What to know about Nashville area high school boys soccer season: Storylines, players to watch

Three of the five TSSAA soccer state championship teams from last year came out of the Nashville area. As we settle into the start of the Tennessee high school boys soccer season, here's a look the Nashville area's top players and programs for 2024.

Three storylines to watch for the TSSAA soccer season

Can Brentwood's midfield carry the load?

Mike Purcell, the legendary Brentwood coach, captured his fifth state title last year and the program’s sixth. His team finished 25-0 and was ranked No. 2 nationally. But sophomore Tristan Tropeano, who scored two of Brentwood's state title goals, won't return after joining the Nashville SC developmental program. Purcell will rely on senior midfielders Jack Boring and Jack Elliot as well as junior Dawson Moonshower.

Important roles for Franklin, Webb School - Bell Buckle stars

Who sneaks into a debate about the best players in the Nashville area? Two players to keep an eye on will be Franklin’s Davis Long and Webb School – Bell Buckle’s Christopher Douglas. Douglas was one of Middle Tennessee’s top offensive threats last year with 30 goals. Long guided Franklin with 14 goals and four assists.

Small school soccer giants

Soccer fans around Middle Tennessee need to keep an eye on these players from the smaller classification schools.

Jasper Tharpe had 28 goals and 10 assists for Class A Harpeth at the striker position last season. White House-Heritage's Dylan Tate is comes into this season after collecting an impressive 36 goals and 10 assists while Class AA's, Davin Gleaves, of Sycamore, had 35 goals and was the MVP of District 12.

Championship repeat contenders

Valor Prep. The question is can Valor Prep survive the loss of seven seniors, including all state stars, Mitchell York and Jad Rahme? Daniel Jimenez returns for his senior season after collecting 12 goals and 10 assists and was an all-state midfielder.

MBA. The Big Red could have a fast-track to another state title with five players returning from last year's Division II-AA championship. Despite the loss of All Midstate performer Hogan Walker and midfielder Henry Pitt, MBA returns forward Richard Aylward and midfielder Gabe Ramon.

Teams to keep an eye on in 2024

CPA. The Lions lost several key players to graduation but came up short in last year’s DII-AA state championship final against MBA.

WebbSchool – BellBuckle. The Feet didn’t lose a regular-season game last season, finishing with a 13-0-2 record entering the DII-A state semifinals. They lost to Boyd Buchanan, 1-0 but return key players.

Rossview. The Hawks’ leading scorer the past two years, Chance Siler, has graduated. But Graham Duncan returns after collecting 12 goals and 16 assists.

Station Camp. The Bison made a run to the Class AAA state title game last year and this is a program that knows how to win with two state titles (2017 and 2018) and state runner-up finish in 2019. Sophomore forward Ryan Hendon had 12 goals and two assists.

Merrol Hyde. The Hawks made only its third trip to state last year and advanced to the semifinals before losing to Alcoa. The Hawks return scoring threats in sophomore forward Jaxon Wayland and senior Brody Hitchcock.

Nashville area soccer players to watch in 2024

Mark Allen, Clarksville, Sr. The attacking midfielder is coming off a season in which he led Clarksville with 13 goals and four assists.

Jordan Beslin, La Vergne, Sr. The forward had 28 goals last season and was named all-state and the District 7-AAA MVP.

Jack Boring, Brentwood, Sr. Boring finished with 11 goals and nine assists as the Bruins look to defending its AAA title.

Chase Cardin, Giles County, Sr. One of the top defenders in District 11-2A last season, Cardin had six goals and six assists as a centerback. He was the district defensive MVP.

Aden Cardona, Dickson County, Jr. The Cougars goalie had 91 saves in the 2023.

Jack Elliott, Brentwood, Sr Elliot can control the midfield and handed out 13 assists with seven goals last year.

Andres Granda, Lebanon, Jr. The center midfielder had eight goals and five assists last year as a freshman. He was named the District 7-AAA freshman of the year and all-district.

Chris Parks, Davidson Academy, So. Parks had 24 goals and four assists as a freshman last year while earning All-District 4 in Division II.

Michael Lopez, Valor Prep, Sr. Lopez was one of the top goal scorers on Valor Prep's state title team last year. He had 12 goals and five assists.

Thomas Mauries, USN, Sr. Mauries can move between a defender and midfielder. He was crucial to the Tigers' 8-3-5 season last year that ended in the state semifinals.

Rance Myrick, Henry County, Sr. Myrick was one of the top playmakers last season with 19 assists as well as nine goals for the Patriots.

Christian Pastrana, Smyrna, Sr. Pastrana had 90 saves as the Bulldogs' goalkeeper, including two shutouts.

Terrance Reynolds, Ensworth, So. As a freshman last year, Reynolds had 16 goals and nine assists. He's been a starter for Ensworth since his eighth-grade year.

Gabe Rodriguez, MLK, Jr. Rodriguez had eight goals and two assists as a forward, scoring goals in the region tournament semifinals, sectional, and state quarterfinals.

Christian Sentz, Giles County, Jr. An attacking midfielder, Sentz had 23 goals with 15 assists. He finished with six game-winning goals and was named All-District 11-AA, all tournament and All-Region 6-AA.

Reach sports writer George Robinson at georgerobinson@theleafchronicle.com and on the X platform (formerly Twitter) @Cville_Sports.

This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: TSSAA soccer: What to know about the 2024 season in Nashville