Scott Nickerson
Elmore Autauga News
The Marbury girls’ soccer team was ranked in the Top 10 of Class 5A for much of the 2026 season. They won their division of the Lakeshore Tournament in Birmingham in February, and they won two of three games at a tournament in Foley in March. In that tournament, the Bulldogs beat Class 7A Foley, the team’s first time ever beating a 7A school. The Bulldogs won the Class 5A Area 5 Championship, advanced to the Class 5A Sweet 16, and finished with an 18-3-3 record. Following the successful season, the Elmore Autauga News has named Marbury girls’ soccer coach Brent Sowell as the Autauga County Soccer Coach of the Year.
“I am very grateful to be named the Coach of the Year for Autauga County,” said Coach Sowell. “This is the first time I have achieved this recognition, and I am very grateful for the players, coaches and support staff that made this season truly special.”
The Lady Bulldogs excelled in multiple areas during the 2026 season. Defensively, Marbury shutout their opponents 14 times. Offensively, they scored the second most goals in a season in school history.
“This team was a talented group that exceeded many of the expectations we had coming into the season but was also one that we knew had great potential. There were setbacks at times this year that could have derailed our season, but this group stuck to the process and came back stronger after those setbacks. It was definitely a strong season for the team overall with our only losses coming from two top 5 5A opponents and a 7A opponent,” said Coach Sowell.
The Marbury soccer program invested in GPS tracking devices through a company called Playerdata to assist players in understanding their session workloads, heat maps, and overall speed and conditioning metrics.
“This team really bought in to our use of that data, took time to understand their metrics, and learned how to improve their game so that they could play at a high level consistently. That plus the data we received from our Trace cameras really gave us an edge and allowed us to play at a high level all season,” said Coach Sowell.
The Marbury Head Coach cited the team’s 1st round playoff win as the most memorable victory of the season.
“The most memorable game, and the one that I will use as an example for years to come, would have to be our first-round playoff win against Brewbaker Tech. That game had all the emotions and moments that the game of soccer has to offer, and to come out with a win in a penalty shootout in the end was a truly special moment since our girls had been eliminated in the playoffs in the previous two seasons in penalty shootouts,” said Coach Sowell.
After winning the area championship the last two seasons, the Bulldogs will move to Area 6 of Class 4A next season. Brew Tech, their 1st round opponent in the playoffs, will now be an area opponent, along with Holtville and BTW Magnet. Coach Sowell has set a high standard for all future Marbury teams.
“We always keep the same set of goals year in and year out for our program to maintain the continuity of purpose and culture that has made us successful. Our first goals are always to have a successful weight room session, a successful conditioning session, and have a successful practice. It is doing and being successful in the little things all throughout the year that helps us to gain positive results once the season starts. If next year’s team can continue the culture and progress-minded approach that has been established by previous teams, then I expect them to continue to achieve positive results. With the separation of private schools from public schools in the playoffs, it will definitely be interesting to see how next year’s season plays out,” said Coach Sowell.
