Prep Girls’ Soccer- The Iowa Girls High School Athletic Association (IGHSAU) is getting ready for the upcoming soccer season with competition slated to start on Monday, April 6th, by releasing the 2026 preseason rankings for the three classes.
Class 3A
Waukee Northwest lost only one game last year on their way to beating Linn-Mar 3-2, for the Class 3A state championship. The Wolves are set to return their top three-leading goal scorers, but the most important piece of the puzzle will be Grace Thomason coming back between the pipes for her senior season, as she notched 73 saves for 85.9% save percentage.
Thos valuable pieces and with the confidence of a champion, Waukee Northwest starts off as the #1 team. Valley and Ankeny Centennial round out the top three, while last year’s runner-up sits at #4. A team that might fall from the rankings quickly is #6 Waukee.
The Warriors conjured up a 10-2-6 record last season despite scoring 26 goals for the season. The reason for their success was Lauren Nidey, a four-year starter that saved 137 shots for a save percentage of 93.2%. Waukee may have some growing pains in a tough conference.
#9 Pleasant Valley is hoping to make a huge leap after posting a losing record last season. The Spartans do graduate three of their top four goal scorers, so Joanah Jepsen will have to step up, but a majority of their starting lineup was underclassmen last year and a respectable tandem in the net could have Pleasant Valley be a force from the east.
Yet, conference-mate #10 Bettendorf could make things interesting for the Mississippi Athletic.
Class 2A
Dallas Center-Grimes is in the middle of a dynasty with five straight trips to the Class 2A championship game and four consecutive titles; the Mustangs will be looking to add one for the thumb this season and deservingly start the season atop the rankings.
It did not look like it was going to happen for the Mustangs after losing to #2 Waverly-Shell Rock 2-0 in early May, but DC-G retaliated by outscoring their opponents 43 to 0 in the final nine games of the season, including a 1-0 victory over the Go-Hawks in the championship game.
Now, Waverly-Shell Rock will still be a team to fear as Anaka Ott and Linde Hubbard return to the pitch after combining to net 66 of the team’s 109 goals. The team also returns a goalkeeper that allowed only three goals for the entire season. Waverly-Shell Rock is the last team to win the Class 2A championship, will they be able to end the Mustangs’ run?
An intriguing story for the Class 2A season will be #8 Bishop Heelan. The Crusaders were upset in the Class 1A semifinals after going 18-3 for the season. Now, Bishop Heelan will have to face off against Class 2A competition, who they went 7-0 against last year.
Pella is in a tough conference, dealing with Dallas Center-Grimes and some Class 3A teams in the Little Hawkeye. The Dutch ended the season with a losing season despite punching their ticket to the state tournament. They will have to replace Briana Shannon, who netted 10 goals, but the Dutch enter the season at #11.
Class 1A
You have to be the best of the best to get into the top 15 with every team sporting a winning record from last season, including eight teams that lost three games or less. One of the teams did lose more than three games was also the one to win the Class 1A title, #1 Assumption.
The Knights surprised everyone when they beat #4 Denver, who had 21 wins last season, 2-0 in the championship contest. It will be tough for them to meet back up for this year’s championship contest as they both graduated their top goal scorers.
In fact, the team that separates them in the preseason rankings was eliminated in the state quarterfinals last year but returns everyone: #2 Des Moines Christian. The trio of Addy Oetker, Stella Pothoven, and Addison Price will look to replicate their goal scoring ways from last year after they each scored 18 or more goals.
Another team to keep an eye on will be #13 Maquoketa. After not fielding a team for the 2024 season, the Cardinals ripped off a 10-1-1 season for 2025, which saw Maelyn Kluever score 38 of the team’s 55 goals as a sophomore. Additionally, Aubrey Kroymann walled off 48 shots for a save percentage north of 90%. A year of experience for a team that lacked it could see the Cardinals soar to the state tournament this year.
More
If you would like to see a full list of the preseason rankings, then follow this link: Girls’ Soccer Preseason Rankings