The fall soccer season is in the record books. The McDonogh boys and the Maria Carrillo girls finished the fall as the respective year-end top dogs to take home national titles. Now that the winter season has nearly kicked off in all seven states in which it’s played, it’s time to take a look at some of the contenders in the country’s panoply of winter participants.

Today is the first of two winter previews that will wind through the country and take stock. While states like Florida and California are well on their way to the playoffs, Texas will only begin its season officially on the second weekend of the calendar year. 

With that in mind, here’s a glimpse at some of the nation’s best winter high school sides and how they’re faring as the postseason draws closer. The second part will run Friday.

Arizona
Boys
Brophy Prep (Phoenix): Brophy Prep is continually one of the best prep soccer sides in the country, though this year’s team is a bit of a question mark. Thirteen seniors are gone from last year’s Division I title-winning side, which bumped off Desert Vista 2-0 to win another in its third consecutive title game appearance. Still, Brophy is loaded with depth, which should help the team’s search for a fourth straight appearance in the title game. No player is better outfitted for a push to the championship than stout defender Adam Mosharrafa, who’s committed to Stanford.

Girls
Catalina Foothills (Tuscon) (22-3-2): The dynasty Catalina Foothills has amassed over the last four years is an impressive one. The girls soccer program has won four consecutive state titles, two at the Class 4A Division I level and two more (the last two) at the Division II level. That set up a scenario where an entire class of players won state titles in each of their four years at the program. En route to a fifth, the program is leaning on players like Alex Berman and Emily Parker to spearhead the march.

California
Boys
San Clemente (32-3-1): California’s fractured high school soccer setup doesn’t allow for a unified state title, but San Clemente could’ve likely competed for one anywhere up and down the coast last season. The SoCal powerhouse was the No. 1 seed out of the South Coast last season in Division 1, and they romped to a Southern Section title capped by a 1-0 win over Servite in the title game. Their season was brought to a halt by Cristian Roldan’s El Rancho in the Southern California Regional Division I Championship game, giving the team ample motivation to storm back in 2013-2014. An unbeaten 4-0-0 start to the season is a good start.

Alisal (Salinas) (20-0-3): Alisal is the undisputed king of the Central Coast Section in recent times. The program finished 2012-2013 without a loss and stretched its unbeaten streak in the run of play to a startling 52 games, a tough feat in a grinder like California. A 3-1 win over Bellarmine College Prep gave Alisal its second CCS Division 1 title in four years, and they accomplished the feat in 2013 without losing a single game. In a positive sign, Alisal battled San Clemente to a 1-1 draw in late December, which should give both teams belief as they trudge on with their respective seasons. 

Girls
Sunny Hills (Fullerton) (24-2-5): One has to wonder when this uber-talented side will finally leap over the final hurdle and leave the heartbreak behind. In each of the last two years Sunny Hills has fallen in the Division 2 Southern Section championship game, and last year’s was as painful as any. Wilson won the final 1-0 on a scrappy goal off a rebound to take a title Sunny Hills feels it can capture this season. With a bevy of talent back, Sunny Hills is one of the country’s best high school sides, and a run at the CIF-SS title is firmly in their sites in late February. An 8-0-1 start helps the resume.

San Ramon Valley (Danville) (20-0-5): The North Coast Section has primarily shined in the fall in recent years with the back-to-back national titles claimed by Maria Carrillo. But the section’s winter talent on showcase is no slouch, and San Ramon Valley is leading that charge into 2014. The Wolves’ 1-0 win over Monte Vista in the CIF-NCS title last year was the team’s first since 2009, but it was the program’s seventh overall. That set the sectional record and also set the table for a run at a winter national title in 2014. The program already has a draw on its resume, but with talent like this, anything is possible.

Florida
Boys
Cypress Bay (Weston) (19-2-4): No program in the country was harder hit by the Development Academy’s moratorium on high school soccer than Cypress Bay. The Lightning won a second straight state title in 2012 but lost nine would-be starters for 2012-2013 to the academy. Remarkably, Cypress Bay still won the 5A state title, becoming just the fifth program in state history to win three in a row and the first public school to accomplish the feat. It was coach John Ramos’ sixth state title with two different teams, and his last one ended West Orange’s previously perfect season to add another to the sagging trophy case. Next on the docket is going somewhere no Florida boys soccer team ever has: four in a row. 

Tampa Prep (24-1-3): When the conversation in Florida turns to 1A boys soccer, reverent mentions of Tampa Prep usually aren’t far behind. The program has owned a monopoly on the state’s smallest classification over the last decade with all six of its titles coming in the last nine years. That includes three of the last four and each of the last two. Last season, the Terrapins scythed through the playoffs on the back of prolific forward Shaddy Douidar, Florida’s Mr. Soccer for 2013. Douidar scored the game-winners in the state semis and the final to lead the Terrapins to their sixth title, which is tied for second all time in Florida. For an encore, they’ll have to get it done without Douidar this season.

Girls
Melbourne (25-0-1): If the Bulldogs weren’t a full-fledged dynasty before the 2012-2013 season started, they’d etched their name in that elite category by season’s end. They polished an unbeaten season with a win over George Jenkins (Lakeland) in penalties in the 4A final to capture yet another state title title. It was Melbourne’s third title in five years, with each remarkably coming in different classifications (6A, 5A and 4A). The Bulldogs will chase another title this season with a clutch of new faces, but a few important ones return. That includes senior midfielder Olivia De Jong and UCF commit Hannah DeBose, who’ve already led the team to a 16-0-0 record through Christmas. 

American Heritage (Plantation) (26-2-0): Winter soccer is already in full swing in Florida, and American Heritage is leading the charge as one of the state’s best through Christmas at 22-0-1. That’s no surprise considering the Patriots returned a raft of talent from a team that won the 3A state title last year with few blips on the radar. It was the program’s third title in five years and the fourth time in five years the Plantation side was in the title game. This season, Florida commit Melanie Monteagudo is leading the line with her goal-scoring prowess, and it’s tough to imagine a team standing in the way of an American Heritage title double dip.

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