Apr. 29—Before rivals Champaign Central and Centennial kick off Wednesday night and before the IHSA releases its postseason seeds on Thursday, preps coordinator ZACH PIATT weighs in on the area's best girls' soccer teams:

➜ Quick kick: Paislee Welge found Ella Walk for a pair of goals to give the Bulldogs a 2-1 win against Mt. Zion last Thursday, which also gave them a two-game cushion on the Braves in the Apollo Conference standings. A big road test against Normal West awaits on Monday before M-S closes out conference play.

➜ Quick kick: The Maroons took back-to-back losses for the first time this season, but they were against some of the state's best teams. First was a 9-0 loss to returning Class 2A Sweet 16 squad Morton, followed by a 5-0 setback to 2023 2A state champion Normal U-High. Central plays at Centennial on Wednesday.

➜ Quick kick: The Chargers also took a shutout loss to Normal U-High, but they broke their three-game losing skid last Thursday with a 3-0 win against Urbana. Neither Centennial nor Champaign Central are heading into Wednesday's match on a roll, but a win in that crosstown rivalry would provide a boost.

➜ Quick kick: A 2-0 road loss against Bloomington Central Catholic last Thursday snapped a five-match win streak, but Monticello won't leave home for a while. A stretch of five straight home matches near the end of the season starts on Wednesday when St. Teresa visits before Lincoln does the same on Thursday.

➜ Quick kick: The Conquering Riders haven't lost in April, earning a trio of wins while tying Monticello 3-3 and St. Thomas More 2-2. A balanced effort for Arthur Christian, with Lucy Rutledge, Aselynn Kauffman, Madison Mason and Bri Baker, among others, has contributed significantly to the team's success.