OKEECHOBEE — The Okeechobee High School Lady Brahmans varsity soccer team has announced their roster for this season and are getting ready to make another run at the playoffs.

Drina Aguliar, Illiana Boyer, Aracely Cisneros, Giselle Delgado, Elexis Garcia, Kaitlyn Guerrero, Jacqueline Jaimes, Daisy Lujano, Jade Martinez, Joulie Martinez, Jasmine Mora, Marie Perez, Hailey Quesinberry, Kimberly Rayo, Isabella Saucedo, Leslie Cruz and Aubrey Furse all made the varsity squad toward the end of last month.

Last season, the Lady Brahmans advanced all the way to the regional quarterfinals, in what had been a remarkable turnaround for the program. In 2018-19, the Lady Brahmans had finished with a 2-11 record while in 2019-20 the team improved to an 11-8-1 record.

Last year, Okeechobee beat Port St. Lucie in the district semifinal 6-3.

If they want to re-create last year’s magic, the Lady Brahmans will have to get out to a fast start again.

Okeechobee won seven games back-to-back and only lost one before the Christmas break that year. Stacking those wins in the first half of the season gave the Lady Brahmans a first round bye in the district playoffs and a home playoff game.

Standout sophomore Kaitlyn Guerrero is back this year as a junior. Last year she led the team in goals scored with 20. Isabella Saucedo, now also a junior, was second on the team in assists last season with eight.

Many players on the Lady Brahmans are members of the local travel team Chobee F.C., which was started to help keep high school players involved with the game and raise the competitive level soccer in Okeechobee.

In years past Okeechobee teams have struggled against teams from the Treasure Coast. One of the competitive edges that high school teams on the coast have over the soccer teams here in Okeechobee is that their players often play year-round in travel leagues, meaning they have much more time to develop their skills and adapt to the game. Head coach Bernardo Cornejo is hopeful time spent playing in Chobee F.C. can help even the odds come when the Lady Brahmans take the field again.

“My goal is to make sure these girls stay in touch with soccer,” explained Cornejo. “When the new season starts I want them to be focused. Before, when we went to play a big team, they would go in thinking they were going to lose. I want them to feel like they can beat those teams and that they play with anybody.”

The Lady Brahmans will be on the road next to take on Sebring. The two teams face off at 7 p.m. on Nov. 12.