These kids are alright.

The Libby Logger girls and boys soccer teams are off to excellent starts in the 2026 season after both triumphed in their respective home openers Tuesday over Thompson Falls at J. Neils Memorial Park.

The boys opened with a 4-0 win over the Blue Hawks and the girls also enjoyed a shutout win, 3-0.

The girls squad is 4-0 and has outscored its opponents 17-2 while being led by Giovanni Cano and Kate Stephens. The four wins are one more than the team had in a 3-9 campaign in 2025.

The top scorers on the team include four freshmen, one eighth-grader and a junior.

Finley Hannah, one of two eighth-grade students on the team, leads the Loggers in scoring with six goals. She buried two in Tuesday’s win and enjoyed a four-goal game in a 10-1 rout of East Helena.

Freshman Mika Valentine has five goals while classmates Ellie Berke (2), Sadie Stephens (1) and Ava Myers (1) have also found the back of the net. One of the “old-timers” on the team, junior Zoey Bernall, has two goals.

Sophomore keeper Sara Kosters endured a tough freshman campaign against some of the best teams in the state in Libby’s division in Northwest Montana. But her sophomore season is also off to a strong start with just two goals allowed.

There has been debate as to the last time the Libby girls team had this type of a beginning to a season. While some thought the 2011 squad might have been the last time they enjoyed such a beginning, it was the 2009 team that started 13-0.

That Loggers team reached the Class A state championship game before suffering a heartbreaking 4-2 loss in overtime to Billings Central. 

The boys are 2-1-1 behind the father-son coaching duo of Joe and Alderic Martineau. They opened with a 5-1 win over East Helena before dropping a 3-2 nail-biter to Lockwood. A 2-2 tie followed against Frenchtown before Tuesday’s shutout. The boys are halfway to their 2025 win total of four.

In Tuesday's game, Colter Anderson scored two goals while Ledger Fortner and Jon Cano each had one. James Wolfe assisted on two Libby goals with Josh Wolfe and Cano assisting on the others.

Both teams play Saturday at Bigfork. The Vikings are 0-3 and the Valkyries are 1-3. 

The Loggers return home Thursday, Sept. 17 to host Columbia Falls. The Cfalls girls squad is the defending state champ and is coming off a 10-0 win over Browning. The Wildcats boys team is coming off a 2025 season that saw them advance to the state semifinals before falling to eventual champion, Polson, on penalty kicks.

    Libby freshman Mika Valentine battles a Thompson Falls player for possession during their game Tuesday, Sept. 8, 2026, at J. Neils Memorial Park. (Scott Shindledecker/The Western News)
  

    Libby junior Zoey Bernall takes a shot Tuesday, Sept. 8, 2026, against Thompson Falls. (Scott Shindledecker/The Western News)
  

    Libby freshman Sadie Stephens chases a loose ball Tuesday, Sept. 8, 2026, against Thompson Falls. (Scott Shindledecker/The Western News)