Thousands of fans rolled into the Texas A&M women's soccer home opener August 25th versus the UT-San Antonio(w). The Aggies opened the 2012 season with two tough road games in California against UC Irvine, a 2-1 win, and the University of San Diego, a 0-1 loss.

Once home, the Aggies were welcomed by a singing crowd that recalled the day's earlier Premier League match between Chelsea and Newcastle. Like the Blues fans, the Aggie crew and Fish Camp shook the stands with songs, chants, and cheers all to the beat of an A&M drumline. 

“If we can play at home, we know we can win,” Head Coach G. Guerrieri said.

Kelley Monogue

The 12th man plays a huge role in boosting the team's confidence. Coach Guerrieri feels that the energy at Ellis Field has highly contributed to the program's success over the years. TAMU has reached the Elite Eight four times with each chance to reach the College Cup coming on the road.

“For us, we have to take care of business during the regular season so that we can play in front of the 12^th man,” Guerrieri said. “I really feel home field advantage is good for a goal. At that level, one goal makes a big difference.”

While the 2011 squad was nearly half freshmen and newcomers, this year's team is stacked with collegiate experience and leadership.

“We’re talented. I think we’ve got a good level of experience," Guerrieri said. "We’ve got a roster full of kids used to winning.”

With the return of previously injured personnel like sophomore forwards Shea Groom and Kelley Monogue, the Aggies offense will continue to increase in potency. Groom already has two assists on the season and though Monogue is only playing 15 minutes a half while working back from her ACL surgery, she scored the gamewinner against UCI and looked consistently dangerous against UTSA.

The Big-12 Offensive Player of the 2011 season had an immediate impact on the team simply by entering the field of play. All of the sudden, the sense of urgency and confidence increased across the field and the players fervently went after the Roadrunners' defense ultimately pushing across two goals.

"We want to win. We’ve played a lot of games that we have outplayed, and we need to find ways to win the game,” Guerrieri said. "Against UCI, we weren’t great in spells, but our girls found a way to win. Last year, with the inexperience, that was perhaps the difference."

 TAMU also welcomed the return of redshirt junior Jayne Eadie into the midfield to add that additional experience. The Oregon State transfer and English transplant missed the entire 2011 season due to injury. Along with Eadie, senior captain Beth West helps fill out the battle-tested midfield. In her fifth year after a redshirt, the technical West already has multiple conference accolades.

The Aggies defense led by junior center back Rachel Lenz transitioned to a three-back, allowing the talented sophomore Meghan Streight to push forward more centrally. Streight demonstrated her exceptional air-game Saturday by winning the midfield 50-50 game and scoring the second goal of the game off a corner. After the holding mid flew in front of her defender in the box and pummeled the ball into the back of the net, the coaching exploded with excitement.

“If we do our thing, we should be able to impose our style on them,” associate head coach Phil Stephenson said.

Now in his 20th season at Texas A&M, Coach G. has imposed the Aggie tradition on players, fans, and the community. For the staff, college soccer is not just about the style of play on the field but the personal experience for all of those involved.

"Now when I look back, of the players that have been with us, I’m proud that this experience at A&M has made them great contributors to communities and great leaders of their families,” Guerrieri said. "My goal remains to win a national championship and repeat as many times as possible. Even if it doesn’t pay off, the journey is so great."

The journey continues for the Aggies when they face Rutgers Friday, August 31 surrounded by their bombastic teammate in Ellis Field's 12th man.

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