OKLAHOMA CITY -- To say the Mid-America Christian University women's soccer program is on an upswing would be a massive understatement. Under co-head coaches Zach Bice and Evan Dresel, the Lady Evangels have captured the past two NCCAA Central Regional championships, including coming one win away from their first-ever NCCAA national title game appearance last season.
Overall, the Lady Evangels have posted winning records in five of the past six years, with a 12-9-1 mark in 2015.
"I am really looking forward to a new year," Bice said. "The women graduated nine starters so we will be a very new team. I am really excited about the challenge and some of the new talent we are bringing in."
As Bice said, with the departure of the top two scorers from last season (Kaci Power & Cici Mitchell), plenty of opportunities to make an impact should exist.
The leading returning scorers for this year's edition are sophomore Brittney Stephens and senior Taylor Moseley.
Stephens scored five goals last season, good for third on the team, while Moseley tallied three goals and ranked second with three assists.
Senior Jamie Carroll and junior Amaris Smitherman are also back after scoring one goal each last season.
Returning defenders this season for the Lady Evangels are senior Taylor Moore and sophomore Allie Summerfield. Moore and Summerfield contributed to a defensive effort that posted seven shutouts last year.
The Lady Evangels also welcome back a trio of letterwinners in senior Cindy Ramos and sophomores Angelica Ceballos and Rebekah Lindsey. Ramos played in 15 matches last season, with 13 starting assignments. Ceballos competed in two matches and Lindsey made one appearance last year.
Competing for playing time in the net this season is expected to be senior Kenady Maynard and freshmen Madison Donahoo and Ashlyn Blankenship. Maynard has saw action in a handful of matches the past two years after starting 17 matches with a 1.87 goals-against-average in 2013.
Newcomers that Bice and Dresel have brought in that could also be relied upon include: junior Jordan Stanbrough and freshmen Sophie Harris, Brandi Whitehouse, Keanni Barnes, Cailey Bills, Jasmine Chicon Diaz, Pyper Steinweiss and Kelsey Janko.
The Lady Evangels are scheduled to begin the regular season tomorrow (Aug. 27) at McPherson (Kan.) College, while the home opener is set for Sept. 10 against Southwestern (Kan.) College.
