For the fourth straight year, the No. 1 Marist Catholic girls soccer team played in the OSAA 4A State Championship game, placing itself as a top program in Oregon. A 2-0 victory over No. 2 The Dalles crowned Marist as back-to-back state champions. Though the team has seen many faces since head coach Stefan Schroffner took the role in 2019, one thing has remained the same: standard.

In a sport where momentum can fade quickly and rosters turn over every year, Marist’s ability to stay at the top has become something rare. Schroffner said the program’s consistency has played a part in its success, starting with the players that what he says must “buy into” the program.

“This is not just high school girls soccer,” Schroffner said. “This is Marist High School girls’ soccer. It means something different and there is a standard of excellence where the bar is not gonna be lowered for any reason.”

Success is built on more than just tactics or skill development. The foundation of Marist’s achievements is its internal culture. Over four years, every incoming athlete goes from a mentee to a mentor. This season was no different, with four freshmen contributing significant varsity minutes under the guidance of upperclassmen.

“You have to have the right people and the right personalities,” Schroffner said. “The upperclassmen took (the freshmen) under their wing and said, ‘hey, don’t worry, you can do this … don’t freeze up, you got this. You just play the game, not the occasion.’ And that’s I think that’s really critical to building that program.”

Within the 4A classification, Marist dominated their opponents. To face adversity, Marist must look elsewhere to feel the pressure.

“Winning can become a habit,” Schroffner said. ”At the beginning of the season, I worked with the AD (athletic director) and my direction is very simple. Book us with the toughest and best teams in the state. I don’t care if it’s 3A, 4A, 5A or even 6A … we want to play the best because you have to challenge yourself in every game.”

That challenge is intentional. Beginning practices in June every year to prepare for the season ahead, players commit early on for the long road ahead. 

The season’s most pivotal moments came from these purposefully challenging schedules of two non-league matchups: North Eugene and Silverton, two top-five ranked teams in 5A. Marist fell 2–1 to North Eugene after leading until the 70th minute for a loss Schroffner described as “crushing.” Ultimately the tie to Silverton was a pivotal point, short of transformational, for what was yet to come.

“We actually came to the realization, they weren’t a better team than us, but they were fitter than us,” Schroffner said. “We ran out of gas in the last 20 minutes … we made that a goal: don’t ever let a team be more fit than us.”

Schroffner credited the tough tie to a pivotal program moment where he knew that getting to the state playoff game could be a possibility once again.

“That was the moment I knew we could win the whole thing,” he said. “The grit, the heart, the pace … we controlled every part of the game. That performance told me everything I needed to know.”

Marist finished the season with 103 goals, scoring in nearly every way a team can score, making them almost impossible to scout. 

“When you score in a lot of different ways, it’s hard to be predictable,” Schroffner said. “So when you’re being scouted and stuff like that, like another team, like, well, they can score this way, and they’re, like, they don’t know how to, how to solve for Marist girls soccer.”

The scoring depth is equally staggering — six different players finished with at least nine goals. Schroffner keeps track of how every goal was executed and through watching film, reviewing extraneous powerpoint presentations and discussions pre-practice, the program has established its weekly routines with an emphasis on learning. 

Perhaps no individual better symbolizes Marist’s environment of talent and adaptability than junior forward and captain Libby McLaughlin. This season, she shattered the Oregon all-time state records for both single-season assists and career assists, while also collecting 27 goals despite constant double and triple teams.

“She’s relentless,” Schroffner said. “(She) has the ability to adjust with whoever she plays with.”

Marist’s captain trio provided balance in all areas of the field. Senior goalkeeper Emily Meigs, a four-year starter, and senior defensive back Piper Paslay, a two-time captain, built the chemistry for the team.

“Emily is very, very vocal and in charge,” Schroffner said. “She’s kind of the captain of the captains … when she speaks, everyone listens and she can see the whole field.” 

Paslay’s presence on the backline and McLaughlin’s command in the attack made the group a perfectly balanced leadership core.

This year also marked the end of a remarkable chapter for the coach and his daughter, Gina, who started in four consecutive state finals.

“That’s probably one of the toughest things is that, when it’s time to train, when it’s practice, when it’s game, I’m not a dad –– I’m coaching,” Schroffner said. “She respects that and she knows that. And vice versa.”

With years of success comes constant attention. Every opponent in the 4A knows Marist and the reputation they uphold having made it to the playoffs for six out of the last seven years.  

“We’re on top of the mountain,” Schroffner said. “Everyone wants to kick us off, but we’re not going anywhere.”