Who are the top 5 girls soccer players in Livingston County entering 2024?
With seven of last year’s 11 All-Livingston County girls soccer players being underclassmen, the pool of proven talent is deep heading into the 2024 season.
That makes it even more difficult to make the preseason list of top five players in the county.
There are some really good players who have received county or state-wide honors who aren’t on this list. As I always emphasis, that’s not to say one or more of them won’t move their way up the list as the season progresses.
Maybe the Player of the Year isn’t even on this list, though the reigning champ is back for one more season.
1. Peyton Delongchamp
► School: Pinckney
► Class: Senior
► Position: Goalkeeper
► Accomplishments: Delongchamp is the reigning Livingston County Player of the Year after backstopping Pinckney to its first district championship and a berth in the regional final. She allowed only one goal during an eight-game stretch through the regional semifinals. After breaking her own school record with 11 shutouts, she was named to the Division 2 all-state second team. Delongchamp is a four-year starter.
► Coach Sean Grace: “She’s not just one of the best goalies in the state, but she’s got to be one of the best captains in the state. She’s amazing. She’s a very good leader. She coaches on the field. She’s almost perfect, really.”
2. Alyse Daavettila
► School: Hartland
► Class: Senior
► Position: Forward-midfielder
► Accomplishments: Daavettila was good enough to play a key role as a freshman on Hartland’s 2021 state Division 1 championship team. She made third-team all-state in Division 1 last season after leading Hartland in scoring with nine goals and six assists. Daavettila has a knack for scoring big goals, collecting the game-winner with 8:50 left in a 2-1 first-round district victory over sixth-ranked Okemos and the tying goal in the second half of a 1-1 tie with second-ranked Northville.
► Coach Andrew Kartsounes: “We’re looking at moving her more as the center-mid and let her run the office a bit more. She’s just really good on the ball. We’ve used her in both places. Outside, she’s very dynamic one-on-one. In the middle, she brings a lot of control to our midfield. She might provide us more of a scoring spark out of the midfield.”
3. Zaryah Griffin
► School: Pinckney
► Class: Senior
► Position: Midfielder
► Accomplishments: Griffin made second-team all-state in Division 2 last season and led all field players in votes for the all-district team. Her 17 goals were the most by a Division 1 or 2 player in Livingston County. She also had nine assists.
► Coach Sean Grace: “I expect her to control the field, be the smartest player on the field and do whatever we need to win.”
4. Emma Kastamo
► School: Hartland
► Class: Senior
► Position: Midfielder
► Accomplishments: The heartbeat of the Hartland team in the central midfield, Kastamo can control the game while impacting the game offensively and defensively. She initiates most of Hartland’s set plays. Kastamo made all-district after getting four goals and three assists. She started at center back on the Eagles’ state championship team as a freshman.
► Coach Andrew Kartsounes: “She can go forward for us and provide some goals. She’s also someone who can play well defensively. We are going to see her going both ways in the midfield.”
5. Olivia Sebestyen
► School: Brighton
► Class: Junior
► Position: Midfielder
► Accomplishments: Sebestyen received all-state honorable mention in Division 1 in her first varsity season. She had five goals and six assists, showing the ability to generate offense or attack from the midfield. Sebestyen scored the first goal in a 3-0 victory over Hartland in the district semifinals.
► Coach Ryan Carriere: “Olivia’s a really, really good connector of the ball. As the season progressed, she was a player who moved higher on the field and was creating more goal-scoring opportunities, which she capitalized on in meaningful moments in districts.”
Contact Bill Khan at wkhan@gannett.com. Follow him on X @BillKhan
This article originally appeared on Livingston Daily: Who are 2024 Livingston County preseason top 5 girls soccer players?
