LAS CRUCES, N.M. – The New Mexico State women's soccer team opens the 2016 season with an exhibition match on Monday, Aug. 15, at noon in the friendly confines of the Soccer Athletic Complex against Cochise College. Admission is free for all fans.
 
ROSTER RUNDOWN
• Head coach Freddy Delgado returns 17 players from last year's squad that went 5-15-0 on the year.
• Of the 17 players, nine returners were a part of the starting 11.
• The Aggies also added 11 newcomers to the team, eight are incoming freshman while three are junior college transfers
• Of the 28 players on the roster, three are sophomores while five are juniors. Over 40-percent of the team's roster are sophomores while eight are first-year players.
• The roster also boasts 17 players from the state of New Mexico, five from Arizona, three from California and one from Texas, Nevada and Puerto Rico.
• Five of the 17 New Mexican players are Las Cruces natives or from Doña Ana County.
 
A LOOK BACK AT 2015
• The Aggies return 3-of-4 players that recorded double-digit points last season in Aileen Galicia (12), Holly Abdelkader (11) and Devin Hart (10).
• Audrey Chavez was right on the cusp of reaching double-digit points last season, finishing with nine.
• 9-of-12 players that recorded at least a point last season also return for NM State.
• Abdelkader led the team last season with three game-winning goals while Hart was second on the team with two.
• In conference play, Hart led all players with 10 points (4g, 2a) while Chavez (3g) and Abdelkader (2g, 2a) tied for second with six points apiece.
• The goalkeepers had similar numbers for NM State with both tallying 25 saves on the year while Rian Nials posted a 2.34 goals against average compared to Ashley Martin's 2.63.
• Nials wrapped up her first year in the cage with 68 saves while Martin finished with 58.
• In conference play, both goalies had two wins each while the two combined for a shutout against Chicago State (Oct. 23) on the road.
• Martin posted a 2.00 GAA in conference play with 150 minutes less time in the cage while Nials sported a 2.34 GAA in 537:56 minutes of action. Both had saves percentages above .700 with Nials stopping 34 shots and Martin stopping 23.
 
MEETING THE NEWCOMERS
• Cristina Bertoldo, Amy Gulczynski and Danielle Smith came to Las Cruces via junior colleges.
• Bertoldo, Las Cruces native, returns home to play for the Aggies after spending her the last two seasons at Chandler Gilbert Community College. The junior earned all-region honors her second year with CGCC after posting a region-best 14 assists to go with her two goals.
• Gulczynski comes to the Land of Enchantment after spending last season at Phoenix College. The 5-8 midfielder received National Junior Athletic Association Honorable Mentions after socring 25 points (8g, 9a) her freshman year.
• Smith, a Paso Robles, Calif., product joins NM State after spending the last two season at Feather River College. She had a dominating sophomore campaign, posting a team best 31 points (9g, 13a) and guided FRC to a second-place finish.
• Of the eight freshmen that joined in the mix, three will play in the midfield (Jess McDow, Adriana 'Tuti' Tirado, Alyssa Mireles), three at forward (Valerie Maestas, Reilly Marks, Kyleigh Cox), one in defense (Kelly Burton) and one in the cage (Raeann Garcia).
• All eight have led their respective teams to league or region titles while two led their teams to state championships.
• McDow, a two-time state champion at La Cueva High School, boasted a 65-16-1 mark during her prep career and posted 66 points (26g, 14a) her senior campaign. The 5-9 midfielder will compliment returners, Galicia and Abdelkader in the Aggie attack.
• Tirado, aka Tuti, adds depth and speed as well as considerable amount of international experience. The American Military Academy grad played alongside Dominique Rivera with the Puerto Rican Junior National Team.
• Mireles joins an experience group of midfielders with an equally as impressive resume, coming from Las Vegas High School as one of the most decorated players in program history.
• Maestas, a state champion at Eldorado High School, joins two other newcomers on the attacking front. Like Tirado, Maestas comes with an extra speed when it comes to quickness as well as scoring prowess. She led EHS to three-straight New Mexico State Cup Championships (2012-14) and guided the Eagles to a 63-14-1 record during her four years. Checking in at 5-7,
• Marks adds some considerable size for the Aggies opposite of Audrey Chavez. As a senior, the Tucson, Ariz., product led Salpointe Catholic High School to a 23-2 overall record and 6-0 mark in section VI play, earning her AllSportsTucson.com Division II Player of the Year.
• Rounding out the new flock of forwards is Las Cruces native, Kyleigh Cox. A standout at Mayfield High School on and off the field, Cox helped guide the Trojans to a district championship her freshman year. The homegrown talent finished her senior campaign with 14 points (5g, 4a) and earned all-district honors. She was also an all-state runner on the track team for MHS.
• On the defending end, Burton has a familiar face in Maestas. The Albuquerque product along with transfers Bertoldo and Smith add depth to an already formidable back line in Stockton, Rivera and Afonso.
• Garcia joins a very young group of goalkeepers and could vie for playing time should she shine in training camp. A four-year letter winner at O'Connor High School, Garcia led the Panthers to a 15-1 record her sophomore year while tallying all-district honors. In total, she only allowed nine total goals in district play her entire prep career.
 
A LOOK AT THE APACHES
• Cochise College went 5-11-2 last season in conference play and 0-6-1 on the road.
• Larissa Lee and Katie Gardiner are the top-two returners for Cochise. Lee recorded 11 points (5g, 1a) while Gardiner tallied eight points (2g, 2a).
• Lee also shot 1.000 on the year, knocking in all five shots she took as a freshman.
• Venecia Alvarez and Marina Martinez return in goal for the Apaches. Alavarez saw action in 10 matches while starting in seven with a 2.58 GAA and 72 saves.