2025 Fall Preps Preview: Ridgeline four-year varsity starter Quinn Mueller continues to put pressure on defenses

Ridgeline High School opened in 2021, a year before Quinn Mueller forced her way onto the varsity girls soccer squad, even though head coach Tiera Como doesn’t usually roster freshmen.

It is a loose policy, but one that is rooted in logic.

Como knows that players need minutes, especially freshmen who are in the prime of their development.

It is difficult for underclassmen to find the field when the roster above them is strong, but the now-senior Mueller forced Como’s hand.

“Her freshman year, she started off as a bubble player,” Como said. “As a freshman coming in, new to the program, it was like, ‘Okay, yeah, you’re standing out here and there, but do I have a position that you’re going to be playing.’ She quickly showed us coaches after just even a game or two in nonleague, that yeah, she deserved it and started on varsity right away.”

“She’s been a stud from the start.”

Como tried her out as a defensive center midfielder role early on but quickly learned that was not her strength.

She needed to be in front of the opposition goal, or at least close to it.

Mueller’s talent comes to the fore in these positions and Como called her “unpredictable,” a trait that puts extreme pressure on a defense.

“Whether she’s getting the ball at her feet or the runs that she’s making off the ball, she’s able to read the play of the game really well, and she can make other players around her better and she knows how to get the job done,” she said.

When teams inevitably double team Mueller, she takes that extra second before a slicing ball opens up the defense for one of her teammates.

Como said she is always looking to make everyone around her better and that her unselfishness shines in front of goal.

Mueller also takes pride in her off-the-ball work rate.

As a midfielder, she has some responsibility to make sure the opposing team doesn’t feel secure on the ball or break free on a counterattack.

“I’m willing to track back and do the work to win the ball back defensively,” she said.

And Mueller’s skill on the ball also can’t be minimized – Como called it the best footwork she’s seen from a female athlete.

“You see that in the male athletes and the male soccer players, because they’re the ones that are usually dribbling and have more confidence with the ball at their feet. And sometimes the moves that she comes up with, I’m like, ‘Holy cow, where did that just come from?’ ” Como said.

That ability is what attracted the eyes of college programs from around the area.

The University of Idaho was the first to reach out to Mueller in June 2024.

Mueller said the college recruiting process is very mentally and physically draining, but the Vandals made her feel most comfortable on visits and on calls.

But before she heads to Moscow, Mueller is first and foremost the leader of the Falcons, as 11 letterwinners – including four starters – were lost to graduation. That includes Emma Mostek, a Greater Spokane League all-league first teamer and Natalie Thompson, another all-league player in 2022 and 2023.

Being in a leadership role is a familiar position for Mueller. She has been the captain of her Spokane Shadow team for a couple of years while finding other opportunities to be a leader at her school and in her community.

Mueller also said her teammates make it easier to be a leader.

“She is one of those leaders on our team and in our program that I think hands down, all the girls look up to her,” Como said.

Both Mueller and Como agreed that her leadership style has morphed over the years, which is common as freshmen become more confident.

“At first, she came in very quiet, very humbled, and I think now she’s definitely grown into a more boisterous leader, and now she’s more where she will step in and tell people and lead the way with her voice and her actions,” Como said. “She’s one that definitely will back it up and she will outwork anybody on the field.”

With Mueller being on varsity for four of the five Falcon seasons, she has helped build a foundation for future Ridgeline players.

“It’s been so amazing just being a part of something new and building a legacy,” Mueller said. “I’ve been a part of both out appearances to state and we made it all the way to the Elite Eight last year, which is amazing for such a young program.”

The Falcons hope to replicate – at least – their 2024 season. It starts with Mueller, but there is an entire roster of playmakers.

Como said many of the returners have been working all offseason together, including some who played up with the Spokane Shadow Women’s First Team.

A majority also participated in the Spokane Soccer Academy.

“We’re ready for high school ball,” Como said.

Mueller was one of those who played against women who are all either in college or post-college careers. She said the high level of soccer that they play has prepped the girls for the aggression of league play.

She’ll spend her final season in Ridgeline green, soaking in the memories and remembering what it is like to play on the turf, under the lights and in front of her friends and family with her teammates flanking her.

“We have great coaches, and all the girls are so amazing, which just makes it all so easy and fun,” she said.

“Just to be a part of Ridgeline soccer is truly so special.”