The Washington State women’s soccer team kicks off its 2024 season at Purdue Thursday, and with a new slate of West Coast Conference competitors on their horizon, a new series of challenges awaits the Cougs.
Head coach Todd Shulenberger, entering his tenth year leading the Cougs, said he thinks the struggles, challenges and adversity poised this year are exciting.
“You’re throwing a curveball this year with scheduling and conference realignment,” Shulenberger said in a press conference. “These practices are probably, in my ten years, has been easily as competitive as teams from way back in the past.”
This year’s team is balanced between senior and fifth-year veterans, older transfers and an eager freshman class. The experienced underclassmen will also continue to make a mark, with Regaen Kotschau standing out in particular. Having been named to the WCC’s preseason team, the sophomore was a crucial staple to the Cougs’ midfield in her debut 2023 season.
Redshirt fifth-year Grayson Lynch, also named to the WCC’s preseason team, brings with her to the team valuable postseason experience having played against South Carolina in WSU’s final four run in 2019.
Last year, an injury at Portland caused her to miss a majority of the season, but Lynch tallied a season-high eight goals in 2021 and four in 2022 and has over 3,600 minutes of playing time with the Cougs.
“Great teams aren’t necessarily always led by their head coach or staff. They’re led within the program,” Shulenberger said. “It’s in that locker room. It’s in that moment we’re not around.”
The mix of experience and talents on the Cougs’ roster aids their competitive dynamic.
“I like the depth between each position,” Shulenberger said. “It starts in the back, all the way to the forward line, and they feel it and they love it.
Compared to the Pac-12, the competitors in the WCC vary in terms of record and post-season experience. However, the Cougs landed the No. 2 slot in the WCC’s preseason coaches poll, falling short of No. 1 Santa Clara.
Ranked No. 22 in the nation ahead of the season, the Broncos have two championships under their belts, having most recently taken the title in 2020.
The Cougars made a strong start last year, finding themselves nationally ranked in the season’s opening weeks. However, the team slipped to ninth in the Pac-12 and finished the regular season at 9-5-5 (4-4-3).
WSU is also set to take on Stanford ahead of conference play on September 1. Last season, a tough string of California schools threw a loop in the Cougs’ rhythm, having gone 7-1 prior to facing the Cardinal.
After Purdue, the Cougs will be back on the Lower Soccer Field for the first time the season to challenge Montana Aug. 22 and Idaho Aug. 25.
