In the brief history of the program, St. Aloysius’ girls soccer team has never been to the playoffs.

With a big group of returning starters and a slightly weaker division, the Lady Flashes are thinking this could be the year the streak ends.

When St. Al opens the season Tuesday at Cathedral, it will have seven starters back. The group includes sophomore Riley Griffith, who scored seven goals last season, and nine seniors — most of whom are multi-year starters.

“That’s a pretty strong base,” first-year coach Keiko Booth said. “Our defense is always strong. We had a new goalie that did well last year. I’m hoping the offense will take a little more charge.”

St. Al only plays 11 matches this year. The shortened schedule includes two division games against a strong Madison-St. Joe squad, but the new division alignment provides some relief. Greenville-St. Joe, which Booth feels is a more even match for her team, replaces St. Andrew’s. That, along with the large returning cast, has Booth confident about the team’s chances.

“I definitely think we’ll break through this season. St. Andrew’s moved out of our district so that will help,” Booth said. “For these seniors it’s a long time coming because they were here since the first or second year. For them it will be a work paid off kind of thing.”

The boys’ team also has a new coach, even if it is a familiar face.

Jason Hopkins, who coached at St. Al from 2004-07, is back for a second go-round. So are a half-dozen starters from last season, although the Flashes will have to replace their top three goal-scorers. Richard Cowart, Stephen Mazzanti and Adam Thornton, who all graduated, combined for 28 goals and 21 assists last year.

“Losing those seniors, that was our scoring. It’s going to be a big negative not having them, but we’ll make do,” said senior defender Vincent Montalbano. “We’ll have a strong defense but the offense is going to be tough. It’s just going to take practice.”

The Flashes will get a boost from a couple of transfers. Conner Brown came in from Central Hinds, while Clay West Huddleston came from Hattiesburg. Both players have shown some promise in the preseason, Hopkins said.

Hopkins also said the team has shown some good chemistry despite only having a few practices under their belt. The group didn’t assemble until after football season ended on Nov. 6, and the first game is Tuesday at Cathedral.

“I think all the players know each other so it’ll be my job to get them working as a unit. There’s going to be some things to work through, but we’ll do it,” Hopkins said.

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Contact Ernest Bowker at ebowker@vicksburgpost.com