Minot North forward Morgan Orth finished second on the team in assists with 10 and added three goals as a seventh grader last season. Eric Pearson/Minot Activities

The Minot North girls soccer team was playing with house money in its inaugural season as a varsity program last year.

Outside of simply competing and gaining valuable experience, there were no expectations, both from the Sentinels themselves and the state as a whole. Yet, somehow, they managed to exceed expectations.

The Sentinels finished 6-8-2 and placed sixth in the WDA standings, just eight points behind Bismarck Century for the fourth and final spot to advance to the state tournament. Minot North posted wins against Century and Jamestown, both of which competed at the state tournament.

Minot North heads into its second season with set goals and high expectations, the biggest of which is securing a top-four spot in the West Region and playing postseason soccer in Bismarck during the final weekend of May. The rest of the WDA tends to believe Minot North is capable of achieving that lofty goal, voting them fourth in the preseason coaches’ poll.

“The girls share those expectations as well as my staff and I,” Minot North coach Haris Bosnjak said. “We have the expectation to play these matches and end up finishing top four. I think our quality and our ability in terms of playing as a team we definitely have the capability and that’s the goal we both share as a part of this team. We want to see how far and high we can get.”

The Sentinels return nearly their entire roster, losing just one senior in Taylor Spaulding and goalkeeper Madilyn Knupp, who moved out of the area in the offseason. Knupp split time in net with Camryn Guy, recording 25 saves and one shutout. Guy will serve as the primary goalkeeper this season after making 54 saves and posting three shutouts last season.

Guy is one of two seniors on the roster this season along with all-state midfielder Julia Lewis. Lewis finished second on the team in scoring with 18 points (11 goals, 7 assists). Forward Kohlee Roberts leads a group of five juniors following a year in which she was second in the WDA in goals with 16 and tied for second in scoring with 20 points.

“I was really impressed (with last season),” Roberts said. “We showed up ready to practice every day and our coaches held us accountable. We improved more than I think anybody expected out of us. We were just short of the state tournament last year, so this year we’re hoping to participate.”

Sophomore forward Kelcie Poe was third on the team in goals scored with nine, and junior Anistyn Perrin and eighth grader Morgan Orth were the top assist leaders with 12 and 10, respectively. Perrin was an all-state and all-WDA selection along with Lewis.

Roberts, Lewis, Perrin and junior forward Ella Nelson will serve as Minot North’s team captains this season.

“On top of the standard expectations I have for all of my players, those four have just a little bit extra just to echo my voice to make sure the team on the field is doing their job,” Bosnjak said. “When the game comes, it’s up to the players to maintain a certain sort of performance to make sure they’re putting the effort in when needed and those four girls in particular are going to help me do that.”

The four captains all have one thing in common: they played together at Minot High and know what it’s like to play in a state championship match. Roberts, Lewis and Perrin were on the 2023 championship squad that defeated Fargo Davies and all four were together in 2024 when the Majettes lost the rematch to the Eagles.

“A lot of those Minot players that were at state are a part of this team and those girls that didn’t make it last year really have that drive and determination to not let that happen again for us,” Bosnjak said. “That’s going to be a big thing for them to share with the younger kids.”

Being on the outside looking in after competing in the state championship at Minot High adds an extra layer of motivation to get back on that grand stage for Roberts.

“It was definitely different,” Roberts said. “It was disappointing seeing everyone else have that success that we didn’t have, but at the same time I was just grateful for the season we had. I was quite impressed with it. I want to get back in there and get that opportunity for us again. That’s what I’m hoping for this year.”

The Sentinels didn’t have to wait long to post the program’s first varsity win, defeating Bismarck High in their season opener. But they hit a bit of a rough patch after that, going winless in their next eight matches (0-6-2) as they were still searching for that team chemistry.

“Last year, it took half our season,” Roberts said. “We really struggled playing together after having only a couple of us play together at Minot High. We struggled meshing all of our play styles and it took us the first half of our games, but once we got it figured out, we really put it together. Now, we’re ready to show that off.”

By the time May rolled around, Minot North had figured it out and closed the year winning five of their final seven matches. During that stretch, they outscored their opponents 31-6. They pitched three shutouts in their final four matches.

“We started off with a fairly young group,” Bosnjak said. “We didn’t have really a single senior, a couple juniors and the majority of our players were eighth graders, freshmen and sophomores, so we did have a bit of youth on our team, but on top of that, playing on that team was another challenge we got to experience. Early on last year, we were still finding our feet in terms of that play style, being able to play with each other, and as the season went on, we built a better momentum and ended the season pretty well in terms of results and performances.”

The preseason coaches’ poll has Mandan and Minot High as the clear leaders to compete for the WDA title. The Braves received seven of the nine first-place votes, with the Majettes receiving the other two. The final two spots in the state tournament out of the West Region are a toss-up between four schools in the eyes of the coaches between Jamestown (42 points), Minot North (41), Bismarck Century (38) and Bismarck Legacy (38). The Sentinels were 2-4 against those teams last season.

Roberts has been to the state tournament wearing the maroon and gold of Minot High and would like nothing more than to get back there donned in the navy blue and silver of Minot North.

“It would mean so much to me,” Roberts said. “That would be really impressive. Having already been there, I know what it’s like to experience that and it’s a wonderful feeling. I really care for all of my teammates and I want them to be able to experience that as well. That would be such an accomplishment.”

The Sentinels open their season at home against Bismarck Legacy on Friday, March 27, at Sentinel Stadium at 7:30 p.m.