Colleyville Heritage girls soccer looks to ‘finish the job’ in Texas state title game
At the end of the 2024 state championships, Colleyville Heritage girls soccer left Georgetown as the Class 5A runner-ups.
The Panthers were a young team with limited playoff experience. One year later, they still have a young squad, but they have loads of experience and are looking to settle what sophomore forward Addison Shimmick called “unfinished business.”
Colleyville Heritage (17-2-1) will face undefeated College Station A&M Consolidated (25-0-1) in the Class 5A Division 1 state championship at 4 p.m. Friday, April 11, at Birkelbach Stadium in Georgetown.
“Last year, we didn’t get the state title, and it was very upsetting ... We could’ve done it last year, and we didn’t finish what we started,” Shimmick said.
Shimmick was a monumental force in a state semifinal victory against Midlothian, paving the way for a 4-0 victory with a hat trick. Last year, the team dealt with nerves, but that won’t be the case this year, she said.
“This year, the nerves have gone away,” Shimmick said. “I know what a state final is going to be like. It’s just like any other game. Going into the game, we just need to bring a lot of fight that we didn’t have last year.”
Head coach Monte Pace and the team went into the 2024-25 season with a goal: Go back to Georgetown and lift the championship trophy. They set high expectations, but they’ve put themselves in a position to see the ultimate goal come to fruition.
“That’s been their focus,” Pace said. “And that’s been their mission. When you get that close and have an opportunity to play and win it all — they understand better this year, with experience, what it takes to get there.”
According to Pace, Colleyville Heritage will play its best soccer if the team brings the energy and plays together, which can sometimes be a challenge with such a talented roster.
The Panthers certainly have an abundance of energy with Shimmick as well as three underclassman midfielders: Emerson Andries, Brielle McDaniel and Addison Bizjack.
Ashlyn Bringedahl, another sophomore, is Colleyville Heritage’s scoring leader with 24 goals. Shimmick is also a force in that department with 17 goals.
In total, Colleyville’s young offense has led the Panthers to score 72 times, while opponents have only scored 14 goals.
Anchoring the defense is junior Landry Warren, another team captain. She has been a factor in the Panthers securing 11 shutouts on the season. No team has scored more than two goals against Colleyville Heritage in the season.
“We have a lot of team speed and really good technical ability all over the field,” Pace said. “It allows us to play an aggressive style of soccer. We’re aggressive on offense, putting the team under pressure. We’re aggressive defensively, pressing high up the field to win the ball back.”
Although the Panthers have seen great success in the postseason, they did not finish district play as champions. Grapevine, which reached the Class 5A Division 1 state semifinals, drew a tie against Colleyville Heritage; in the Panthers’ next game, they lost to Argyle.
Since that moment, Colleyville Heritage has been on a terror, winning nine straight.
“We just had to regroup, get back to work, and get back to what we do well,” Pace said. “And that’s to play with possession, move the ball quickly and just play together as a team and not as a bunch of individuals.”
The highlight of the win streak came in the area-round against Burleson Centennial. The Panthers scored in the 96th minute of overtime to force a shootout, where they captured a thrilling 10-9 penalty kick victory. Two more wins later, Colleyville Heritage is one win away from a state title.
“I feel like we’ve really hit our stride these last three or four playoff games,” Pace said. “I like the way that we’ve been playing. We’re playing with energy, speed and aggression. We’re playing together. I think that has made all the difference.”
The Panthers have a tough challenge in A&M Consolidated, a program Pace called great.
“You don’t make it to the state final with an undefeated record in Texas high school soccer without being a talented team,” Pace said. “We have a big task in front of us, but I’m confident in the team we have and the way we play. Hopefully, this time, we’ll be able to finish the job with a championship.”
This story was originally published April 8, 2025 at 6:00 AM.
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