"The time to win is now."

Head coach David "Geordie" Brown does not shy away from what he expects out of the College of Wooster women's soccer team.

Last year the Fighting Scots finished 7-7-4 overall and fourth in the North Coast Athletic Conference at 4-3-1. Their season abruptly ended in the conference tournament when they were eliminated in the semifinals by Kenyon College in a match that came down to penalty kicks.

That was all done by a squad that featured zero seniors.

Senior goalkeeper Maddy Ireton returns as a captain after posting a 7-7-3 record in net last season.

"We talked about them being young for the past couple of years and now they're not young," Brown said. "It's not time to close the gap. It's time to show the last two, three years have been great in terms of growth, but you now have to take that urgency and turn it into being successful on the field."

Depth will be key this year with 33 players, and the Scots will have a senior class of seven to lead the way.

"We have the largest squad that we've had in 20 years," Brown said. "Being able to go deep within the lineup is going to give us the chance to hopefully have quality from the start of the game to the end of the game."

This year's captains are seniors Emma Lawrence, Rada Zunich, Maddy Ireton and junior Morgan Mooty.

Brown hopes they can bring a balance to the team with their different personalities. Brown describes Lawrence as a strong competitor, Ireton as an energizer, Zurich as a calming influence and Mooty as a connector.

All four of the captains are defensive-minded. Lawrence and Mooty return to lead the defense, Ireton in the goal and Zunich as a defensive midfielder.

Joining the defensive unit is junior Mackenzie Goltz. A staple there for the past two years, Goltz has appeared in 35 games and has started in all but one.

Seniors Kaitlin Looney, Erin O'Connor, junior Payton Gennett and sophomores Kelsey Stone, Elena Hart and Kylie Hawkins should complement the defensive unit as well.

"It's a pretty strong and experienced group that has played together," Brown said. "If we can improve upon that with new faces or returning players who step up then it's just going to make us stronger in that department."

The team goes from four goalkeepers to two this year with Ireton and sophomore Molly Hutter.

"Between the two of them I think it's easier to keep them in tune with what's going on," Brown said. "They will push each other, and we have confidence in both to be able to provide the safety needed to protect the goal."

Offensively, Brown is looking for someone to step up and be more prolific. Krenare Rakoci led all scorers with four goals last year. Erica White and Miura Wiley each scored three while five others were tied with two goals.

"There's an adage that balanced scoring is good, but you still need somebody who is able to put the ball in the net on a regular basis," Brown said. "We just have to be able to find somebody that is able to step up and get closer to double figures in goals."

Junior Claire Davis finished with two goals and two assists and earned All-NCAC Second Team honors last season. Junior Krissy Blanchard and sophomore Mila Zunich and Wiley should also help up front. Wiley was named to the NCAC All-Tournament team as a freshman last year. 

Senior Devin Frisby returns as she led the team with five assists.

"Devin sees the game very well and is very technically strong," Brown said. "We rely on her to use her vision to put others in scoring positions."

Also returning in the midfield are juniors Anna Hartig, Kelsey Hall and sophomores Madison Bescak, Meghan Badge, Brie Jarrell and Sam Draves.

There are eight newcomers this year all vying for different positions.

"Some of them will have to transition into a different role from which they are coming based on where we see them but also where we see need and opportunity," Brown said. "There are also some players that will help us right away."

Along with the plethora of experience, the women took a student-funded trip to Iceland (linkto Iceland video/blog) earlier in the year, which gave the team an even greater chance to bond as 25 players made the trip.

"It was a wonderful way to end the school year to get away and see a beautiful country but also to compete in three games against Iceland teams Alftanes, HK Vikingur and Grotta," Brown said.

The Scots open the year at home against Adrian on Aug. 31. They open NCAC play at DePauw on Sept. 22.