By Michael Adams
madams@onthesidelinessports.com

The 2024 Texas high school soccer season gets into full swing on Tuesday, Jan. 2 with a full slate of games. Here are the On The Sidelines Sports’ preseason top five teams in Class 6A and 5A-4A and players to watch heading into the new season:

Preseason rankings

Class 6A

1. Westwood (13-5-7)

Lost to Lewisville Marcus in Class 5A semifinals; finished third in District 25-6A.

2. Round Rock (12-2-4)

Lost to Westwood in Region IV finals; reigning District 25-6A champion.

3. Dripping Springs (19-4-2)

Reigning District 26-6A champion, lost to Round Rock in regional quarterfinals

4. Vandegrift (14-5-4)

Lost to Westwood by shootout in regional quarterfinals; District 25-6A runner-up.

5. Lake Travis (15-5-3)

The District 26-6A runner up, lost to Westwood in first round

Class 5A-4A

1. Georgetown (25-1-3)

Lost to Frisco in Class 5A state semifinals; reigning District 23-5A champion

2. Leander (20-5-2)

Lost to McAllen in the regional semifinal; finished third in District 25-5A

3. Wimberley (19-4-2)

Lost to San Antonio Davenport in regional quarterfinals; finished third in District 26-4A

4. Rouse (18-4-1)

Reigning District 25-5A champion; lost to Boerne Champion in the first round of playoffs

5. Cedar Park (15-6-3)

The District 25-5A runner-up, lost to New Braunfels Canyon in the first round of playoffs

11 players to watch

Mia Wiele, Westwood, junior: The District 25-6A newcomer of the year led the Warriors in goals and assists. She was a first-team all-district and second-team Class 6A all-state pick.

Kaleigh Howell, Dripping Springs, senior defense: Athletic defensive player who broke school records in track and field in the 200-meter dash and 400-meter relay.

Breckyn Ferrell, Lake Travis, sophomore midfielder: Ferrell was the District 26-6A newcomer of the year and an all-region honorable mention.  

Kamila Aguilar, Hutto, senior goalkeeper: A first-team All-District 12-6A pick at goalkeeper, the versatile Aguilar had 94 saves while splitting her time between goalkeeper and midfielder.  

Rylee Romney, Bastrop, junior forward: Led the Lady Bears with 32 goals in 2023 and has 56 total in her high school career.

Meredith Koltz Cedar Park, junior forward: The District 25-5A most valuable player set a school scoring record with 66 total points with 26 goals and 14 assists.

Finley Newell, Georgetown, sophomore midfielder: A member of Ireland’s U17 national team, Newell scored 15 goals and had 11 assists while helping the Eagles to the Class 5A state semifinals.

Alexis Montgomery, Round Rock, junior midfielder: The 25-6A midfielder of the year scored 10 goals and 18 assists for the district champion Dragons.

Lily Vandiver, Vista Ridge, junior forward/midfielder: The first-team All-District 25-6A selection had 17 goals and seven assists for the Lady Rangers as a sophomore.

Lilly Arellano, Rouse, junior midfielder: The versatile midfielder scored 17 goals and had 14 assists for the Lady Raiders en route to being an All-District 25-5A selection.

Paige Davis, Leander, senior defender: She scored 15 goals with eight assists and had a key goal in the playoff shootout win over Alamo Heights. She was adept at both ends of the pitch.