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BYU's MacKenzee Vance (44) celebrates scoring a goal against Iowa State in a Big 12 women's soccer match at South Field on Monday, Sept. 30, 2024.

Courtesy BYU Photo

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BYU's Allie Fryer (left in blue) heads a shot into the goal during a women's college soccer match against Utah at South Field on Monday, Sept. 24, 2024.

Courtesy BYU Photo

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BYU freshman Lucy Kessler dribbles the ball against Iowa State in a Big 12 women's soccer match at South Field on Monday, Sept. 30, 2024.

Courtesy BYU Photo

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The BYU women’s soccer team had the unique experience of seeing its two captains, Ellie Walbruch and Tara Warner, go down with injuries during last spring’s competition.

Walbruch, a junior, missed the entire 2024 season after knee surgery. Warner, one of just two seniors, was able to compete in the preseason but just before Big 12 play tore her ACL and was lost for the rest of the season.

“They both made a huge impact off the field,” BYU coach Jennifer Rockwood said. “I was really proud of Ellie. It was hard for her to sit and watch but she grew in a lot of ways in how she saw the game and her teammates in a different light. After graduating 11 seniors, we were a really young team last year. We had some adversity and some random injuries so the younger players had to fill big roles. Now they can take that experience into this season.”

Now Rockwood and her coaching staff are forming the 2025 squad. The team has already taken a character-building foreign trip (to New Zealand) and are currently in the middle of camp season.

It’s not as easy as it sounds.

Sure, the players get paid to be coaches and counselors to hundreds of young boys and girls, so it’s a good summer job. But Walbruch and her teammates also go through tough workouts in the morning before spending most of the day learning to be patient with nine or ten-year olds.

“It’s a grind,” Walbruch admitted. “We’re up at 6 a.m. for workouts. But camps are a great time to build chemistry with new teammates, to get used to them and their personalities. Camps are so fun. I started going to BYU camps when I was about 12 years old. I really looked up to the older girls as role models.”

Walbruch transferred from UCLA in 2023 and made an immediate impact, tallying 11 goals and four assists for a team that made the NCAA semifinals.

“I tried to look at the year I was in recovery in a positive way,” Walbruch said. “It was all part of the plan God gave me. I grew a lot as a player and as person finding joy outside of soccer. I haven’t taken a break from soccer for a long time. It was a little bit eye-opening, what I would do without soccer. So I’m enjoying every little moment with my family and and my teammates.”

The Cougars will be loaded with returning starters in 2025, including junior goalkeeper Lynette Hernaez (69 saves), senior forward Allie Fryer (11 goals), sophomore midfielder Lucy Kesler, senior forward Mackenzee Vance (seven goals), sophomore midfielder Mika Krommenhoek (3 goals, 4 assists) and junior defender Avery Frischknecht, who will join Walbruch as a team captain.

“We made huge strides last fall with our young team,” Rockwood said. “One thing in particular we’re working on this summer is our fitness. It’s something our program is known for because of our style of play. We’ve been a high-energy scoring team but last year we only scored about half the goals we scored the previous few years, so we have to improve on our attack. We have to get better playing out of the back and controlling the ball. And I think we’ll be back to having a lot of depth throughout the lineup.”

The Cougars will add nine freshmen, seven of whom (midfielder Kate Denney, forward Cassidy Drago, forward Mia Giettsche, goalkeeper Sara Mathis, midfielder Afton Perry and forward Sophie Sivulich) joined the program in January. In addition, returned missionaries Izzi Stratton and Cameron Jorgensen — key defensive contributors in 2023 — have returned from church missions and will increase the amount of depth on the roster.

Speaking of the roster, new NCAA rules limit college teams to 28 players, which has led to some cuts and adjustments on the Cougar roster.

Rockwood said she is comfortable with her program’s place as it relates to the House settlement and profit sharing in college athletic programs.

“We’ve always had great support from our administration and our university,” she said. “We’ve always had what we’ve needed to compete. I feel really good about where we are. I’ve been working with Brian (new BYU Director of Athletics Brian Santiago) for a long time. He’s been our sport administrator. We’re still trying to figure out how all of this works but I think we’re pretty set for this fall.”

Even with the youth and the injuries, last year’s BYU team finished 9-7-5 overall, 6-2-3 in Big 12 play and earned an invitation to the NCAA Tournament.

This year’s goals are much higher.

“Our expectations are to win the Big 12, both the regular season and the conference tournament,” Walbruch said. “That’s on the minds of everyone on the team when were lifting, when we’re in free play. Everyone is bought in and we’re excited to step onto South Field this fall.”