SNOQUALMIE – The Mount Si Wildcats girls soccer team just barely finished out of the playoffs last season at 7-5-2. This season, however, looks to be a breakout year, as a top freshman joins what is already a great team.

That freshman is Nikki Stanton, and she is generating a lot of buzz not only within the Mount Si program, but also around the Kingco 3A Conference.

“Nikki will turn some heads this year. A lot of people already know about her,” said third-year Wildcat coach Darren Brown.

Defender Jordan Tipton already is offering praise for Stanton.

“She’s really nice and she has really dynamic skills on the field,” Tipton said.

Joining Stanton are top returning players Mariana Zanella and Kiersten Mills. Zanella, a sophomore, and Mills, a junior, along with Stanton will provide a multi-faceted offensive attack that may be among the best, if not the best, in the entire Kingco 3A. Three seniors, Tipton, Krisi Lund and Kali Roestel, come back to provide critical experience on the defensive side of the ball, which will help veteran goalkeeper Jessica Blessard, a junior. Lund is excited about the upcoming year.

“Well, this year is definitely our year to excel because we have all the depth this year. We’re planning to go all the way,” she said.

All four players – Lund, Roestel, Blessard, and Tipton – said Issaquah is likely the team to beat in Kingco 3A. They will be led by sophomore Kate Deines, who has played with Stanton in the past in club soccer. Mercer Island was also mentioned as another team to watch.

Tipton said she and her senior teammates are ready to provide help to their new freshman counterpart.

“We have to mold her as one of our own, and show her how it’s done, and how we strive to win all the time, and we work hard, and team chemistry is everything,” she said.

The girls soccer program turned out 53 players, according to Brown, who said that was “about normal,” but he then mentioned that both Issaquah and Mercer Island turned out considerably more players. Don’t blame Mount Si’s lower numbers on the new $75 school sports fee, though, said Brown.

“I don’t think the fee affected us because I still saw the same numbers, that’s what I was kind of gauging,” he said. “If there is a problem where a kid can’t afford it, we will make accommodations for them because we realize that is a big chunk to pay for a sport.”

Blessard has sights on the future for this team.

“I think we’re going to go all the way,” the goalkeeper said.

A look at the Kingco schedule shows four of the first six conference games for Mount Si are at home so a quick start out of the gate may be key to the team’s ultimate success.

Home games this year are back at the Mount Si High School campus, after a year away from home due to construction of the new athletic facilities. All games kick off at 7:30 p.m.