Untimely injuries made a difficult transition to Class 4 District 8 even more overwhelming.
Last season, Platte County’s 12 seniors saw an up-and-down season conclude with three consecutive losses while bowing out with a 9-1 loss to Liberty North in the postseason opener. There were signs of optimism despite setbacks and the shift to the state’s largest classification for the first time. The Pirates twice pushed their record over .500 but ultimately finished with a losing record for the second year in a row.
Now, more injury issues complicate a needed rebuild, while Platte County also waits to find out about a potential return to Class 3 or another season in Class 4.
“Our expectations for the season are to focus on those things we can control such as attitude, effort, preparation, and response,” Platte County coach Ashlyn Brantley said. “Losing about six starters means players have to be willing to accept different roles as the season begins and hopefully become one sound body as the season progresses.”
Platte County expects both senior midfielder Ryan Waldman and junior defender Kai James-Gallimore to miss this season due to injury. Due to depth, the amount of players with starting experience not back looks extremely daunting, but the Pirates infused a lot of youth into the lineup last fall that gave a lot of players at least a taste of varsity action.
Most notably, Platte County senior forward Camden Noller returns after missing the latter half of his junior campaign due to a back injury. A third-year contributor, he provides a proven goal-scoring presence with the ability to play as a lone striker both direct in attack and in hold up play with his back to the goal.
The loss of Waldman’s presence as an attacker on the wing plus graduation losses and the need to restock the backline creates a lot of openings in the midfield. With junior Kayden Roy the other top returning forward, juniors Tyler Bagwell and Will Debiaso plus sophomores Lucas Walton, Daniel Frame and Elijah Smith have a chance to take on much bigger roles.
Smith specifically showed a lot of promise when pressed into extended action as a freshman.
James-Gallimore’s knee injury forces Platte County to replace three of the four mainstays in defense from last fall. The Pirates graduated Wally Baldwin, meaning both center backs will be new, while Westin Summes became a starter on the outside opposite of Sawyer Sullins, a junior set to become a third0year contributor.
Brantley expects Platte County juniors Ethan Quick and Josiah O’Rourke to shift back into defense with seniors Kaden Kampmeyer and Wyatt Beeson also potential contributors. The Pirates also bring back junior Jack Gardner and sophomore Cooper Miles at goalkeeper after both saw action last season.
“I would not be surprised to see leaders step up from the sophomore and junior classes,” Brantley said. “We have players stepping into new roles this season, but I believe that will help in our growth for the future. “
Girdner played the majority of minutes down the stretch and impressively made 11 saves in the season-ending 9-1 loss to Liberty North, the 2025 Suburban Conference Gold Division Champions.
However, Platte County turned in just three cleansheets last season, and the Pirates ended up allowing the first goal of the match in each of the final 11 games while still winning five of those. Conversely, the offense averaged just about 2 goals per game despite a difficult schedule.
Platte County also loses four-year starter Cameron Habel after he developed into the team’s leading scorer in addition to Ian Mathews and Abe Norman. All three were top performers in the midfield, while Chaz Cox also returned to the roster for his senior season and became an increasingly important contributor in his final go-round with Noller and Waldman both out with injuries down the stretch.
Noller also missed his freshman season but garnered first team All-Suburban Conference White Division honors as a breakout sophomore.
Platte County has finished under .500 the past two seasons since going 15-5 in 2023, and the Pirates were 7-7 in White Division play last season. Habel (first-team midfielder) and Mathews (second-team midfielder) were the only all-conference picks in 2025. Baldwin, James-Gallimore and Waldman were all honorable mention.
