FLAGSTAFF, Ariz. (February 13, 2023) - Northern Arizona Soccer is gearing up to defend the Lumberjacks' Big Sky Championship with five scheduled Spring matches and six newcomers joining the 22 returners.
"We are turning our focus on growing and learning from the experiences we had last season," head coach Alan Berrios said. " We have a returning group that is hungry for more and willing to do what it takes to sustain that, because of this we felt that it was necessary to put together a schedule that would test us immediately."
While the Jacks began spring training today, the team will kick off the spring slate at Arizona State for a seven on seven tournament on Feb. 25. In addition to ASU, GCU and Embry Riddle will also be in attendance. The tournament will start at 9:30 a.m. MST, with the championship kicking off at 3:30 p.m. MST.
"The seven on seven tournament will help our game grow both technically and tactically," Berrios said. "It will give our players the opportunity to grow individually on a smaller playing surface, so we believe it will be a good start to our spring and will help us prepare in a way that focuses on the final four matches of the spring as well."
The Jacks will continue on March 4 with a neutral site game against BYU at the Reach 11 Sports Complex at 4 p.m. MST.
"The first full-sided game will be against the national powerhouse, BYU, so this game will test from a physical, technical, and tactical perspective," Berrios said. "BYU is an extremely athletic team that likes to get forward as quick as possible, they have extreme pace and are very dynamic with their runs off the ball."
April will hold three games to close out spring training sessions, beginning with GCU on April 1 for a 7 p.m. MST. The following week the Lumberjacks will host Embry Riddle for the lone home match of the Spring for another 7 p.m. MST kickoff. Closing out the Spring NAU will head to the University of Arizona to take on the Wildcats at 3 p.m. MST.
"Our final three games will be tough but it is always fun playing against in-state rivals like GCU and Arizona," Berrios said. "Those rivalries provide a great environment to learn in and Embry Riddle is consistently a top 25 NAIA school that is always tough to play against."
The Lumberjacks will get to work with six transfers joining the team, as NAU looks to build chemistry and confidence while working towards another title in the fall. The Jacks are welcoming Joey Lujan, Holly Hunter, Carly Lantz, Olivia Bos, Berlyn Dibble, and Fallon Anderson.
"Like last year, we have a group of six transfers who we believe have the ability to come in and contribute right away. Our goal with this portal class was to plug the holes that were left behind with the seniors graduating while at the same time balancing our roster," Berrios said.
Lujan is a transfer coming in from Kansas State. Lujan spent two years at Kansas State, playing in 14 games for the Wildcats in the 2022 season. The move to Flagstaff will bring Lujan closer to home as the Arizona native was born and raised in Gilbert, Arizona.
"Joey is a strong and athletic midfielder that will fit right in with the rest of the midfield group," Berrios said. "She brings in good experience and is a great pivot player that has the ability to serve 30 to 50 yards balls on a dime, along with winning balls and connecting on short range passes. Her physical presence is a great fit for the Big Sky Conference."
Hunter is coming from the University of Colorado, where she spent two seasons playing for the Buffs. Hunter played in 23 matches for Colorado through her freshman and sophomore seasons. Holly will be the second Hunter sister to play for the Jacks, following Randalyn Hunter's four years (2018-2022) on the NAU roster.
"Holly is a strong one on one defender with very good technical ability. She is a proven defender coming to us from one of the best conferences in the country," Berrios said. "Her composure on the ball and the ability to connect and get forward out of the back from the 2 and 3 positions will give us the opportunity to grow our playing style."
Lantz is coming from Appalachian State, where she played for two seasons. Lantz was the team's second highest scorer in her freshman season, scoring three goals on top of one assist while starting in thirteen games.
"Carly is a versatile attacking player. She has a very good ability to take players on from the 7 and 11 positions as well as the technical ability to manipulate the ball and play in the attacking midfield role," Berrios said.
Bos is transferring in from Abilene Christian University. Bos played at ACU for one season, playing in four games.
"Olivia is a strong and athletic center back, she has very good pace and has the ability to read the game well defensively," Berrios said. "She also does a great job getting forward when gaining possession, and is a ball winner. Her pace gives us a buffer that will help us deal with the speedy forwards in our conference. She will add talent and experience to an already very good defensive group."
Dibble is a sophomore transfer from Southern Utah, where she played in eight matches for the Thunderbirds, putting up one assist for SUU in her freshman season.
"Berlyn is a strong-holding midfielder. She has a very good technical ability and good vision to connect the dots for us. Her physical presses in the middle of the park will allow us to play through the middle third more often as needed," Berrios said.
Anderson will be joining the Jacks coming from Campbell University. Anderson played for Campbell for one season, making an appearance in 6 games.
"We are adding Fallon to an already very good attacking group. Fallon brings something different to the table which is the ability to hold the ball up with her back to the goal," Berrios said. "We felt like we were missing this piece from a striker perspective, because our forwards are very speedy, we needed someone like Fallon who can turn and feed our speedy wingers or turn and test the goalkeepers from distance."
The Lumberjacks will return to training sessions with eyes set on building momentum heading into the summer break in preparation for another successful fall campaign with the 22 returners and six transfers all on board.
"We are looking forward to getting back to work with a group of returners who gave it their all in the fall and brought home the regular season and conference title," Berrios said. "This is a fantastic group who is hungry for more, we have a great foundation here. I'm excited to see them grow together in the spring alongside a good group of newcomers.
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