By Ron Smith
August 29, 2021
 
(SANTA BARBARA, Calif.) The 2021 roster for 18th-ranked Westmont Women's Soccer includes 12 fresh faces while returning 16 players from last year's team. The newcomers join a team that won the GSAC Championship last season and advanced to host an NAIA National Championship Opening Round.
 
Joining the Warriors from Escondido is goalkeeper Maya Pablos. Playing for Great Oaks High School, Pablos earned First Team All-Southwestern League honors after helping lead her team to the CIF Southern Section championship. Pablos also played for the San Diego Surf Soccer Club where she was a member of the Elite Club Regional Team.
 
"Maya is a very confident, hardworking goalkeeper with good long punts," noted Westmont head coach Jenny Jaggard.
 
"I am looking forward to being challenged on the women's soccer team mentally and physically," said Pablos. "What drew me towards Westmont was the community feeling as well as the academic and athletic balance. From Westmont, I hope to gain knowledge to prepare me for my career. I can't wait to represent my school."
 
Jillian Geist of Davis and Shayna Stock of Redondo Beach will add to the Warriors' defensive corp.
 
"A smart and athletic outside back and center back, Jillian is a good passer under pressure and will help us to keep possession of the ball," reported Jaggard.
 
Geist played for Davis High School where she served as co-captain in her senior year. The team was both the Delta League and CIF Sac-Joaquin Section champions. She was also captain for eight years at Davis Legacy Soccer Club.
 
"As a member of the Westmont Women's Soccer team, I am looking forward to furthering my athletic career in an environment that is faith-based and with a team that is welcoming and supportive," said Geist. "I hope to gain life-long friends, grow in my faith, and improve as a Westmont athlete."
 
"Shayna is an intelligent defender who can play center back or outside back," said Jaggard, "Shayna is athletic and reads the game well.  She has a very long throw-in and the ability to help us get into the attack."
 
Stock was an All-Bay League First Team selection and her team won the Bay League championship. A member of the Beach Football Club, Stock's team won the Surf Cup and National Cup.
 
"I look forward to bonding with the team and hopefully winning the NAIA Championship," said Stock. "I hope to engage myself both in my sport and academics and make lifelong friendships along the way."


New to the midfield this year are Grace Wilhelm of Olympia, Wash., Myah Sinko and Alyssa Zahiralis of San Jose, Ande Siegel of Costa Mesa, and Annalise Romero of Temecula.
 
Wilhelm played for Olympia High School where she was an All-South Sound Conference First Team selection. Playing for the Blackhills Football Club, Wilhelm's team was the 2020 PAC Northwest Winter Classic G02 Runner-up and the 2019-20 RCL G02 D1 League Champions.
 
"Grace is a very skillful player with a very high work rate and ability to see the game and create attacking opportunities," assessed Jaggard.
 
"The most appealing aspect about Westmont to me is how the Christian faith is incorporated into every aspect of the school, whether it be in academics, sports, or clubs," said Wilhelm. "What I hope to gain as a student athlete is to solidify a sense of discipline and leadership that I can carry with me for the rest of my life and implement in my future career."
 
As a player at Leigh High School, Sinko was named to the All-Blossom Valley Athletic League. She also played for the De Anza Force Soccer Club.
 
"I love Westmont's campus," said Sinko. "I think it is beautiful and cannot wait to call it home. I hope to gain life skills such as time management, and to be able to juggle life as an athlete while maintaining my academics."
 
"Maya is a crafty, technical attacking center midfielder, who knows how to combine and create opportunities in the attack," said Jaggard. "She is confident to take players on one on one and creates problems for the defending team with her movement to get open."
 
Zahiralis, who played for Evergreen Valley High School and the Santa Clara Sporting Soccer Club, said, "The most appealing part of Westmont to me is the community. I am so eager to go to Westmont, which has such a small and close knit community, where I will be able to get closer with my peers and God.
 
"I love the family you gain when you are a part of a team. I can't wait to bond with all my teammates and be a part of my new family! As a student athlete, I hope to be a contributing part of the team while prioritizing my education.
 
"A holding center midfielder with great physical strength and high work rate, Alyssa is great at winning the ball," offered Jaggard. "She reads the game and distributes well under pressure. She is a player that we can use to combine and play through the midfield.
 
"Ande Siegel is an athletic and versatile player who can play outside back and midfield," said Jaggard. "Ande is a well-rounded attacker and defender with a specialty in taking dangerous free kicks."
 
As a player at Newport Harbor High School, Siegel was named to the All-Wave League team. In club soccer, she played for Slammers Football Club on the Elite Club National League team.
 
"I'm so excited to start this new chapter of my life with soccer being a key component," said Siegel. "The sense of community within the team and coaching staff seems so incredible and welcoming, it's what initially drew me towards this particular team.
 
"I hope to be able to push myself in both the academic and athletic aspects of my life while at Westmont. I love the feeling of being challenged and I can tell that this definitely will be a challenge for me in the best of ways."
 
Romero comes to the Warriors from Temecula where she attended Chaparral High School. As a member of the San Diego Surf Soccer Club, Romero's team won multiple championships including the State Cup championship. At the Murrieta Surf Classic, Romero tallied all four of her team's goals in the championship game.
 
"Annalise is a very creative attacking midfielder who likes to beat defenders one on one and create opportunities in the front line for teammates to score," noted Jaggard."
 
"I was searching for a small, Christian school where I could pursue my soccer dreams as well as my faith and as soon as I saw Westmont, I knew it was where God was calling me to be," said Romero. "When I first went to the soccer camp, I realized what an amazing group of players and people these women are."
 
Romero is looking to, "…improve balance in my life as I go through the next four years making time for faith, soccer, schoolwork, and friendships."
 
Jaggard has listed Romero as both a midfielder and forward on the team's roster, as she has Olivia Gabelein from Shoreline, Wash.
 
 
A student-athlete from King's High School, Gabelein was named an All-State midfielder in 2019 as well as League Best Offensive Player and League MVP. She was the top goal scorer for her team in both 2019 and 2021. In 2017, Gabelein's team won the Washington State Championship.
 
"Olivia is a very hardworking and athletic attacking center midfielder and wing forward.  She sends dangerous crosses into the box and knows how to create shooting opportunities for herself," said Jaggard.
 
"I am looking forward to being a part of a close knit community of soccer players within the larger Westmont community," said Gabelein. "I am excited to grow athletically with the team as well as individually, and I cannot wait to compete in such a competitive atmosphere, learn from my coaches, and win a National Championship.
 
"Westmont had always been a school I had high interest in due to the academics, faith, the women's soccer team, and the beautiful location. After visiting the campus and seeing how amazing it would be to go to school, grow in my faith, and play for Westmont College, it was easily my top choice."
 
Three more freshman forwards added to the roster are Amarys Machado of Sonora, Katie DeMillo of San Ramon and Analee Josselyn of Santa Cruz.
 
Machado was a two time all-league selection for Sonora High School and the league's Offensive Player of the Year
 
"After visiting Westmont, the most appealing aspect for me was the atmosphere and people as a whole," expressed Machado. "Everyone was welcoming and being at a Christian college is something I valued and appreciated.
 
"As a member of the Westmont Women's soccer team, I am looking forward to growing as an individual on and off the field, creating new friendships, and ultimately playing the game we all love. I am excited to see what we accomplish as a team."
 
"Amarys is a physically strong and powerful forward with great one-on-one skills and the ability to crack shots from outside the box," noted Jaggard. "She has good game sense and will help us to hold the ball and get it forward consistently.  She is a natural goal scorer.
 
"Katie DeMillo is an athletic, powerful attacking midfielder and forward with a great understanding of how to get the ball and create opportunities," offered Jaggard. "She has a powerful shot and is a good defender in the front line."
 
While playing for California High School, DeMillo was an first team all-league selection while maintaining a 4.0 GPA. DeMillo also played for the San Ramon Football Club with her team winning the Premier State Cup championship and twice winning the Davis Legacy championship.
 
"I'm most looking forward to being pushed in a competitive environment by my coaches and teammates on the soccer team," said DeMillo. "I hope to gain more discipline every single day as a student athlete at Westmont and I hope to accomplish many championships as a team."
 
Josselyn played varsity soccer for four years at Scotts Valley High School and was a member of the Mid-County Youth Soccer Club of Santa Cruz. Her club team finished first at the Pro-Am beach soccer tournament in 2019 and 2021 and the Sant Francisco Beach Classic Tournament in 2019.
 
"A true target forward, Analee is big and strong and knows how to hold the ball under pressure," reported Jaggard. "She is a goal scorer who takes very dangerous shots from distance."
 
"A few of the most appealing things about Westmont were the tight-knit community, strong faith-based academics, and beautiful location," said Josselyn. "I am most looking forward to the community aspect as well as the high level of play. As a student athlete, I hope to grow in perseverance, dedication, and grit -  as well as gain skills that are useful both on and off the field."
 
The Warriors open the regular season on Wednesday, September 1, when they host Southern Oregon at noon. The game has been relocated to Westmont's Lovik Field. Free admission is being offered for this game.