It’s taken a while for the St. Aloysius Flashes to get used to the idea of being a state championship contender in soccer. After all, it’s been well over a decade since the program has even been in the discussion.

As a 12-game winning streak and the prospect of an undefeated season has gone on, however, the idea is clearly growing on them.

“It’s been the complete opposite of what it was. Our eighth-grade year, I remember we were the team getting beat 18-0 and having no chance of winning more than one or two games a season,” St. Al senior midfielder Lofton Varner said. “Being on the other side of the field, it feels great. Especially with it being our senior year, we have a chance to go somewhere with our soccer.”

Where they’re going is straight to the top.

St. Al opens the MAIS Division III playoffs Tuesday at 4 p.m., at home against Heritage Academy. The game was originally scheduled for Monday, but postponed a day because of rain. St. Al (12-0) is the top seed in the North half of the bracket and will have homefield advantage for as long as it lasts.

It’s been a 180-degree turnaround for a team that finished with a losing record last season and has largely been an afterthought on the state level since the early 2000s.

“It makes it a lot more fun, winning games. We can go in every game saying we have a chance. It hasn’t been like that in years past,” senior Casey Griffith said. “We’re pretty hot right now. There’s not much slowing us down.”

A big part of the reason for St. Al’s success has been its switch from the Mississippi High School Activities Association to the Mississippi Association of Independent Schools.

In the MHSAA St. Al — a Class 1A school — had to compete against teams in Class 1A, 2A and 3A in soccer. Two powerhouse teams, Madison-St. Joseph and St. Andrew’s, were also in their division most seasons. It was a stacked deck that made it hard to make the playoffs, let alone contend for a state title.

In the MAIS, however, the competition has been weaker and St. Al is competing against schools its own size. The more even playing field helped turn it into a soccer juggernaut. The school’s girls team won the Division III championship in the fall, and now the boys have the same opportunity.

“I feel like we definitely could change this program around this year after winning the state championship. It went from baseball to football, and it could be soccer. It’s weird,” Griffith said.

Although outside forces have contributed to St. Al’s rise, it’s emerged as a solid team in its own right. All but one senior returned from last year’s squad and the continuity has helped it get stronger as a unit.

Griffith (eight goals) and Varner (nine) are two of eight players who have scored at least five goals this season. Fifteen players have scored at least one. The Flashes have scored a total of 112 goals, or an average of nine per game.

Griffith and Varner were both selected to play in the MAIS All-Star Game.

“You’ve got guys growing up,” Griffith said. “We’ve had a young team for a while. We had one senior last year. Now we have four seniors and one sophomore starting. It’s been pretty good.”

Now, they just need to prove the regular season wasn’t a fluke. The winner of Tuesday’s game will take on Starkville Academy or Greenville-St. Joseph in the semifinals on Thursday. After that, it’s the state championship game with four-time defending Division III champion Central Hinds looming as the favorite in the South.

It’s not an easy road to the title. For the first time in a long time, however, the Flashes are on the path and that’s what really matters.

“I’m not getting nervous. I’m just getting excited for being this close and finally going somewhere with the soccer season,” Varner said. “Soccer is my favorite sport, and it always has been. Being able to get this far in soccer has been great.”

HERITAGE ACADEMY AT ST. ALOYSIUS

MAIS Division III soccer playoffs

Tuesday, 4 p.m., at Balzli Field

Admission: $6