DOUGLAS – The Cochise College women’s soccer team begins its 14th season next week on the road and up against the toughest opening opponent it could have asked for.
The Apaches head to Paradise Valley on Aug. 25 to face a Puma team that went undefeated last season as the NJCAA Division I National Champions. This year, Paradise Valley tops the preseason top 10 poll.
“There are a lot of solid players returning for them,” said Cochise head coach Andrea Daniels. “Every team in our conference is good. We’re ready to battle every single game, but they’ll come in with a lot of confidence, so we’ll have to bring in the same energy they bring right off the bat.”
Cochise continues its time away Aug. 27 at Scottsdale, and Aug. 29 and 31 in California against Riverside and Palomar, before finally returning to Southern Arizona for the Sept. 3 home opener against Pima.
“Actually, last year we did better on our away games,” Daniels said. “I don’t know if we got stage fright being at home, but the team performed a lot better away. Hopefully we’ll do well at both places, but (starting on the road) will probably be a good thing, since that was our team last year.”
Daniels returns for her second season at the helm of the program after spending time as both a player and assistant at Cochise. She has also coached at Florida International University and Grambling State University.
This year, Cochise is looking to improve on last year’s five-win season after losing several key players, including star forward Karina Suetsuga, a Brazil native, who signed with Auburn University Montgomery after finishing her two years with the Apaches.
“Our new bunch, they’re going to have to step in and be responsible right off the bat,” Daniels said. “We graduated almost our whole back defensive line, both our center midfield players, and our key forward. The new players coming in, we’re looking for them to be leaders on the field along with returners. We can’t win games without either of them.”
Cochise will see seven returners and 11 newcomers. Key sophomores include goalie Justin Padilla and forward Kayla Davis, who was the squad’s leading scorer last year and was named first team all-conference and all-region.
“A lot of our returners are starters, so that is a good foundation,” Daniels said. “Everyone is working hard and being very positive. Our outlook on the season is a very good one.”