The Emmaus High School girls soccer team had a successful first year under new head coach Chris Hain in 2024, advancing to the Eastern Pennsylvania Conference semifinals and finishing runner-up in the District 11 4A tournament.

The Hornets were 17-5-2 overall and earned a spot in the PIAA state playoffs.

Looking to take that next step and hoist gold in either conferences or districts will be difficult, as Emmaus graduated a talented senior class last year, including Kam McWhinney, Kirsten Esterly, Morgan Tandy, Madison Shutkufski, Ashley Stine and Gabriella Powell.

Some of the top returning players to this year’s team include senior defender and captain Emma Paradise, along with junior forward and captain Elizabeth Bender, who is the leading scorers back from the team with 16 goals and 18 assists last season. Others include junior forward Giuliana Meyer, junior midfielders Sofia Isaksson and Sophia Shutkufski, sophomore midfielder Ella Scharper and sophomore defender Stella Pietrulewicz.

Some key newcomers to the varsity program that will look to make contributions on the pitch include sophomore forward Celeste Peralta, sophomore defender Phoebe O’Hara and freshmen midfielders Brynn Campbell, Amelia Lower and Meghan Puentes.

Hain knows what the team did last year and wants this year’s group to remember that success and build off of it and continue to better themselves.

“Our goal as a team is to improve every day and build off of last season’s success,” said Hain. “As a group (players and coaches) we grew and learned some valuable lessons together last season that will hopefully help us this season. We have a great group of very talented girls who are willing to buy into what we are trying to accomplish which will help us build a team culture that will help our success.”