Another postseason run begins this week for the St. Vincent Lady Indians, but the road through Class 2 District 1 again features familiar rivals, dangerous opponents and plenty of local storylines.
The Class 2 District 1 Tournament will be played May 18-21 at The Bank of Missouri Soccer Complex in Perryville, with St. Vincent serving as host.
The top-seeded Lady Indians enter district play at 15-2 after another dominant regular season that reinforced their place among the state’s elite Class 2 programs.
Since 2009, St. Vincent has established one of Missouri’s premier small-school girls soccer dynasties, winning 9 district championships, 3 state titles, 3 state runner-up finishes and 1 third-place trophy. The Lady Indians added another deep postseason run last spring, advancing to the state championship match before finishing second in the state.
That experience, combined with another explosive offense, makes St. Vincent the favorite entering this year’s bracket.
Senior Lana Adams, a University of Missouri signee, has once again led the attack after becoming the program’s all-time leading scorer earlier this season. With one regular-season game remaining, Adams has 51 goals on the season, leaving her tied for second in the St. Louis region with Brentwood’s Kensington Curd. Parkway North’s Remy Brawner leads the region with 57.
The Lady Indians also bring postseason-tested depth after compiling wins over Seckman, Fox, Windsor, Festus, Perryville and Notre Dame during the regular season.
St. Vincent earned the No. 1 seed in the district bracket, followed by No. 2 St. Pius X (12-4), No. 3 Perryville (7-8), No. 4 Lutheran South (5-9-1), No. 5 Saxony Lutheran (5-6), No. 6 Bayless (9-9), No. 7 North County (6-14) and No. 8 Fredericktown (0-6).
The Lady Indians open district play May 18 against Fredericktown.
Perryville enters the postseason battle-tested after navigating a tough schedule. The Lady Pirates faced several tough opponents throughout the spring, including Waterloo, Jackson, Windsor and St. Vincent.
The Lady Pirates also leaned heavily on their midfield and defensive structure throughout the season while competing in several close matches against district-caliber competition.
Perryville earned the No. 3 seed and opens district play against No. 6 Bayless, with a potential semifinal matchup looming against St. Pius X.
The Lady Pirates also carry extra motivation entering postseason play after falling to Saxony Lutheran in last year’s district tournament.
Saxony Lutheran enters as one of the district’s more dangerous lower seeds.
The Lady Crusaders battled through injuries and roster challenges during the regular season but remained competitive throughout much of the spring, including a one-goal overtime loss to Sikeston and several tight matches against larger schools.
Saxony Lutheran earned the No. 5 seed and will face No. 4 Lutheran South in the opening round.
The Lady Crusaders also return several players with district experience after last year’s postseason victory over Perryville, something that could help in another difficult bracket draw.
While St. Vincent enters as the clear favorite on paper, the bracket offers little margin for error.
St. Pius X has assembled another strong season and earned the No. 2 seed, while Bayless and Lutheran South both faced difficult schedules throughout the spring.
Still, postseason expectations once again center around St. Vincent.
The Lady Indians not only bring championship pedigree into the tournament, but also the experience of playing deep into May year after year. And with district soccer returning to Perryville, the atmosphere should once again feel familiar for several local players who have competed together since youth soccer.
For St. Vincent, Perryville and Saxony Lutheran, however, familiarity ends once the postseason whistle blows.
