Tarleton soccer kicks off strong start to season

BY COLTON BRADBERRY

Managing Editor

Tarleton State University’s women’s soccer program is finding its footing in only its fourth year of competition.

The Texans have already become one of the toughest teams in the Western Athletic Conference. With a 6-2-2 record, head coach Pete Cuadrado and his players believe the foundation they’ve laid can carry them to even greater heights.

For Cuadrado, the program is still new but has matured quickly. He said his expectations for this season reflect the growth they’ve achieved since the team first took the field.

“I just want to continue to be better than we were last year. I think we can take a step forward, [and] we have the team that can compete for a championship,” Cuadrado said.

The Texans have made steady strides since their debut, and the players see this season as another chance to show how far the program has come. Cuadrado said the team’s ultimate goal is straightforward.

“Your goal always, no matter what, is to win a conference championship,” Cuadrado said. “Once we do that a couple times, we’ll set them higher. But I think right now, as we’re building, that’s always been our goal.”

For a young program, success can be measured in many ways. Cuadrado said wins are important, but so is development and maturity.

“I think you have to start with results. I think beyond that, you also look at the talent that we have, the development of our players and the maturity of our program — I think are all measuring sticks for success,” Cuadrado said.

Through ten games, Tarleton has shown it can compete with anyone in the WAC. Cuadrado said the results so far have been encouraging but also leave room for improvement.

“I’m happy with it. I think we’ve had a couple games let slip. But I think for the most part we’ve shown up, and we’re pretty good in most of our games. We need to clean it up and be more consistent and show up to every game with an urgency and executi[on],” Cuadrado said.

A major part of the Texans’ strength is their chemistry. With eight seniors, many of whom were recruited before Tarleton even had a field to play on, the team has a bond that has been carefully built from the start.

“It’s probably a strength of ours, our chemistry,” Cuadrado said. “I think our team gets along really well. We have a lot of people that have been here for four years. We have [eight] seniors right now, and they’ve been here since before we had a team. Before we even had a field, we were recruiting them. So we try to put a good foundation of good people in our program. I think it allows us to do more and get better results because we do have pretty strong team chemistry, as far as anything I’ve done in the 26 years of doing this.”

While the group is deep in leadership, Cuadrado said he still hopes to see one or two players step into a stronger role.

“I think in leadership, it would be nice to see us develop that more,” Cuadrado said. “We have a lot of seniors, but we don’t [have] the alpha that jumps in front of the team. We have good performances, we have people with good stats. I wish we had more of an alpha. I think some days we’re too nice, if you want me to be brutally honest.”

Even without a dominant personality, the coach said the team’s culture is in a healthy place. He credited the players with maintaining standards that allow the program to thrive.

“That’s something we don’t have to push right now,” Cuadrado said. “Our team gets along, our team is supportive of each other, our team is there for each other.”

Looking forward, Cuadrado said he is encouraged by both the team’s potential this year and the direction of the program as a whole.

“On a day-to-day, my favorite thing is watching the team have success and watching people play well. That’s what excites me. What excites me for the future is just what this team can accomplish this year. I hope they see that and believe in that and show that enough on the field. The future of this program is very bright, recruiting has only gotten better and better,” Cuadrado said.

For the players, the progress has been just as meaningful. Senior midfielder Macy Hellwig said she feels a mix of excitement and urgency as the team pushes through the schedule.

“I’m really excited to see where we stand against everyone in our conference, especially it being the last year for the seniors that have been here for so long,” Hellwig said. “I’m really hoping we can get a ring too, it would be a really cool way to close out my experience, but also to open up the pathway for the younger players and excite them to continue.”

The Texans will continue conference play in the coming weeks, aiming to turn their strong start into a run toward a championship.

With an experienced senior class, a coach who believes in steady growth and a culture built on chemistry, Texan Soccer looks poised to make history in just its fourth year.