RICHARDSON, Texas -  As the 2025 season approaches, the UT Dallas Comets women's soccer team embarks on its inaugural journey in NCAA Division II competition as members of the Lone Star Conference. Coming off an 8-7-1 record in their final year of Division III play, the Comets are poised to face new challenges and opportunities in a higher level of competition.

The Comets enter the season under the leadership of head coach Stephen Shirley, now in his third year at the helm. The team is buoyed by the return of eight starters, including their top five leading scorers from the previous season. Senior Chelsea Vilca, who notched 10 goals and four assists last year, and sophomore Jules Chavez, with nine goals and four assists, are expected to be key contributors. The roster also features last season's starters, including senior Kaley Robison, sophomores Amelia Griffin, Alicia Aguiñaga, Lyla Nielsen, and Rowen Hughes, as well as junior Maddie Meyer.

Vilca and Robison were among the 39 student-athletes on the LSC Preseason Players to watch list.

New faces to the Comets this season include goalkeepers McKenzie Hunninghake and Trinity Morken, along with field players Gabrielle Thompson, Cori Harper, Kira Schkade, Viviana Duarte, Kyleigh D'Spain, Lina Ullen, and Amy Escorza. These newcomers are anticipated to bring fresh energy and depth to the squad.

Shirley has expressed excitement about the upcoming season and the transition into the LSC. He acknowledges the higher level of competition and the chance to face off against some of the best teams in the region. "It's just very, very exciting to be part of a transition where you get to do the first season of it," Shirley stated, emphasizing the importance of maintaining focus and a competitive mentality.

The Comets will kick off their regular season at home on September 4 against Oklahoma Baptist. They will then venture on the road to face Rogers State, Western Colorado, and Colorado Christian before opening their league play against St. Mary's at home on September 17. The schedule also features significant matchups, including a home game against #15 DBU on October 8 and an away contest against #18 Angelo State.

Ranked 12th out of 15 in the Lone Star Conference Preseason Poll, the Comets are aware of the rigorous competition ahead. Shirley has highlighted the need for organization and resilience, encouraging his players to seize the historic opportunity of representing UTD in their first Division II season.

"I think the keys to the success will be being organized and having the correct competitive mentality," said Shirley. "When you look at the records of teams last year, apart from a couple of teams, everyone's beating everybody and it was a really, really tight conference and the games are really, really tight, which means we have to have the correct mentality every single game to come out and give it everything. You might end up in situations where the game's going to be tight, I think a lot, and one play here, one play there could be the difference between winning or losing the game. So I'm really hoping that the girls can get the ironing out of their details and the mentality of going out and wanting to compete every single day and being able to have personality. These tight games and you're playing against good teams, we need to have players that will express their personality, have big personalities that they want to go and show themselves. We need those players that can step up and do that in these big games. We'll be organized and I think the group has a really good competitive mentality so far. So hopefully that will maintain as we go through the whole season and we'll see what happens."

Lone Star Conference Release