GREENEVILLE, Tenn. --- The Tusculum University women's soccer team kicks off its 2024 season on Thursday, Sept. 5 when the Pioneers face off with Thomas More University at Pioneer Field, beginning at 4 p.m.
Second-year head coach Vanessa Fyffe welcomes back 18 players from last year's squad, and augmented the roster with 11 freshmen and seven transfers as the Pioneers prepare for a schedule that includes four away non-conference matches and a stretch of six out of seven contests on the road during October.
FORWARDS
Junior Sydney Grant (Schaumburg, Ill.) was a second-team All-SAC selection last season after leading the Pioneers with four goals and three assists for 11 points. Grant also led the Pioneers in shots on goal with 16, and had at least one shot attempt in 13 of the Pioneers' 16 matches. In two seasons, Grant has collected nine goals and six assists for 24 points in 32 matches.
Senior Skylar Georges (Morganton, N.C.) returns after missing all of last season due to injury. Georges played in 14 matches during the 2022 season for the Pioneers. Sophomore Tanna Bookhamer (Greeneville, Tenn.) played in all 16 matches and made 14 starts, with a total of 1,121 minutes played and 17 shot attempts.
Junior Bree Ooten (Jefferson City, Tenn.) comes to Tusculum from Bryan, where she had three goals in 17 matches last season.
Joining the program as freshmen are Addison Rishling (Wonder Lake, Ill.), Ellie Bielenda (Wheaton, Ill.), Aniya Fisher (Oak Ridge, Tenn.).
MIDFIELDERS
Four starters are back for the Pioneers, with seniors Alexis Roessler (Appleton, Wisc.) and Helena Walts (Mooresville, N.C.) joined by juniors Adriana Netskos (Sarnia, Ontario) and Wilma Axelsson (Ytterby, Sweden).
Roessler made 14 starts in 2023 in her first season with the Pioneers and scored one goal while ranking third on the team with 1,211 minutes played, while Walts started eight matches and appeared in 695 minutes. Netskos started 13 matches last year and scored two goals while playing 1,068 minutes, and Axelsson had one assist in 14 starts.
Sophomore McKenzie Hanson (Oxford, Ohio) appeared in all 16 contests last season, with three starts, and had one assist in 458 minutes of playing time. Senior Macy Vermillion (Greeneville, Tenn.) played in 14 matches for the Pioneers off the bench last year, while sophomore Marin Wills (Lexington, Ky.) had nine appearances and made two starts, with 374 minutes of playing time, and sophomore Kyndal Rollo (Athens, Tenn.) had one appearance.
Coming to the Pioneers as transfers are sophomores Lillie Clifton (Portland, Tenn.), Hannah Oliver (Guthrie, Ky.) and Juliana Garrison (Franklin, Tenn.). Clifton played in 13 matches off the bench for Johnson as a freshman. Oliver is a transfer from Albany State, where she made eight starts among her 16 appearances, while Garrison was rostered but did not make any appearances at Tampa.
Freshman Maia Scott (Auckland, New Zealand), Riley Bradley (Hernando Beach, Fla.), Kirsten Sadlon (Morristown, Tenn.) and Rachel Lifland (Buford, Ga.) join the Pioneer lineup for the 2024 season.
DEFENDERS
A veteran unit for the Pioneers with five players who have starting experience, as graduate student Trystan Wepking (Nolensville, Tenn.) is joined by junior Marja Enste (Aachen, Germany) and sophomore Brynn Stokes (Cleves, Ohio).
Enste started every match for the second straight year and was team Most Valuable Player after collecting three assists in a team-high 1,377 minutes. Stokes also started every match last season and had two goals on six shot attempts, while playing in 1,283 minutes. Wepking is in her third season with the Pioneers after making 12 starts last season.
Back for her sophomore season is Caroline Heintzelman (Marietta, Ga.), who played 406 minutes across 12 matches off the bench for the Pioneers. Junior Nara Santos (Altura, Portugal) appeared in two contests for the Pioneers in her first season with the squad.
Freshmen Mackenzie Ivy (Knoxville, Tenn.), Lotta Natschke (Aachen, Germany), Hailey Silvestri (Peterborough, Ontario) and Tanner Smith (Cincinnati, Ohio) join the program.
GOALKEEPERS
Three transfers join returning junior Mikayla Weems (Greeneville, Tenn.) in the goalkeeper ranks for the Pioneers. Grad student Angel Chase (Houston, Texas) has played in 18 matches across three seasons and has a 5-9-2 record with a 1.18 career goals against average. Sophomore Holly Cowan (Thatcham, England) was 14-4-0 with a 0.68 goals against average and five shutouts at Iowa Central CC last season, and sophomore Noemie Tartrou (Herblay-sur-Seine, France) was 10-6-0 with a 1.74 goals against average and four shutouts at Rochester University.
