores Tylee Littlejohn, Ariana Bailey, Zoe Bess and Lennon Newton lead the offense. Littlejohn scored 30 goals last year and was first-team all-league. Bailey, a midfielder, posted nine goals and nine assists.
Newton transfers from Western Hills where she was the Cincinnati Metro Athletic Conference player of the year after posting 21 goals and five assists. Bess had seven goals and assists while at Clark Montessori.
Senior Miami Ward and sophomore Khyle Sanders anchor the defense. Ward contributed three goals and three assists. She was first-team all-league.
Seton
Head coach Jay Kiley said the team has unfinished business after finishing as Division I state runner-up with a 13-3-6 record.
They have a deep senior class led by some of the best players in the city, including Lauren Vaughn and Lexi Voelkerding, who had five goals. Senior Louise Guidugli returns to the team after focusing on club ball the last two years. She had nine goals and seven assists in 2023. Vaughn posted 10 goals and six assists last season. Junior Mary Jung had seven goals and six assists.
Junior Kara Buck is one of the city’s best goalkeepers after 10 clean sheets and allowing only nine goals.
Summit Country Day
The Silver Knights move up to Division III as they vie for another state championship. They graduated several key players including Ohio Ms. Soccer Mia Stevens and all-state defender Bree Reder.
The offense has plenty of returning talent including Aubrey Blakely, one of the best freshmen in the state last year with 18 goals and nine assists; senior University of Cincinnati commit Abigayle Penote (10 goals, six assists) and midfielder Emma Gibson (15 assists). Senior Cam Lorentz (9 goals) will miss the season with injury.
Sycamore
The Aviators were 11-6-2 last season.
They have two of the best offensive players in the state as well as the city in juniors Estelle Murphy and Nohea Harper. Murphy had 24 goals, ranked fourth in Ohio among Division I players. Harper had six goals and is ranked second in Ohio in player rankings and top 100 in the country. Head coach Jeremy Pletz made a difficult non-league schedule with several of the city’s top programs.
West Clermont
The Wolves were 10-6-1 and finished half a game out of first place in the Eastern Cincinnati Conference after losing on Decision Day. Head coach John Volker lost two of the best players in program history in Meagyn Riffle and Teena Erras and he projects that half of his new starting lineup might be freshmen and sophomores.
He has three seniors to build around in defender Aubrey Baker, striker Mollee Erras and keeper Rory Miller. Baker was an all-city pick who can play several spots on the pitch. Erras was all-city after 13 goals and nine assists. Miller posted seven shutouts.
“We have some very talented freshmen and sophomores, but it will take some time for them to adjust to the speed of play on varsity and the exceptional talent that we have from top to bottom in our league,” Volker said. “I am very excited about the upcoming season. Just hoping we can stay healthy and can bond as a team.”
Northern Kentucky
Brossart
The Mustangs were 20-3-3 last season and won the 10th Region championship, losing 4-3 to Lexington Catholic in the first round of the state tournament.
Head coach Andy Smith said the Mustangs lose two top seniors in Rachel Shewmaker (23 goals, 20 assists) and keeper Maddie Broering (11 shutouts) but return several key players.
Junior Kylie Smith was one of the state’s top scorers with 38 goals and 17 assists. Sophomore Rylee Fuller had 21 goals and 11 assists. Senior Hadley Eviston and sophomore Alexis Kramer are also veteran leaders.
Highlands
The Bluebirds are looking to make another run at the state title after losing to Sacred Heart in the state championship game. The Bluebirds were 15-10-2 overall against a tough schedule.
Junior keeper Bailee Class had nine shutouts last year. She was first-team all-region and honorable mention all-state, and was at her best in the playoffs.
Junior midfielder Hope Darnell is a key contributor on offense with five goals and three assists last year. Sophomore Ally Lickert led the team with eight goals.
“We have a strong schedule ahead of us this season,” said head coach Kelsey Etherton. “While we lost 10 seniors and a few underclassmen due to injury, we are returning a handful of key starters and have younger kids ready to step into new roles.”
Holy Cross
The Indians return 10 starters from last year’s squad that was 9-10-2.
Junior Morgan MacDonald is one of the top returning players in Northern Kentucky, scoring 22 goals. She was first-team Ninth Region and honorable mention all-state.
Senior Alyssa Arlinghaus was a second-team all-region pick.
Sophomores Stella Schaffeld and Jenna Pennington were third-team all-region. Piper Hagley and junior Ellie Tetzel will be players to watch.
“We have seven seniors but the heart of the team is really sophomore and juniors who will make up most of my starting lineup,” said head coach Corrie Schaffeld.
Notre Dame
The Pandas had 12 returning players from a 2025 team that was 15-5-2 and lost to Highlands in the Ninth Region final.
Top returning players are senior midfielders Julia Stegman and Megan Johns, senior keeper Matilda Gerdes and sophomore defender Danica Fariello.
Stegman had six goals and five assists. Gerdes shared time in goal with Joelle Hentz and shut out Ohio Division III runner-up Badin while allowing half a goal per game. Fariello logged more than 1,000 minutes on the field as a freshman.
Head coach Cory Dan said the team has another difficult schedule that will prepare the Pandas for the postseason.
This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Cincinnati’s girls soccer teams to watch this season
Reporting by James Weber, Cincinnati Enquirer / Cincinnati Enquirer
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By James Weber, Cincinnati Enquirer | USA TODAY Network
