Arizona girls high school soccer: Teams to watch in 4A, 5A and 6A state playoffs

The Arizona girls' high school soccer regular season has concluded, and qualifiers next turn their attention to the AIA state playoff tournaments. The Arizona Republic analyzes the 4A through 6A conference tournaments below. The top eight ranked teams in each conference get automatic playoff bids. Eight more teams will get in as determined from a play-in tournament that takes place this week.

The girls' 4A playoff tournament begins on Feb. 13, while 5A and 6A start on Feb. 14. The 3A tournament begins Wednesday.

6A: Xavier and Perry teams to beat?

The season has played out mostly as expected, with last year's 6A finalists, Phoenix Xavier Preparatory and Gilbert Perry, the top teams in the conference.

Xavier Prep, at 9-0-3, has a goal differential of +46 as the team only surrendered two goals in the regular season. With Lourdes Lauterborn (Dartmouth commit) controlling the midfield, Kate Willmering (UC Santa Barbara commit) stonewalling opponents in the net and Madison Schenk (NAU commit) being a threat from all over, the Gators feature a balanced and deep pool of players. The AIA has them ranked No. 2 and they are No. 1 in our latest Super 10 rankings.

Perry has been just as good. These two teams have already met, playing in a 1-1 draw double-overtime draw that saw one team hold a lead for 55 seconds. They’re about even as it can get. Sophomore forward Saydie Herbert is one of the most dynamic players in the state – she leads the team with 9 goals and 11 assists. The Pumas, with a 12-1-4 record, are No. 1 in the AIA rankings. In the Super 10, Perry is No. 2.

Phoenix Desert Vista has probably played the state’s toughest schedule. They’re one of two teams to hold Xavier Prep scoreless this season. In total, Desert Vista has played nine total games against opponents who are currently ranked on The Republic’s Super 10 or have spent time on it.

Chandler Basha got off to a hot start, but cooled off to end the regular season. With a string of games against Queen Creek Casteel, Xavier Prep, Chandler Hamilton and Perry, Basha went 1-3. The team does have quality wins over Desert Vista and Scottsdale Desert Mountain though. Two underclassmen, sophomore Maycee Holm and freshman Amy Tan, lead the team with 10 goals and 9 goals, respectively.

Phoenix Pinnacle, which made last year’s quarterfinals before being knocked out by Perry, has put together a fine season, only losing to some of the top-ranked teams in the state. Of Pinnacle’s five losses, only one was to a team that is not on the Super 10: Hamilton.

All that's left are the play-in games. Per AIA rules, "teams ranked No. 1 through No. 8 will earn an automatic bid to the state tournament. The conference play-in tournament matches up teams ranked No. 9 through No. 24. Teams ranked No. 1 through No. 8, along with the eight winning teams from the conference play-in tournament, will make up the 16-team state tournament. The state tournament bracket is seeded according to the overall ranking of the 16 teams."

6A automatic qualifiers: Perry, 11-0-1; Xavier Prep, 9-0-3; Desert Vista, 9-2-1; Basha, 10-3; Pinnacle, 9-3; Sandra Day O’Connor, 9-3; Tucson Magnet, 11-1; Hamilton, 6-5-1;

Play-in tournament: 9. Corona del Sol (6-5-1) vs 24. Chandler (4-8); 10. Mesa Mountain View (9-2-1) vs 23.; Gilbert (4-7-1); 11. Highland (7-5) vs 22. Sunnyside (5-6-1); 12. Mountain Ridge (9-3) vs 21. Mesa (7-5); 13. Shadow Ridge (9-3) vs 20. Queen Creek (4-7-1); 14. Boulder Creek (7-4-1) vs. 19. Cesar Chavez (8-4); 15. Liberty (6-5-1) vs. 18. Trevor G. Browne (10-2); 16. Gila Ridge (10-2) vs 17. Red Mountain (6-6).

5A: Several contenders could emerge

Last year’s 5A state championship game between Queen Creek Casteel and Scottsdale Chaparral was a dramatic affair, which saw the two teams play to a 1-1 draw before penalty kicks ultimately decided the game for Chaparral. The Colts and Firebirds met in the second game of this season, a 2-2 double-overtime game that ended in a draw.

Chaparral, at 11-4-3, has looked the part of a team to make another run at the state championship. Its four losses on the season have been by a combined score of 5-1, all to teams ranked highly in the state. Junior forward Ava Hinske is one of the team’s top-scoring options. Chaparral is ranked No. 2 by the AIA. In our Super 10, they are No. 5.

Casteel has also looked the part of a team focused on getting back on top. Heading into a Jan. 30 game against Gilbert Campo Verde, Casteel’s only hiccup on the season had been a 1-0 loss to Perry. The team was sailing smoothly for the most part. But on that night, Campo Verde got the better of Casteel in a 1-0 loss. Casteel is ranked No. 3 by the AIA and is No. 3 in our Super 10.

Scottsdale Notre Dame Prep could have a say in the tournament. The Saints have been lights out since the calendar switched to 2024, going undefeated in the new year (8-0). The team picked up a massive win against Chaparral earlier this season, taking them down 1-0 on a rocket of a goal from SMU commit Paxton Bock. The AIA has Notre Dame Prep as the top-ranked 5A team while they’re at No. 4 in the Super 10.

A team to watch is Cave Creek Cactus Shadows (15-1-3), which is also ranked in our Super 10 at No. 8. Cactus Shadows recently played Chaparral to a 1-1 draw on Jan. 30. The Falcons have two athletes ranked in the top 10 in the state in 5A for most goals scored with freshman Morgan Bair (19 goals) and junior Lyla Strohman (18 goals). The AIA has them ranked at No. 6.

Automatic qualifiers: Notre Dame Prep, 11-0; Chaparral, 8-1-2; Casteel, 8-2-1; Cienega, 10-1-1; Desert Mountain, 7-3-2; Cactus Shadows, 9-1-2; Campo Verde, 8-3-1; Sunrise Mountain, 10-1.

4A: Changing of the guard?

Since 2016, it’s no secret that Tucson Salpointe Catholic has been one of the most dominant teams in the conference. The Lancers have won six state titles over the past seven seasons. But Salpointe Catholic hasn’t looked as strong as in previous seasons. And Flagstaff turned in one of its best regular seasons in recent memory.

That isn’t to say Salpointe Catholic is a team that should be discarded heading into the playoffs; far from it. Salpointe Catholic, after a rough start to the season, has been humming since its last loss to Tucson Magnet on Jan. 16. At 10-2-2, Salpointe Catholic is one of the teams that earned an automatic qualifier to the state tournament. All of the Lancers’ losses or draws came to teams who earned that distinction.

Flagstaff, at 13-1, has coasted through most of its season. Its only loss came on penalty kicks in a tournament against Mesa Eastmark at the end of December. Other than that, the Eagles haven’t faced much adversity. Since that loss, Flagstaff has outscored its opponents 36-6 in eight games. Not to be overshadowed by their fellow regional competitors, Prescott has turned in a fine season up north too. It’s hard to make a valid case against Prescott as one of the top defensive teams in the entire state. The Badgers have given up just 2 goals the whole season, and all of those goals came in one game (a 3-2 win over Lee Williams on Jan. 25). That’s 11 shutouts from sophomore goalkeeper Mallory Walsh.

Walden Grove has arguably been the best-performing team in the conference from start to finish, earning them an automatic bid to the state tournament. The team has high-quality wins over Tucson Magnet and Cienega, and tied with Salpointe Catholic 1-1 as well. The Red Wolves have a 16-0-1 record. Only two teams in the state have reached 18 wins this season, and Chandler Arizona College Preparatory is one of them. At 18-1-1, the Knights have turned in an excellent regular season and could be a team to watch.

Automatic qualifiers: Flagstaff, 12-0; Salpointe Catholic, 9-1-2; Prescott, 11-1; Walden Grove, 11-0-1; Arizona College Prep, 11-0-1; Mica Mountain, 10-2; Arcadia, 8-3-1; Seton Catholic, 7-4-1.

This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Arizona girls soccer regular season wrap-up: 6A and 5A conferences