The 2016 All-Metro girls soccer team

Maycee Bell

Freshman defender

Trinity Academy

Kansas may have never seen a player more technical with more pace than Bell, a freshman who has already given North Carolina a non-binding commitment. She was named the Kansas Gatorade Player of the Year based on her work with the U.S. women’s national team developmental squads, which caused her to miss eight games and Trinity’s state playoff run. A defender on the national level, Bell is so gifted that Trinity coach Brooks split time with her at striker and she scored 27 goals in 10 games. “She’s light years ahead of everyone when it comes to her first touch, her acceleration, her speed, her anticipation of what’s going to happen next,” Brooks said. “Her talent is other-worldly. I have never seen a player like that, boy or girl, before in my time.”

Jordan Eickelman

Junior forward

Derby

Eickelman has been terrorizing defenses for three seasons with her pace and finishing. But her greatest accomplishment came this season in leading Derby to 15 wins and a return trip to the Class 6A quarterfinals. When teammate Katie Hartman went down with a season-ending injury, Eickelman, who has given Missouri State a non-binding commitment, rose to the occasion and scored 24 of her 32 goals in the final 11 games. “She just that has that drive that I’ve never seen in any player that I’ve coached,” Derby coach Robert Rhodes said. “She can turn it on like that. She’s a playmaker for us and she makes the big plays in the clutch.”

Brookelynn Entz

Junior midfielder

Newton

One of the most devastating forces in Kansas with the ball at her feet, Entz led Newton to its most successful season in a decade that included 15 wins and a trip to the Class 5A quarterfinals. The first touch, pace, vision, and clinical ability to finish are well-known, but it is the competitive fire of Entz, who played everywhere from striker to centerback depending on the situation, that stands out most. Entz, who has given Kansas State a non-binding commitment, finished with 34 goals and 10 assists and scored in 15 of her 18 starts. “She can take over a game, no matter how high the stakes are,” Newton coach Scott Jantzi said. “She was able to do big things in the biggest moments this season for us. And it wasn’t always just for her. She was able to set her teammates up in crucial situations. She made everyone around her better.”

Sierra Fury

Sophomore forward

Kapaun Mount Carmel

No one player can be credited for Kapaun’s improbable run to an undefeated City League championship and the Class 5A championship game. But Fury was the most consistent presence, playing multiple positions for coach Anthony Cantele and finding a way to wreck havoc with her pace everywhere on the field. The work rate of Fury (20 goals) was vital to Kapaun’s success, as the sophomore’s most important goal coming in the regional championship game that ended Valley Center’s streak of 15 consecutive shutouts. “From Day 1 last off-season back in November, she was easily our most competitive and hardest-working player,” Cantele said. “Her fitness level was outstanding. Most people couldn’t keep up with her and she did it for 80 straight minutes for us.”

Avery Green

Junior defender

Maize South

Green became one of Maize South’s top assets en route to a second straight trip to the Class 5A quarterfinals. Her ability to neutralize the opposition’s top threat with her rare blend of physicality and pace allowed the Mavericks tremendous defensive flexibility. Green, who has given K-State a non-binding commitment, could coordinate a defense from her centerback position or come off the line and mark the other team’s best player. “Avery is a very technically-gifted player,” Maize South coach Marlon Rios said. “She reads the play very well and her passing is very on target. When she’s marking you, she won’t give you an inch.”

Ally Henderson

Junior midfielder

Trinity Academy

When her team needed her the most, when Maycee Bell was out of the lineup, Henderson rose to the occasion and scored 18 of her 33 goals in the eight games Bell didn’t play. Her creativity was represented by her 16 assists and her skill on the ball in big moments by her 10 goals in five playoff games. When the stakes were the highest, Henderson, who has orally committed to Baylor, brought her best. “We’re talking about player who almost single-handedly put the team on her shoulders at state,” Trinity coach Mark Brooks said. “She’s the hardest-working girl I’ve ever seen. She wants to win so bad, and what makes her so special is that she’s willing to put her teammates above her on and off the field.”

Katie McClure

Senior forward

Maize

In a program that pumps out class players on a yearly basis, McClure will go down as the best. After scoring 51 goals in her senior season, the Gatorade Player of the Year finalist and Kansas signee finished her standout career as program’s career scoring leader with 164 goals. McClure finished with at least two goals in 16 games and also added 20 assists this season. “She’s the most decorated goal-scorer in the history of Maize High,” Maize coach Jay Holmes said. “But what separates her in my mind compared to other great forwards is her unselfish nature around the goal. She always had that innate ability to put the ball in the back of the net and be a class finisher, but she was also more than willing to get the assist as well and that’s what I loved about her.”

Bethany Reeves

Junior goalkeeper

Valley Center

Valley Center allowed the fewest goals (4) in Kansas, compiled a 13-2-2 record, and registered 15 straight shutouts with Reeves in frame. The Hornets’ dominance on the ball prevented Reeves from facing many shots, but she did maintain a save percentage above 90 percent. What makes Reeves, who has orally committed to Emporia State, one of the best protecting the goal is her athleticism – she also qualified for state track and field in the long jump – and understanding of positioning. “She didn’t just make the routine saves, she came up with the big ones too,” Valley Center coach Steen Danielsen said. “She makes the game-winning saves where she lays out like Superman. She’s a dynamic player like that.”

Maguire Sullivan

Sophomore defender

Bishop Carroll

Penetrating Carroll’s back line through the middle was not possible this season with Sullivan at centerback. The two-time All-Metro selection who has given K-State a non-binding commitment possesses the pace and strength to win challenges, but her most valuable asset is her ability to read the game. Sullivan extinguished threats before they ever were fully formed and helped Carroll to 11 shutouts and an average of 0.72 goals allowed. “Maguire is a player with the skill set that would make any coach very happy to have on their team,” Carroll coach Greg Rauch said. “She makes everyone around her better and makes life very difficult for the opposing team, and she does it all with a smile.”

Makayla Toth

Junior forward

Maize

After finding out just how potent Toth is at the top of a formation, Maize coach Jay Holmes admits he regrets not moving Toth up sooner. And for good reason: Toth, who’s orally committed to Central Missouri, scored 50 goals in her first full-time season as striker. What made Toth great was her ability to play off of running mate Katie McClure, as the duo combined to score 101 goals this season. “Her speed, her agility, her technical ability is really what allowed her to mesh so well with Katie,” Holmes said. “Those were so dangerous for us up top and it’s because they worked so well with each other.”

Ashley Zane

Senior midfielder

Maize

Left outside backs were terrorized all season by Zane’s knack for making dangerous runs through the channels. Zane played her right outside midfielder role perfectly in Maize’s top-ranked attack, notching 16 goals and 19 assists in her senior season. When teams would commit their resources to stopping Maize’s strikers, Zane, a Kansas State signee, routinely capitalized when left to a one-on-one matchup. “She’s just a really technical player and when you combine that with her speed and tenacity to beat that outside back, Ashley was just outstanding this season,” Maize coach Jay Holmes said.

Jay Holmes

Coach

Maize

Maize has been to the state semifinals the last 12 seasons, but Holmes guided the program to arguably its most dominant season yet. The Eagles (19-1) suffered just one blip, a 3-1 loss in the Class 5A semifinals to Saint Thomas Aquinas, in a season that saw them hold the No. 1 ranking in Kansas. Holmes organized Maize’s most potent attack in program history, outscoring opponents 148-15 and averaging better than seven goals per game (a program record). “I don’t think I’ve ever had a team with the speed at every position like this one,” Holmes said. “When you have that on top of the creativity these girls had in making their runs, it was just a joy to watch. It was disappointing not to bring home the state title, but that doesn’t diminish the success that they did have this season.”

This story was originally published June 1, 2016 at 2:37 PM with the headline "The 2016 All-Metro girls soccer team."