Last fall, the area had the chance to root for four local soccer teams in the district tournament; Chillicothe's boys and girls and both Zane Trace and Unioto's girls.

While Chillicothe's girls were the only team to win a district title, the fact remains that we, as a community, are a lucky bunch when it comes to soccer.

As usual, last year's batch of graduations claimed many talents on the soccer field. So how does the area perform this year with new leaders, new coaches and better competition? This week's Mailbag answers your submitted soccer questions with the hopes of being half right.

Tyler Wickham replaces Zach Breth as the head coach at Chillicothe, how do you see the Cavaliers doing this year?

Wickham is a disciple of Breth's and his resume speaks for itself. He's been named the Division II assistant coach of the year and was a force on the field during his own high school career at Piketon. The Cavs lost nine seniors last season but bring back loads of talent. They'll be very good, again.

Unioto's Jayla Campbell or Chillicothe's Payten Davis. Take your pick.

Just in case you're wondering, I hate these types of questions. I'd take either on my team in a heartbeat. Both are students of the game and both can score at will. So that's my answer. I take both.

Southeastern's girls' soccer program has the most talent in its history. How far do they go?

I predicted the Panthers winning a sectional title last year and it didn't happen. So I'm not going to jinx them again. I'll say this, Southeastern will go as far as they want to go. If the Panthers work hard, they have the potential to be a dangerous team.

Zane Trace's improbable run to the district final last year was fun to watch. Who's the Pioneers' goal scorer in 2016?

Morgan Miller is gone. So is Tori Hinton, so is Emilee Chinn and so is Mariah Cox. So this is a complete guess but I'm going Shalyn Penrod. Somebody has to step up so it might as well be her.

Best defender in the area?

I'd have to go with Chillicothe junior Christian Brown here. From what I've watched, he's top of the line.

Should the SVC recognize soccer as an official sport?

Absolutely. However, not every school has a soccer program which is why the conference can't do this. On the boys' side, Huntington nor Paint Valley have soccer programs while Adena, Paint Valley, Huntington and Piketon all are missing girls' soccer teams. Maybe in the future but it's a no can do right now.

How many times does Zane Trace's Darby Pillow score this season? Over or under 20 times?

To answer your first question, alongside Holden Johnson, Pillow will score a lot. I'm going under 20 but more than 15.

Chillicothe's boys lost eight seniors last year including their top goal scorer and goalkeeper. Is a district title possible?

There's no question the Cavaliers took a hit due to graduation but there's also no question they bring back a very talented roster. With the likes of Will Krieger, John Graves and Hudson Ward, anything is possible.

Has a local team ever reached the state tournament?

Yes, indeed. In 2004, Unioto's boys beat Bloom-Carroll by a 2-0 final to advance to a Division III state semifinal. The Shermans then fell 3-1 to Cincinnati Christian Hills Academy. My favorite statistic about that Tanks' team is this: They scored 80 goals and gave up just 22.

What's the state record for most goals scored in a game? Career?

If you're talking boys, the record for goals in a game is 11 set by Chardon's Chad Johnston in 2008. The record for goals in a career belongs to Catholic Central's Calum Latham, who tallied a total of 198. On the girls' side, St. Clairsville's Jaclyn Dutton and Findlay's Kristy Coppes both scored 13 in a game while Dutton holds the career record with 192.

You send your questions, I write my answers. Send your questions, about any sport, to or via Twitter at @dw1509.

Twitter: @dw1509