The University Interscholastic League soccer season kicked off last week, with a handful of area teams taking to the field while most others will do so starting on Monday.

Here are some key storylines to follow as the race to the UIL state championship gets underway:

Will COVID strike again?
Ten months ago, a novel virus upended the high school soccer season with a week left in the regular season and as teams scrambled to secure district championships, playoff seeding and postseason berths.

The impact of the coronavirus pandemic is still being felt in many aspects.
UIL guidelines state that all coaches, players, athletic trainers and student managers must wear face coverings at all times and be up to six feet apart in the bench area. Players don’t have to wear a covering while playing, although some teams have given them the option to do so.

The customary pregame walk out and player introductions and postgame handshakes will be suspended. During tournaments, no more than four teams can be on site at the same time. Teams scheduled to play the ensuing game must wait until the preceding teams leave before entering the venue.

Following the procedures could have playoff implications, especially if a team has a key player or multiple players in quarantine at a crucial part of the season. One area football team forfeited a first-round playoff game and another played shorthanded in the second round because of COVID protocols. Other schools have had to pause seasons in football, volleyball and basketball.

“We are following the guidelines that have been set by the state, UIL, and our district,” Clemens girls coach Marissa Wood said. “Of course practices and games look a little different, but following those guidelines will hopefully keep us safe and playing. We hope to see a beginning and a strong finish to our 2021 season.”

The outlook, though, is trending downward. Bexar County officials reported on Sunday that there were 1,997 new coronavirus cases and more than 120,000 since the start of the pandemic began a year ago. Roughly 20,000 of those overall cases have come in recent weeks. The positivity rate last week was 19.2 percent.

Making up for lost time
When the UIL announced last April that it was canceling the remainder of its spring sports calendar because of a global coronavirus outbreak, it did more than just bring a soccer season to an abrupt halt.

It left several area teams with legitimate designs on deep playoff runs, including winning a state championship, pondering what might have been.
The University Interscholastic League, which oversees extracurricular activities in public schools, held out hope for about a month that games would resume after competition was suspended for two weeks in mid-March. The suspension was extended until May 4 before Gov. Greg Abbott mandated that all Texas schools remained closed to in-person education for the rest of the school year, precipitating the shutdown.

Feeling the heartbreak perhaps the most among area clubs were the LEE, Clemens and Southwest boys teams and Madison, Alamo Heights, Boerne Champion and Boerne girls squads.

LEE, which lost in the 2019 Class 6A state final on penalty kicks to Flower Mound in heartbreaking fashion, was poised to claim the title that barely eluded it. The Volunteers were 17-0-1 and No. 2 in Top Drawer Fab 50 national rankings, but never got to start a postseason journey.
Clemens was 18-1-1 and ranked No. 37 in the county, while Southwest, a Region IV-5A semifinalist in 2019, was 21-0, equaling the 1990 MacArthur and 2015 Clark teams for the best start in area history.

LEE must replace forwards Wilmar Aguilar and Francisco Segura and midfielder Andrew Erickson, a Top Drawer All-American now playing at Kentucky. The Volunteers, however, return a strong nucleus led by goalkeeper Joey Batrouni and midfielder Henry Bowland.

On the girls side, Madison (20-1) captured its first district championship since 2000 and playoff berth since 2004, the conclusion of a mind-boggling 20-year run that produced two state titles (1991 and 1993), two state finals (’89 and ’90), two state semifinals (’88 and ’95) and five trips to the regional finals (’84, ’85, ’87, ’96 and ’98).

Alamo Heights was seeking a fourth straight appearance in the Region IV-5A final and a second trip to state; Boerne Champion was aiming for a third trip to regionals and a second trip to state in four years; and Boerne was focused on getting over the hump after losing in the 4A state final in 2017, the regional final in 2018 and in the third round to the eventual regional champion in 2019.

Boerne Champion, Alamo Heights and Boerne have gotten to the point where they simply reload on an annual basis — Alamo Heights is No. 2 and Boerne Champion is No. 3 in the Texas Association of Soccer Coaches Organization’s preseason region IV-5A poll, while Boerne is No. 1 in the 4A ranks — while Madison will try to create the same distinction this season. The Mavericks must fill huge voids left by the graduation of forward Jillian Martinez and defender Sierra Wannamaker. Martinez, Gatorade’s Texas player of the year and a Top Drawer All-American, is now playing for national power UCLA. Wannamaker is at Incarnate Word.

“We definitely lost a lot of good players, but I really think that we still have that really good core,” said Madison senior goalkeeper Mia Wildeman, who is committed to Nebraska. “I think we have what it takes to make it all the way. I think (having a season canceled was) something that we really took to heart this year and it’s pushing us forward. It’s motivation. Now it’s just following through and making sure it happens.”

On the move
In its first two varsity seasons, Harlan enjoyed instant success. The girls team compiled a 39-4-3 record and won two district titles (one outright) in Class 5A. The boys squad had a combined 29 wins and twice earned postseason berths.

When the Hawks kick off their campaigns this week, the view will be different. Harlan was moved to Class 6A in the UIL’s biennial realignment and reclassification last February and will play in District 29-6A along with O’Connor, Brennan, Stevens, Marshall, Warren, Jay, Taft and Holmes.

Both teams appear up to the challenge. The boys are ranked No. 9 in TASCO’s preseason Region IV-6A poll and finishing second in district a year ago behind unbeaten Southwest. The girls return the likes of goalkeeper Victoria Esquivel, forwards Ava McKay (24 goals, 14 assists) and Sydney Holmes (21 goals, 13 assists) and midfielders Kalista Kuchka and Alexis Alvarado and should be in the running for a district title.

Harlan is not the only area school that will find itself in a new classification.
New Braunfels Canyon moved from 6A to 5A, but was placed in a district with opponents — Alamo Heights, Boerne Champion, Dripping Springs and Kerrville Tivy — that have state championships or state-tournament and regional-tournament appearances on their resumes.

The Cougarettes were 15-1-4 and in first place with two matches left in District 26-6A when the season was halted a year ago by the pandemic. They return the 1-2-3 punch of Bianca Ruiz (19 goals), Hayden Ritch (13 goals) and Serena Ruiz (12 goals), who combined for 44 goals and 14 assists in 2020. Led by goalkeeper Jio Lopez, the Canyon boys finished 13-4-4 in 2020 and were battling Smithson Valley and New Braunfels for second place behind nationally ranked Clemens.

Now for an encore
Last season was a banner year for the area private-school landscape, as Central Catholic and TMI won TAPPS boys state titles, Schertz John Paul II won a girls state crown, S.A. Christian played in a girls state final and Antonian reached a girls state semifinals.

The prospect of each making another deep run appears promising. Central Catholic edged El Paso Cathedral 2-1 to capture the TAPPS Division I title as forward Jose Gallegos scored twice, including the game-winner with just more than a minute remaining. It was the Buttons’ fourth straight title, fifth in seven years and ninth overall.

Central Catholic will be without Gallegos, who last summer concluded a standout rookie season with San Antonio FC, the Alamo City’s United Soccer League Championship franchise. But with coach Edward Cartee at the helm, don’t be surprised if the Buttons are competing for another crown.

TMI nabbed its second straight title a year ago, nipping Bullard Brook Hill 3-2. It was the Panthers’ third championship in four seasons, and with high-scoring forward Patricio Parra back, TMI remains a top contender. Parra had two goals in the final and 59 for the year, second-most in area history.

Schertz John Paul romped past Dallas Covenant 4-1 to grab the D-III crown, its first. The Guardians, with only two seniors in 2020, were expected to be a title threat again. Forward Emilie Rompel leads the way after scoring 36 goals a year ago. A junior, Rompel tallied six goals in a 7-4 win vs. Saint Mary’s Hall in December.

San Antonio Christian girls lost to Grapevine Faith 2-0 in the D-II final, yielding two scores only three minutes apart midway through the second half. With the like four-year starter Brooke Spencer in the fold, the Lions seek a fourth straight trip to the state tournament and sixth in seven seasons. They lost in the final in 2018 and the semifinals in 2019.

After falling in the regional final in 2018 and 2019, Antonian broke through and advanced to the D-I state semifinals. The Apaches lost 1-0 to eventual state champion Houston St. Agnes, which smashed Fort Worth Nolan 6-0 in the final. Antonian should again be in the conversation for a state title, led by standout midfielder and Texas A&M signee Carissa Boeckmann.

terrence@terrencesports.com
Twitter: @sa_terrence1