The most noticeable difference between the 2017 and 2018 squads is in the midfield where the Aggies are replacing a pair of four-year starters in Mikaela Harvey and Stephanie Malherbe, who garnered United Soccer Coaches All-America and All-Southeast Region honors, respectively.
Despite the departures, the staff feels confident with the situation where they will mix-and-match 11 potential players to patrol the midfield.
The Aggies boast three returning starters in the midfield from last season, including Cienna Arrieta (16 starts), Addie McCain (17) and Grace Piper (20). Emily Bates started a total of 18 games between the midfield and attack in 2017. Kate Hajdu adds a wealth of experience with 46 Aggie caps, including 26 starts. Bates, McCain and Piper all earned SEC All-Freshman distinction during their respective rookie campaigns.
Other returnees who could see action in the midfield include Jenna Byers, Claudette Lassandro and Rheagen Smith.
Kendall Bates, Macie Kolb and Tera Ziemer are newcomers who bolster the position.
COACH G'S TAKE...
"One of the strengths of this team is the players we have in the midfield. They have great poise on the ball, great skill and the ability to turn the game individually, but more importantly, they play very well together as a unit. They complement each other's skill sets and it makes them a unit that can dominate their territory."
CIENNA ARRIETA
Arrieta is a dynamo in the midfield, menacing opponents to win 50-50 balls in the midfield. She has 44 Aggie caps, including 29 starts. The El Paso native has shown the ability to be a playmaker with 14 points on five goals and four assists. Arrieta is potent on free kick opportunities within 30 yards, scoring set piece goals against Florida and Missouri in 2017.
COACH G'S TAKE...
"Cienna is one of the most athletic players we have. Her power and ability to get away from people makes her dangerous whether she is on the frontline or in the midfield."
EMILY BATES
Bates has shown All-America talent during her time in Aggieland, but midseason injuries have stymied her stat line each of the last two seasons. The Melissa, Texas, native has 57 Aggie caps with 53 starts. She has 45 career points on 16 goals and 13 assists. Bates started 18 games last season, posting 14 points on four goals and six assists. She showed the propensity to score in clutch situations in 2017, including the 88th minute game-winner against Arkansas in the SEC Tournament championship game and the 87th-minute game-tying tally against Notre Dame in the NCAA Championship second round. Bates enters 2017 poised to top her freshman output when she notched 20 points on seven goals and six assists in 22 games.
COACH G'S TAKE...
"Emily has been our most dynamic attacking force ever since she stepped on campus in 2015. She is someone who can set people up, but can also finish off big goals at key times."
KENDALL BATES
Bates, the younger sister Emily, was a three-year letterwinner at Melissa High School. She racked up All-Texas Class 4A Second Team recognition as well as Dallas Morning News All-DFW Second Team and District 5-4A Most Valuable Player recognition as a junior in 2017. During her three-year career at Melissa, she logged a whopping 59 goals and 63 assists, including 25 goals and 15 assists as a junior and 18 goals and 36 assists as a freshman. She was a District 5-4A First Team and all-region first team choice as a sophomore and an All-Texas Class 4A Honorable Mention and District 5-4A Newcomer of the Year as a freshman.
COACH G'S TAKE...
"Kendall is probably our most technical and skilled player – and that's saying a lot on a very skillful team. She has great poise on the ball and can play with one touch. She can control the game and she's going to be a real team leader during her time in College Station."
JENNA BYERS
Byers has not had the best of luck in her time in Aggieland. She has undergone three surgeries in her first two years, but 2018 looks to be the year where her hard work and rehabbing will begin to pay off. Last year, Byers saw the pitch twice for a total of 43 minutes, but she played valuable minutes this spring and enters the season in relatively good health.
COACH G'S TAKE...
"Jenna brings stability, poise and a winner's mentality to the heart of our midfield. She is a great goal scorer from distance, but also does a great job of keeping the game under control."
KATE HAJDU
Hajdu has played in 46 games, but most of her action came in her solid freshman campaign. In 2015, she played in 26 games, including 19 starts, notching 12 points on four goals and four assists. Hajdu started seven of the first eight games her sophomore season before suffering a season-ending injury. Last year she was limited to 12 appearances, all off the bench.
COACH G'S TAKE...
"Kate is one of our most intelligent student-athletes at Texas A&M. She has great physical fitness and a terrific perspective on trying to be dominant in the midfield."
MACIE KOLB
Kolb was a three-year letterwinner at McKinney Boyd High School, which also produced Aggie standouts Kelley Monogue and Meghan Streight. She was a three-time All-District 6-6A honoree, including first team as both a freshman and sophomore and second team as a junior. Kolb played through injury as a junior to lead squad to the first round of the state playoffs and earn all-district second-team recognition. She spent her last two prep years with the Solar Soccer Club and helped lead Solar ECNL to a regional playoff appearance.
COACH G'S TAKE...
"Macie has an attacker's mentality. She can play anywhere up and down the flank. She has a green light to take the ball and go any time she wants. Macie has some great experience with some great clubs in north Texas."
CLAUDETTE LASSANDRO
Lassandro has appeared in 46 games in her three seasons, including one start. She has shown an ability to dent the net with two goals, including one as a freshman and one as a junior.
COACH G'S TAKE...
"Claudette is one of the most important members of our team. She's a unifying force both on and off the pitch. When she is on the ball she has a lethal left foot."
ADDIE McCAIN
As a rookie in 2017, McCain garnered SEC All-Freshman recognition. She played in all 22 games, including 17 starts. McCain led the team with six assists on the season and added a game-winning goal in the Aggies' 2-1 victory against Vanderbilt. She ranked fifth in minutes played among Texas A&M players.
COACH G'S TAKE...
"Addie is one of the smoothest players in the SEC. She seems to glide the way she covers ground. She is able to play with her head up find people in advantageous areas on the field and it's really special to watch."
GRACE PIPER
Piper is a two-year starter in the defensive midfield with 42 Aggie caps, including 38 starts. Last season, she played in 22 games, with 20 starts, notching 10 points on four goals and two assists. The Woodlands, Texas, native has shown a knack for late game heroics, including her 109th-minute dagger on the flooded pitch at Georgia. Piper earned SEC All-Freshman recognition in 2016 when she tallied nine points on four goals and one assist in her 20 matches.
COACH G'S TAKE...
"Grace has been a lynch pin of our midfield ever since she arrived in Aggieland. Her ability and her range allow our attacking players a lot of freedom in the way that they play."
RHEAGEN SMITH
Smith enters her sophomore season after a year of honing her skills. She appeared in 17 games as a reokie, with 314 minutes played at forward and in the midfield. Her lone goal was one of the biggest of the year for the Aggies, logging a second-half equalizer in the Maroon & White's SEC Tournament semifinal victory against Florida.
COACH G'S TAKE...
"Rheagen is a very athletic player who can turn on the ball as well as anyone we have seen. She has a great team mentality, but the individual abilities to break a game open."
TERA ZIEMER
A prep all-American, Ziemer was a three-year letterwinner at Montgomery High School in Santa Rosa, Calif. She led the Vikings to three appearances in the California Interscholastic Federation North Coast Section championship, including winning the title as a junior and finishing as a runner-up as a freshman and sophomore. Ziemer was tabbed a TopDrawerSoccer TeamSnap All-California and All-West Region performer in 2016. Hailing form a prodigious soccer family, her father Marcus Ziemer is beginning his 28th year as head coach at Sonoma State University, her mother, Trisha (Gretton) Ziemer, was a standout at Santa Clara University and Sonoma State, and her sister, Taylor Ziemer, was a two-year letter winner at the University of Virginia.
COACH G'S TAKE...
"Tera is one of the most game-savvy we have had come into the program in a long time. She comes from a family of soccer coaches and great players. When she steps on the field, you wouldn't know she was a first-year college player."
Despite the departures, the staff feels confident with the situation where they will mix-and-match 11 potential players to patrol the midfield.
The Aggies boast three returning starters in the midfield from last season, including Cienna Arrieta (16 starts), Addie McCain (17) and Grace Piper (20). Emily Bates started a total of 18 games between the midfield and attack in 2017. Kate Hajdu adds a wealth of experience with 46 Aggie caps, including 26 starts. Bates, McCain and Piper all earned SEC All-Freshman distinction during their respective rookie campaigns.
Other returnees who could see action in the midfield include Jenna Byers, Claudette Lassandro and Rheagen Smith.
Kendall Bates, Macie Kolb and Tera Ziemer are newcomers who bolster the position.
COACH G'S TAKE...
"One of the strengths of this team is the players we have in the midfield. They have great poise on the ball, great skill and the ability to turn the game individually, but more importantly, they play very well together as a unit. They complement each other's skill sets and it makes them a unit that can dominate their territory."
CIENNA ARRIETA
Arrieta is a dynamo in the midfield, menacing opponents to win 50-50 balls in the midfield. She has 44 Aggie caps, including 29 starts. The El Paso native has shown the ability to be a playmaker with 14 points on five goals and four assists. Arrieta is potent on free kick opportunities within 30 yards, scoring set piece goals against Florida and Missouri in 2017.
COACH G'S TAKE...
"Cienna is one of the most athletic players we have. Her power and ability to get away from people makes her dangerous whether she is on the frontline or in the midfield."
EMILY BATES
Bates has shown All-America talent during her time in Aggieland, but midseason injuries have stymied her stat line each of the last two seasons. The Melissa, Texas, native has 57 Aggie caps with 53 starts. She has 45 career points on 16 goals and 13 assists. Bates started 18 games last season, posting 14 points on four goals and six assists. She showed the propensity to score in clutch situations in 2017, including the 88th minute game-winner against Arkansas in the SEC Tournament championship game and the 87th-minute game-tying tally against Notre Dame in the NCAA Championship second round. Bates enters 2017 poised to top her freshman output when she notched 20 points on seven goals and six assists in 22 games.
COACH G'S TAKE...
"Emily has been our most dynamic attacking force ever since she stepped on campus in 2015. She is someone who can set people up, but can also finish off big goals at key times."
KENDALL BATES
Bates, the younger sister Emily, was a three-year letterwinner at Melissa High School. She racked up All-Texas Class 4A Second Team recognition as well as Dallas Morning News All-DFW Second Team and District 5-4A Most Valuable Player recognition as a junior in 2017. During her three-year career at Melissa, she logged a whopping 59 goals and 63 assists, including 25 goals and 15 assists as a junior and 18 goals and 36 assists as a freshman. She was a District 5-4A First Team and all-region first team choice as a sophomore and an All-Texas Class 4A Honorable Mention and District 5-4A Newcomer of the Year as a freshman.
COACH G'S TAKE...
"Kendall is probably our most technical and skilled player – and that's saying a lot on a very skillful team. She has great poise on the ball and can play with one touch. She can control the game and she's going to be a real team leader during her time in College Station."
JENNA BYERS
Byers has not had the best of luck in her time in Aggieland. She has undergone three surgeries in her first two years, but 2018 looks to be the year where her hard work and rehabbing will begin to pay off. Last year, Byers saw the pitch twice for a total of 43 minutes, but she played valuable minutes this spring and enters the season in relatively good health.
COACH G'S TAKE...
"Jenna brings stability, poise and a winner's mentality to the heart of our midfield. She is a great goal scorer from distance, but also does a great job of keeping the game under control."
KATE HAJDU
Hajdu has played in 46 games, but most of her action came in her solid freshman campaign. In 2015, she played in 26 games, including 19 starts, notching 12 points on four goals and four assists. Hajdu started seven of the first eight games her sophomore season before suffering a season-ending injury. Last year she was limited to 12 appearances, all off the bench.
COACH G'S TAKE...
"Kate is one of our most intelligent student-athletes at Texas A&M. She has great physical fitness and a terrific perspective on trying to be dominant in the midfield."
MACIE KOLB
Kolb was a three-year letterwinner at McKinney Boyd High School, which also produced Aggie standouts Kelley Monogue and Meghan Streight. She was a three-time All-District 6-6A honoree, including first team as both a freshman and sophomore and second team as a junior. Kolb played through injury as a junior to lead squad to the first round of the state playoffs and earn all-district second-team recognition. She spent her last two prep years with the Solar Soccer Club and helped lead Solar ECNL to a regional playoff appearance.
COACH G'S TAKE...
"Macie has an attacker's mentality. She can play anywhere up and down the flank. She has a green light to take the ball and go any time she wants. Macie has some great experience with some great clubs in north Texas."
CLAUDETTE LASSANDRO
Lassandro has appeared in 46 games in her three seasons, including one start. She has shown an ability to dent the net with two goals, including one as a freshman and one as a junior.
COACH G'S TAKE...
"Claudette is one of the most important members of our team. She's a unifying force both on and off the pitch. When she is on the ball she has a lethal left foot."
ADDIE McCAIN
As a rookie in 2017, McCain garnered SEC All-Freshman recognition. She played in all 22 games, including 17 starts. McCain led the team with six assists on the season and added a game-winning goal in the Aggies' 2-1 victory against Vanderbilt. She ranked fifth in minutes played among Texas A&M players.
COACH G'S TAKE...
"Addie is one of the smoothest players in the SEC. She seems to glide the way she covers ground. She is able to play with her head up find people in advantageous areas on the field and it's really special to watch."
GRACE PIPER
Piper is a two-year starter in the defensive midfield with 42 Aggie caps, including 38 starts. Last season, she played in 22 games, with 20 starts, notching 10 points on four goals and two assists. The Woodlands, Texas, native has shown a knack for late game heroics, including her 109th-minute dagger on the flooded pitch at Georgia. Piper earned SEC All-Freshman recognition in 2016 when she tallied nine points on four goals and one assist in her 20 matches.
COACH G'S TAKE...
"Grace has been a lynch pin of our midfield ever since she arrived in Aggieland. Her ability and her range allow our attacking players a lot of freedom in the way that they play."
RHEAGEN SMITH
Smith enters her sophomore season after a year of honing her skills. She appeared in 17 games as a reokie, with 314 minutes played at forward and in the midfield. Her lone goal was one of the biggest of the year for the Aggies, logging a second-half equalizer in the Maroon & White's SEC Tournament semifinal victory against Florida.
COACH G'S TAKE...
"Rheagen is a very athletic player who can turn on the ball as well as anyone we have seen. She has a great team mentality, but the individual abilities to break a game open."
TERA ZIEMER
A prep all-American, Ziemer was a three-year letterwinner at Montgomery High School in Santa Rosa, Calif. She led the Vikings to three appearances in the California Interscholastic Federation North Coast Section championship, including winning the title as a junior and finishing as a runner-up as a freshman and sophomore. Ziemer was tabbed a TopDrawerSoccer TeamSnap All-California and All-West Region performer in 2016. Hailing form a prodigious soccer family, her father Marcus Ziemer is beginning his 28th year as head coach at Sonoma State University, her mother, Trisha (Gretton) Ziemer, was a standout at Santa Clara University and Sonoma State, and her sister, Taylor Ziemer, was a two-year letter winner at the University of Virginia.
COACH G'S TAKE...
"Tera is one of the most game-savvy we have had come into the program in a long time. She comes from a family of soccer coaches and great players. When she steps on the field, you wouldn't know she was a first-year college player."