This year’s 17th annual Mississippi Association of Coaches All-Star soccer games will have a decidedly Warren County flavor with four local players representing the area.

The games will be played Saturday at Arrows Field in Clinton, with the girls’ game at 4 p.m. and the boys’ game following at 6.

St. Aloysius got its first representative in the seven-year history of its girls’ soccer program, as Riley Griffith will join the South squad. Griffith, despite missing part of the season with various injuries, scored nine goals and had eight assists.

“I think it’s a huge accomplishment and a pretty big deal,” St. Al coach Suzie Channell said. “I know it means a lot to her. I think it’s going to be great exposure for her to be out there with all of those great players.”

Lindsey Barfield will represent Warren Central.

Barfield was second for the Lady Vikes in scoring, with 12 goals and she also had nine assists. She played a key role as team captain leading the Lady Vikes to an 11-9-2 record and a playoff berth.

“She was a big reason why we were so successful,” WC girls’ coach Trey Banks said. “This game gives her a chance to play the game she loves one more time and make one more memory on that field. Coaches around the state are noticing that we have excellent players in this area that deserve recognition. It means that our programs are being noticed for what they’re doing on the field and that’s a good thing.”

Warren Central has two players in the boys’ game, Gulf Coast Community College signee and striker Chandler Bounds and Oscar Kjellberg, who plays the center-midfield position.

WC boys’ coach Greg Head is proud of his two representatives and feels their inclusion on the all-star roster shows the metamorphosis of his program into one of the state’s best. The team is picked by the state’s soccer coaches and the Vikings have put at least two players in the game for the past three years.

“When the coaches pick not just one, but two of your players, it says a lot about how much respect they have for your team,” Head said. “It’s a great honor for us to put a couple of players in the game.”

Bounds played a role in 47 percent of WC’s 59 goals split between 16 goals and 12 assists.