BY KYLE TROUTMAN ktroutman@cassville-democrat.com

The Cassville girls soccer team had big cleats to fill this season after losing their record setters in goals and assists last season.

With just four seniors on the squad and tons of new faces on the pitch, the Lady Wildcats turned in a 6-10-2 campaign Coach Jake Forste said was promising for the future.

“We learned a lot and grew a lot as a team and in individual skill,” he said. “We wanted to be up there in the Conference and in the top half of the district seeding, so we fell a little short of a couple team goals. But, we had a lot of success along the way.”

Cassville turned in back-to-back wins over Parkview and McDonald County in early April, earning another win over the Lady Mustangs, two victories over Aurora and a win over Greenwood later in the season. The Lady Wildcats fell to Bolivar 3-0 in the opening round of the Class 2, District 5 Tournament.

“We rolled out a brand new back line, and to have six shutouts and another go to penalties at 0-0, that’s pretty solid for a new defense,” Forste said. “Most games, we were right there. We had a lot of 1-0 games, and our defense was keeping us in games, which is what we want.”

Of the Lady Wildcats’ 18 total games, 10 were decided by two goals or less. Forste said to turn the tide, getting back to scoring 2.5 to 3 goals per game is the goal.

“We only scored 12 goals in 18 games, and we want to be in the 2.5-3 range, not 0.7-0.8,” he said. “We’ll continue to focus on ways to create scoring opportunities, but losing Emma Berndt (single-season and career goals record holder) and Audrey Gosevener (single- season and career assist record holder) was a challenge.”

A quarter of Cassville’s goals came in a single match, the most exciting of the season, Forste said.

“We tied Aurora at the jamboree, then in the first week of the season tied them at their tournament,” he said. “Three weeks later, they came here and we came back from a goal down twice to win 3-2 with 17 seconds left — that was pretty fun.”

The Lady Wildcats saw four seniors depart this season, three of whom were starters.

“Ashley Alonso was a four-year player at midfield and scored both our goals in the win over McDonald County,” Forste said. “She got better all four years and was a good leader for us. Isa Rodriguez was our best utility player., She played outside back, center back, center mid, wing and even striker at times. We’ll miss her willingness to be anywhere on the field she was needed.

“Tierany Sloan was a three-year player and our sweeper at center back all season. She got better all year long. Brooklyn Vincent was on the team for her first year, and she got hurt early on but played well while she was out there.”

Looking to 2026, Forste said the program is set to receive a jolt in numbers, with 8-11 new freshmen expected to join the squad.

“That will be huge,” Forste said. “Our numbers dipped to 26 this season, so that should get us back to 30. Several are lifelong players or have played with Seven Valleys Soccer Club through middle school, so it will be a good mix of seasoned players and new talent.

“This year’s underclassmen got a lot of experience with us playing 17 deep every game. Freshmen Anna Vanderhoef and AJ Deaver started all season for us on defense, and each time out they got a little stronger and a little better. We had 18-19 players log varsity time.”

Forste is hoping that experience will all pay off in the Big 8 Conference next season, as the Lady Wildcats will be primed to stand out.

“Aurora and Monett are losing big senior classes, and McDonald County will have a coaching change,” Forste said. “We want to come in and win the Conference and get it done.”

Work toward that goal starts now, Forste said, as summer training is ongoing.

“Girls summer weights is from 7:30-9 a.m. Mondays through Thursdays at the high school gym,” he said. “Come get some gains in.”