FARMINGTON — With less than a month to go before fall high school sports begin, the Farmington, Piedra Vista, Bloomfield and Aztec girls’ soccer teams opened a three-day weekend showcase hosted by the Scorpions at Hutchison Stadium last Friday to preview the season ahead.
Bryce Frost, Farmington head coach, said the event promotes talent and helps teams determine a baseline.
“I think it’s a great opportunity for coaches to see how their teams are going to look for the season,” Frost said. “We also have college coaches coming in and they’re looking at some of the most amazing talent in New Mexico here in Farmington.”
Farmington’s younger squad faced Aztec on Friday morning to kick off the action.
Farmington, led by Frost in his seventh season, finished 13-6-3 last year, posting its second straight winning season. The Scorpions also placed third in a tough District 1-5A with a 4-3-3 record.
The Scorpions return several experienced players. Junior Brooklyn Herrera is expected to lead the offense after scoring seven goals last season, while junior Avery Sandefer is expected to anchor the defense after recording 220 steals. Junior goalkeeper Ashlynn Sandoval also returns after making 113 saves last season.
“(Sandoval) is going to be pinnacle to how we play,” Frost said. “With her in goal, (Sandefer) in defense, and (Herrera) in midfield, I think we’ve got a really strong core group of girls and they’re going to do amazing things.”
Piedra Vista, led by head coach Steve Kinsey, finished last season 14-8 overall and placed fourth in District 1-5A behind Farmington with a 5-5 record. One of the Panthers’ biggest wins came in a 1-0 victory over Class 5A state runners-up Rio Rancho, with junior Mikaela Donaldson scoring the game-winning goal.
The Panthers enter this season in a rebuilding effort after graduating 14 seniors. Kinsey said 30 players trained throughout the summer and believes the team has players ready for larger roles, including Donaldson, who scored 18 goals last season — the second-highest total on the team behind graduated senior Analyse Healy’s 24.
With most starting backline and goalkeeper spots open, Kinsey said defense will be the team’s priority.
“We have to get our defensive organization together,” Kinsey said. “I think that’s what is going to really make the difference. We can score goals, it’s just a matter of are we going to be able to keep the heavy hitters out of the net.”
Bloomfield enters the season after finishing 12-7-1 overall and third in District 1-4A with a 5-3 district record. Under third-year head coach Jarly Lopez, the Bobcats look to build on last year’s progress while replacing key contributors with younger players.
“We’re going to try to use our speed to our advantage and use the outsides quite a bit, then try to put the ball in the middle and finish it off,” Lopez said.
Junior Aurelia Armenta, who ranked second on the team with 11 goals last season behind Maliah Goins, will look to take on a larger offensive role. In goal, Cassidy Babcock left behind a strong legacy after recording 113 saves last season, but senior Catalina Muñoz is expected to step into the starting role after making five saves as a reserve last year.
“It’ll be a team effort, but these guys are going to have to mature,” Lopez said. “We have a young team. Even though we have a bunch of seniors returning on paper, the ones that are going to make the bigger impact are the younger ones.”
The Aztec Tigers finished last season with a 10-9-1 overall record and placed second in District 1-4A with a 5-2-1 mark. Aztec will look to fill key roles at midfield, striker and goalkeeper after graduating several contributors.
It will be a tall task to replace recent graduate Autumn Villanueva, who led the Tigers with 19 goals last season. Junior Destri Hudman returns after finishing second on the team with nine goals, while the Tigers will need to replace goalkeeper Marissa Day, who recorded 61 saves and provided stability in net.