The Arizona High School Soccer Open Division is off to a hot-start as we now know the teams who will be moving on to Round 2 of AZ’s highest level of competition.

Round 1, the first of two “non-elimination” rounds in the Open Division, saw little upsets by way of seeding, but gave many teams the chance to see unfamiliar competition for the first time all year. 32 teams entered Wednesday night looking for the chance to prove themselves to the state that they belong in the state’s biggest tournament.

Here are a few of the games that we managed to attend last night:

(29) Douglas vs (4) Verrado

Result: 3-0 Verrado

The Verrado Vipers were one of the most dominant teams in 5A all season. It was no surprise going into the Open that they would be seeded highly given their consistently high rankings during the regular season amongst AIA and WSS rankings. They faced Douglas, who’s 11-2-1 record entering the night was amongst the top teams in Southern Arizona.

From the first whistle, this game was all Verrado from the start.

Midfielder Tony Rodriguez got the scoring started for Verrado about mid-way through the first-half at ’23. While Douglas’ defense held firm for the remaining 20 minutes of the half, the flood gates opened in Half #2 as seniors Josiah Reynaga and Michael Munoz both found the back of the net in the span of 5 minutes.

Verrado never relinquished their lead, or control of the game for that matter, and held on to win 3-0 in a shutout victory at home. Verrado’s backline did not allow a scoring chance to Douglas throughout 80 minutes.

The Vipers will host Yuma-powerhouse San Luis tomorrow night at Home.

(19) Desert Mountain vs. (14) ALA Gilbert-North

Result: 4-0 ALAGN

ALAGN silenced any critics they may have had going into last night’s game. The 4A Eagles, who went 12-2 during the regular season, easily handled Desert Mountain with a 4-0 shutout win at home.

4 different goal-scorers found the back of the net for ALA. The strong offensive performance was capped off with a Logan Gonzalez goal in the dying-seconds of the game, an outside the box screamer was perfectly placed as the Eagles celebrated their Open Division win, shirts off and all.

ALA Gilbert-North will go to Tucson on Friday to take on #3 Mica Mountain. The Thunderbolts are 14-3 after a 5-0 rout of Greenway last night.

(17) Paradise Valley vs. (16) Red Mountain

Result: 4-1 Red Mountain

Red Mountain was on fire heading into the playoffs after they took down Westwood to claim the Region Title. They carried that momentum into a 4-1 win against 5A Paradise Valley.

For the Mountain Lions, it was the young-guns who stuffed the stat-sheet Wednesday night. Jr. Gustavo Valenzuela, Fr. Xavier Easter, and a pair from So. Joel Asare, all contributing to a big Red Mountain win.

Red Mountain, by far, is one of the youngest teams in these Open playoffs. 8/10 of their top-scorers are all underclassmen. Leading goal-scorer Ryder Barrett (11) is only a Sophomore, and is averaging nearly a point and a half per game in 2025-2026.

The Mountain Lions will face a tough task as they’ve drawn #1 Sunnyside in Round 2, but this team is hot, and anything can happen in February.

Game of the Night: (21) Westwood vs. (12) Mountain View Marana

Result: 4-3 Mountain View Marana

Mountain View Marana quietly stacked up one of the most impressive records in not just Southern Arizona, but the entire state, throughout the course of the regular season. They entered the night at 15-4-1, making the Open Division after 3 seasons of a 6-5-1 record. However, very quickly it seemed as if they were going to be knocked out of the Open just as quick as they got there.

Mountain View clearly didn’t get that message.

Westwood jumped out to a 3-0 lead to open the game, but by the end of 80 minutes, it was Mountain View Marana who came out on top, completely flipping the script and scoring 4 unanswered to defend home field with a win.

It was MVM’s first taste of 6A competition this season, and only the 2nd team they’ve faced to reside outside of Southern Arizona. Still, the Mountain Lions prevailed, and they’re moving on to Round 2 to face Brophy in Phoenix.

For Westwood, the season has quickly taken a sharp turn for the worse. The Warriors were at one point 14-0, but they have now seen back-to-back losses for the first time all year. A tough loss to Red Mountain to close out the regular season saw their 6A East Valley Region title-hopes dashed, and now, they’re onto the 6A Conference bracket as their last chance to end this season with a State Championship.

What To Expect in Round 2:

Tomorrow night (2/13), Round 2 of the Open will take place all across the state at 6:00pm. This is the final “safe” round of the Open, as eliminated teams will drop down to their respective bracket. Starting next week in Round 3, losing teams will be eliminated from the Open and their season will end.

Game To Watch: (20) San Luis vs. (4) Verrado

San Luis, one of the most consistent programs in recent history, travels up to the West Valley tomorrow to take on a hot Verrado team. Verrado has dominated their 5A schedule but has not seen much 6A competition this season. San Luis dominated their predominantly-Yuma based schedule, but saw some hiccups against Hamilton early in the season and eventually a loss to Boulder Creek to end the regular season. This game could shape up to be one of, if not the best game in the Open tomorrow night.

Honorable Mention: (15) Kofa vs. (2) Catalina Foothills

Stay locked in with WSSArizona and WSSGolazo as we’ll have continuous coverage of the 2025-2026 Arizona Open Division Soccer Tournament.