Hart girls soccer is as healthy as it’s been in many years heading into the 2026 season, coming off consecutive winning campaigns and boasting huge participation numbers in the program. The challenge now is to maintain this level of success.
It might not be that big a challenge, though, despite graduating an impressive class of eight seniors from last year’s team. That’s because the Pirates are stocked with talented young athletes who already boast significant experience.
The team’s engine is in the midfield, where junior Olivia Bradley and sophomore Addison Barefoot form a potent combination. Barefoot led the Pirates in goal scoring last season with 14, and Bradley added 10 goals and seven assists.
“This season we are looking for Addie to take more of a leadership role in the midfield and more of a commanding presence there,” coach Joe Gilbert said. “I am excited to be a part of her journey as a player and will help guide her to the best of my ability...They are a great pair for each other, with Addie being slightly more attack-minded and Olivia slightly more defensive and both able to fill a variety of roles.”
Bolstering that duo is a quick and athletic front three of juniors Rilynn Porter, Zoily Sarabia and Natalie Rosema, each fresh off a state quarterfinal run on the basketball team. The trio, all third-year varsity contributors, had a total of 24 goals and 19 assists in 2025 and are more than capable of reproducing those numbers.
Senior defender April Chaffee is the lone returning starter on the back end of the lineup, giving her the opportunity to grow in leadership as well as on-field play.
Gilbert said he’s blessed with a terrific coaching staff as well. New to the staff is Miranda Devan, who comes all the way from California and played at Aurora University in Illinois. Hart alum JoJo Salazar is the new JV coach, and Blane Bromley, who played for Gilbert when Gilbert was Hart’s boys coach, is working with the keepers and defense. Gilbert’s wife Taylor has coached in the program for several years and works with the forwards.
The new faces aren’t limited to the staff, with some contributors from last year ready for larger roles. Liliana and Viviana VanAgtmael, who both made appearances for the varsity last season, move into the lineup, with Liliana on defense and Viviana in the midfield. Gilbert praised both of them for their toughness and strength. Junior Nevaeh Reyna steps into the lineup on defense as well and brings smarts and impressive fitness to the role. Senior Payton Lindgren missed all of 2025 with an injury and is ready to make an impact again, and Baleigh Klotz, who took over the keeper job during the season a year ago, should benefit from that experience as she enters a full season between the posts.
Ariana Vela and Destiny Rodriguez are two other names who should be in position to make a bigger impact this season.
It all adds up to a team with designs on battling with the top of the West Michigan Conference. Hart placed fifth in the loaded WMC last year but was just a half-game out of third. Ludington ran through the conference unbeaten in 2025 and North Muskegon was just a game behind. The Pirates scored three goals against the Norsemen in a 2025 game and would love to knock off one of the league’s titans.
“The big thing for us is figuring out which system works best for us, identifying our starting defense and getting the best out of our main contributors,” Gilbert said. “Our offense should hit the ground running, so figuring out how to keep teams away from our net is the top priority. We are excited to come into this season and prove that we belong competing at the top of the conference.”
