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Southwest Florida high school girls soccer teams have been limited in terms of winning state titles, but that doesn't take away from the elite talent this area has proven it has over the last 25 years.
That's what made selecting the top 25 girls soccer players of the past 25 seasons such a challenge. To be eligible for this list, a player had to be on a Southwest Florida high school girls soccer team for at least one season from the 2001-02 season onward. Consideration was given not only to how they performed at the high school level but also in their college careers.
Here are our selections, presented in alphabetical order.
The three-time Southwest Florida Player of the Year was two things: consistent and elite. Acosta was a distributor and a goal scorer in the attacking midfield, netting 95 goals to go along with 92 assists. She is the only player from this area to win Miss Soccer from the Florida Dairy Farmers and is in the midst of a collegiate career at FGCU after transferring from Florida.
After transferring from Ida Baker at the conclusion of her sophomore season, the 2017 The News-Press Player of the Year finalist posted 35 shutouts in two seasons with the Tritons. The two-time All-State selection had a 0.22 goals-against average as a junior and 0.45 as a senior.
Busenbark erupted as a junior, earning the Southwest Florida Girls Soccer Player of the Year award following a 57-goal, 12-assist season that saw North Fort Myers make a Final Four. Busenbark scored 100 goals and 26 assists despite an injury-shortened sophomore year, and a shortened senior year due to an early enrollment at Eastern Kentucky.
The defender was a two-time News-Press Player of the Year finalist and won the award as a junior after a season where she was named All-State. Clark was nominated for Miss Soccer in 2015, and played collegiately at FGCU, where she had 44 starts in 49 matches, starting every game as a junior and senior.
Emerson was an outstanding player for the Green Wave, scoring 54 goals and 39 assists to break the Greenies' all-time scoring record. She was The News-Press Player of the Year in 2011 as a junior, where she had 32 goals and 14 assists.
Farrell was a two-time News-Press Player of the Year pick in 2005 and 2006, and a two-time All-State selection who led the Panthers to a district championship and regional semifinal in 2003. After finishing her career with 120 goals, she went on to play at Wake Forest where she graduated as the Demon Deacons' second all-time leader in games played.
Fischer won the Naples Daily News Girls Soccer Player of the Year Award in 2014. She allowed only seven regular-season goals in the 2013-14 season, as she helped her team reach the regional finals. In 6,161 minutes played in high school, Fischer registered 43 shutouts, 514 saves, and surrendered just 35 goals. She went on to play at Louisville for one season before transferring to UCF.
Before playing at Florida State and FGCU, the three-time all-state selection and The News-Press First-Team All-Area selection set Lee County records for most goals in a season (66), which has since been broken, and in a career (185).
Gargiula had an elite career with Bishop Verot, scoring 89 goals with 49 assists over four seasons to earn First Team All-Area as a senior and Second Team All-Area as a junior. With FGCU, Gargiula was a three-time All-ASUN First Team selection, scoring 25 goals with 15 assists in 79 games and 4,732 minutes played.
Hauser scored a school-record 142 goals with the Red Knights, earning All-American Honors in 2019 after taking North to three straight regional finals. Hauser was The News-Press Player of the Year as a junior and senior before starring at Arkansas and Florida.
Kastroll is the school-record holder in career goals (147) and assists (78) at CSN, leading her team to the Class 1A Final Four as a senior. Kastroll went on to play soccer at Michigan, where she was a three-time All-Academic Big Ten selection. Kastroll scored 13 goals with 12 assists in over 4,300 minutes played.
Kopale was a three-time News-Press All-Area First Team selection, earning two with Cape Coral as a sophomore and junior, and a third with Ida Baker as a senior. Kopale also earned The News-Press Player of the Year award with the Bulldogs, leading them to a state title with a goal allowed average of .281, adding 24 shutouts in a year that Baker finished 26-2-4.
As a junior, the forward garnered 2017 The News-Press Player of the Year honors after scoring 48 goals and adding 16 assists. She followed that up with 32 goals and 14 assists as a senior. She left as North’s all-time leading goal scorer before Emilee Hauser broke the record.
The Raiders’ single-season and career goals record holder finished her varsity tenure with 156 goals and 96 assists as a four-time News-Press First-Team All-Area selection. After high school, she attended Elon University.
McCarthy was technically sound and could do a lot of different things for the Red Knights, becoming a four-time All-Area First Team selection. The midfielder scored 53 goals with 57 assists and was a three-time finalist for the Southwest Florida Player of the Year award as a freshman, junior, and senior. She continues to play collegiately at Arizona.
Melancon is Collier County's all-time leading goal scorer with 209. Melancon is a three-time finalist for the Daily News Player of the Year Award and a one-time winner in her seven-year varsity career, scoring 51 goals during her sophomore year.
Maxson was one of the reasons why the Seahawks were able to make it to the state championship game her senior season. Before losing to St. John's Country Day in the 1A state championship, she was part of a backline that surrendered four goals in four postseason games. Maxson was a three-time All-Area First Team selection and went on to play at FAU.
Perez-Acosta was outstanding at Canterbury, earning The News-Press Player of the Year award in 2021, along with three All-Area First Team selections. With the Cougars, she netted 151 goals and 81 assists, leading the program to the Class 2A title game in 2021. After a collegiate stint at Alabama A&M, Perez-Acosta turned pro, signing with the Peninsula Power in the NPL Queensland in Australia, and will play this coming season with Sporting FC in the Costa Rican first tier.
The 2013 The News-Press Player of the Year scored a Lee County record 75 goals during her junior season as she guided ECS to a state championship game. She finished with 167 goals for her career and went on to play at Jacksonville University and the University of Tampa.
Rogers accumulated over 80 goals and nearly 50 assists during her career at Gulf Coast. She won the Daily News Player of the Year Award in 2012. She was hired as the Director of Operations for the FGCU women's soccer team in 2018, before being promoted to an assistant coaching role in 2019. Prior to her two coaching positions at FGCU, Rogers logged four NCAA Tournament appearances with the club from 2012-17. Rogers was the head coach at Fort Lauderdale United FC in the USL Super League before parting ways in February.
Spitzer was a two-time All-Area First Team selection, with one of those selections being a finalist for the Daily News Player of the Year in 2017. She received All-State accolades as a sophomore, junior, and senior. As a senior, she led Gulf Coast with 19 goals and 13 assists and played every position, including goalie. At FGCU, Spitzer made 79 starts in 83 games played, making All-ASUN Second Team twice, along with the All-ASUN Freshman Team. She scored 4 goals and 6 assists
The forward finished her junior season with 36 goals and 15 assists, carrying Estero to a state final and earning 2018 The News-Press Player of the Year honors. The Stetson forward was a Player of the Year finalist in her last season with the Wildcats after a 33-goal, 11-assist season. With the Hatters, Struble scored 12 goals and 4 assists in 41 games.
Stovring was a three-time All-Area First Team selection. She scored 95 career goals and led the team in scoring as a freshman, sophomore, and junior. Stovring played a pivotal role in helping Barron Collier to two district championships and one regional final appearance. She split her time in college at Coastal Carolina before finishing at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee.
Welch burst onto the scene as a junior after earning Honorable Mention as a freshman and sophomore, scoring a combined 112 goals as a junior and senior to earn The News-Press Player of the Year award in 2001 and 2002. Welch went on to play Division I soccer at the University of South Carolina as a sweeper.
The two-time The News-Press Player of the Year finalist amassed 149 goals for her career as one of the most dominant forwards in the 2010s. Yount played at Samford, where she was a four-time All-SoCon First Team selection. In her college career, Yount scored 27 goals with 13 assists in just under 5,200 minutes played with the Bulldogs.
Follow Sports Reporter Alex Martin on X at @NP_AlexMartin or via email: [email protected]. For the best sports coverage in Southwest Florida, follow @newspresssports and @ndnprepzone on Instagram.
This article originally appeared on Fort Myers News-Press: Southwest Florida's top 25 girls soccer players of the last 25 years
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That's what made selecting the top 25 girls soccer players of the past 25 seasons such a challenge. To be eligible for this list, a player had to be on a Southwest Florida high school girls soccer team for at least one season from the 2001-02 season onward. Consideration was given not only to how they performed at the high school level but also in their college careers.
Here are our selections, presented in alphabetical order.
Ryleigh Acosta, Mariner
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The three-time Southwest Florida Player of the Year was two things: consistent and elite. Acosta was a distributor and a goal scorer in the attacking midfield, netting 95 goals to go along with 92 assists. She is the only player from this area to win Miss Soccer from the Florida Dairy Farmers and is in the midst of a collegiate career at FGCU after transferring from Florida.
Acelya Aydogmus, Ida Baker/Mariner
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After transferring from Ida Baker at the conclusion of her sophomore season, the 2017 The News-Press Player of the Year finalist posted 35 shutouts in two seasons with the Tritons. The two-time All-State selection had a 0.22 goals-against average as a junior and 0.45 as a senior.
Hannah Busenbark, North Fort Myers
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Busenbark erupted as a junior, earning the Southwest Florida Girls Soccer Player of the Year award following a 57-goal, 12-assist season that saw North Fort Myers make a Final Four. Busenbark scored 100 goals and 26 assists despite an injury-shortened sophomore year, and a shortened senior year due to an early enrollment at Eastern Kentucky.
Syniah Clark, Ida Baker
The defender was a two-time News-Press Player of the Year finalist and won the award as a junior after a season where she was named All-State. Clark was nominated for Miss Soccer in 2015, and played collegiately at FGCU, where she had 44 starts in 49 matches, starting every game as a junior and senior.
Haley Emerson, Fort Myers
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Emerson was an outstanding player for the Green Wave, scoring 54 goals and 39 assists to break the Greenies' all-time scoring record. She was The News-Press Player of the Year in 2011 as a junior, where she had 32 goals and 14 assists.
Caitlin Farrell, Cypress Lake
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Farrell was a two-time News-Press Player of the Year pick in 2005 and 2006, and a two-time All-State selection who led the Panthers to a district championship and regional semifinal in 2003. After finishing her career with 120 goals, she went on to play at Wake Forest where she graduated as the Demon Deacons' second all-time leader in games played.
Francesca Fischer, Naples
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Fischer won the Naples Daily News Girls Soccer Player of the Year Award in 2014. She allowed only seven regular-season goals in the 2013-14 season, as she helped her team reach the regional finals. In 6,161 minutes played in high school, Fischer registered 43 shutouts, 514 saves, and surrendered just 35 goals. She went on to play at Louisville for one season before transferring to UCF.
Holly Fritz, Mariner
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Before playing at Florida State and FGCU, the three-time all-state selection and The News-Press First-Team All-Area selection set Lee County records for most goals in a season (66), which has since been broken, and in a career (185).
Kendal Gargiula, Bishop Verot
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Gargiula had an elite career with Bishop Verot, scoring 89 goals with 49 assists over four seasons to earn First Team All-Area as a senior and Second Team All-Area as a junior. With FGCU, Gargiula was a three-time All-ASUN First Team selection, scoring 25 goals with 15 assists in 79 games and 4,732 minutes played.
Emilee Hauser, North Fort Myers
Hauser scored a school-record 142 goals with the Red Knights, earning All-American Honors in 2019 after taking North to three straight regional finals. Hauser was The News-Press Player of the Year as a junior and senior before starring at Arkansas and Florida.
Abby Kastroll, Community School
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Kastroll is the school-record holder in career goals (147) and assists (78) at CSN, leading her team to the Class 1A Final Four as a senior. Kastroll went on to play soccer at Michigan, where she was a three-time All-Academic Big Ten selection. Kastroll scored 13 goals with 12 assists in over 4,300 minutes played.
Amanda Kopale, Cape Coral/Ida Baker
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Kopale was a three-time News-Press All-Area First Team selection, earning two with Cape Coral as a sophomore and junior, and a third with Ida Baker as a senior. Kopale also earned The News-Press Player of the Year award with the Bulldogs, leading them to a state title with a goal allowed average of .281, adding 24 shutouts in a year that Baker finished 26-2-4.
Taylor Kruse, North Fort Myers
As a junior, the forward garnered 2017 The News-Press Player of the Year honors after scoring 48 goals and adding 16 assists. She followed that up with 32 goals and 14 assists as a senior. She left as North’s all-time leading goal scorer before Emilee Hauser broke the record.
Mariah Marrero, Riverdale
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The Raiders’ single-season and career goals record holder finished her varsity tenure with 156 goals and 96 assists as a four-time News-Press First-Team All-Area selection. After high school, she attended Elon University.
Evie McCarthy, North Fort Myers
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McCarthy was technically sound and could do a lot of different things for the Red Knights, becoming a four-time All-Area First Team selection. The midfielder scored 53 goals with 57 assists and was a three-time finalist for the Southwest Florida Player of the Year award as a freshman, junior, and senior. She continues to play collegiately at Arizona.
Malaya Melancon, First Baptist
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Melancon is Collier County's all-time leading goal scorer with 209. Melancon is a three-time finalist for the Daily News Player of the Year Award and a one-time winner in her seven-year varsity career, scoring 51 goals during her sophomore year.
Alex Maxson, Community School
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Maxson was one of the reasons why the Seahawks were able to make it to the state championship game her senior season. Before losing to St. John's Country Day in the 1A state championship, she was part of a backline that surrendered four goals in four postseason games. Maxson was a three-time All-Area First Team selection and went on to play at FAU.
Jasmine Perez-Acosta, Canterbury
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Perez-Acosta was outstanding at Canterbury, earning The News-Press Player of the Year award in 2021, along with three All-Area First Team selections. With the Cougars, she netted 151 goals and 81 assists, leading the program to the Class 2A title game in 2021. After a collegiate stint at Alabama A&M, Perez-Acosta turned pro, signing with the Peninsula Power in the NPL Queensland in Australia, and will play this coming season with Sporting FC in the Costa Rican first tier.
Haley Pigott, Evangelical Christian
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The 2013 The News-Press Player of the Year scored a Lee County record 75 goals during her junior season as she guided ECS to a state championship game. She finished with 167 goals for her career and went on to play at Jacksonville University and the University of Tampa.
Ali Rogers, Gulf Coast
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Rogers accumulated over 80 goals and nearly 50 assists during her career at Gulf Coast. She won the Daily News Player of the Year Award in 2012. She was hired as the Director of Operations for the FGCU women's soccer team in 2018, before being promoted to an assistant coaching role in 2019. Prior to her two coaching positions at FGCU, Rogers logged four NCAA Tournament appearances with the club from 2012-17. Rogers was the head coach at Fort Lauderdale United FC in the USL Super League before parting ways in February.
Zoey Spitzer, Gulf Coast
Spitzer was a two-time All-Area First Team selection, with one of those selections being a finalist for the Daily News Player of the Year in 2017. She received All-State accolades as a sophomore, junior, and senior. As a senior, she led Gulf Coast with 19 goals and 13 assists and played every position, including goalie. At FGCU, Spitzer made 79 starts in 83 games played, making All-ASUN Second Team twice, along with the All-ASUN Freshman Team. She scored 4 goals and 6 assists
Maggie Struble, Estero
The forward finished her junior season with 36 goals and 15 assists, carrying Estero to a state final and earning 2018 The News-Press Player of the Year honors. The Stetson forward was a Player of the Year finalist in her last season with the Wildcats after a 33-goal, 11-assist season. With the Hatters, Struble scored 12 goals and 4 assists in 41 games.
Marissa Stovring, Barron Collier
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Stovring was a three-time All-Area First Team selection. She scored 95 career goals and led the team in scoring as a freshman, sophomore, and junior. Stovring played a pivotal role in helping Barron Collier to two district championships and one regional final appearance. She split her time in college at Coastal Carolina before finishing at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee.
Jackie Welch, Mariner
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Welch burst onto the scene as a junior after earning Honorable Mention as a freshman and sophomore, scoring a combined 112 goals as a junior and senior to earn The News-Press Player of the Year award in 2001 and 2002. Welch went on to play Division I soccer at the University of South Carolina as a sweeper.
Taylor Yount, Mariner
The two-time The News-Press Player of the Year finalist amassed 149 goals for her career as one of the most dominant forwards in the 2010s. Yount played at Samford, where she was a four-time All-SoCon First Team selection. In her college career, Yount scored 27 goals with 13 assists in just under 5,200 minutes played with the Bulldogs.
Follow Sports Reporter Alex Martin on X at @NP_AlexMartin or via email: [email protected]. For the best sports coverage in Southwest Florida, follow @newspresssports and @ndnprepzone on Instagram.
This article originally appeared on Fort Myers News-Press: Southwest Florida's top 25 girls soccer players of the last 25 years
Continue reading...
