The varsity girls’ soccer team knows the drill. A year ago, they made it to their state-wide competition but didn’t reach quite as far as they strive to now. This year, however, they’re shooting for gold.

The 2025 season didn’t start exactly how the players expected.

“We’ve been dealing with a lot of injuries to start off, and we’re having to play some people a bit more out of position in order to deal with that,” varsity head coach Ryan Johnson said.

This, combined with a new wave of girls joining the team, comes with every season’s initial setbacks.

To get to state, they turned to a past coach to boost their productivity.

“We brought in the previous head coach to be an assistant with me,” Johnson said. “And we’re trying to focus a little bit more on the details of a game.”

Tami Nguyen was the Liberty soccer head coach for eight years, returning this year to bring even more passion to fuel the team’s progress.

Her coaching assistance so far in the season has the team in high spirits.

“I like her. She really brings up the energy. She’s very vocal, and I feel like we just needed that. It’s very helpful for when we’re actually playing on the field,” senior varsity captain Skyla Yu said.

“I think it’s definitely better for the team. She’s really great and practices are more intense,” another senior varsity captain Peyton Warns said.

On the coaching front, practices are not only more vigorous but also more productive. Coaching can now be personalized to each individual member of the team.

“Now we have more dedicated coaches per athlete,” Johnson said. “Now, we’re able to work a little bit more closely with them as we try to improve after each game.”

With Nguyen’s help, the team hopes to progress even farther than in previous years.

So far this season, the team has a score of eight wins, four losses, and a tie. Evidently, this year’s increased efforts seem to be paying off.

“Last year we only played one state game,” Warns said, “[This year] we definitely want to play more.”