OKLAHOMA CITY – Back-to-back semifinal appearances in the Sooner Athletic Conference tournament and narrowly missing out on playing in the NAIA Soccer National Championships provide plenty of fuel for the OCU women's soccer fire heading into the 2025 season.
The Stars finished at 10-7-1 overall with a 5-3-1 record during conference play. Statistically speaking, OCU outperformed its opponents in 2024, scoring 40 goals while allowing 20, and securing 70 fewer shots on goal than its 241 shots on goal. Moreover, the Stars' defense allowed 9.5 shots per game while the offense tallied 13.4 shots per game. Lastly, OCU earned 20 more corner kicks than their 2024 opponents.
However, Coach Billy Martin and Assistant Coach Harvey Paul are not aiming to let their team relax and lean on the offensive output from last year. The Stars have established a high bar to clear for the upcoming 2025 season. OCU aims to be a Top-4 team in the Sooner Athletic Conference with the intention of pushing into the Top-2 of the SAC.
"To improve on our goal scoring, we feel we have plenty of players with the capabilities to score goals, just finding the right combination of players that get the ball in the back of the net," said OCU Assistant Coach Harvey Paul when asked about the offensive goal of the team this season.
Returning Players
The losses from last year's team are minimal, and the Stars return four of their top five scoring artists. Retaining a vast majority of the offensive output from 2024 will indeed aid OCU in maintaining its offensive success.
Yami Ponce, Saizlee Carlton, Abby Russell, and Amelia Horsford combined for 20 goals last season while Carlton and Russell amassed 10 assists. Piper Nichols and Aynslee Duffy return to anchor the defense. Gemma Harvey is back in goal for the Stars in 2025.
"We return a strong core group to our starting 11 with a big senior class looking to finish their collegiate career on a high note," Paul said.
The team seeks to build on excellent individual seasons from the last two seasons.
"Junior captain Reese Roberts had an excellent freshman season, we anticipate her being back at her best, senior Aynslee Duffy, she leads by example in how she plays and competes. Looking forward to her return after an injury that saw her junior season cut short," stated Paul.
Roberts earned Second Team All-Conference honors in 2024, while Duffy started in all 18 games last season and earned a SAC Commissioner Honor Roll selection.
Also returning are defenders Devin Jansing, Alyssa Schuerch, and Jadyn Basler; forward Ryann Brooks; and midfielders Ashley Russell, Chloi Thurman, Inka Silz, Wachipi Hamelryck, Kyrie Soto, and Dylan Harned.
Newcomers
Three transfers and one freshman round out the OCU roster entering 2025, all of whom bring buzz with their additions.
"We are excited for all of our new players. Senior transfer Tatum Tallal will add goals and creativity to the front line. Candela Blanco, who is a junior Goalkeeper, will be expected to make an impact after a very successful freshman year at her previous school. Kayleigh Haygood, who picked up All-Conference honors from her junior college, will also provide a spark. Ali Daugherty is a freshman with a very high upside. We are hoping she makes a quick transition into the college game from high school."
The newcomers listed above only add to the returning talent for the Stars and should provide the needed depth on the pitch.
The Schedule
OCU will face off against four teams that advanced to the NAIA Championships last season–Bellevue (Neb.) and three teams from the SAC.
Non-conference games that are scheduled for the team include the home opener on Aug. 21 at Brian Harvey Field against the University of the Southwest, followed by three road games against Our Lady of the Lake University, A&M Victoria, and Central Baptist College (Ark.). The Stars will wrap up non-conference competition with three games at home between Sept. 11 and 16 before their final non-conference road game against Bellevue in Nebraska.
The Stars will play Hesston College on Sept. 23 during their last non-conference home match before kicking off SAC play on Sept. 27 against Mid-America Christian University at home.
