It's been just over eight and a half months since the Florida Tech women's soccer team completed the dream by winning the first national championship in program history.
"It was unreal for me for a long time," says sophomore midfielder Ellinor Blaasternes. "For me, it was hard to realize how big it was to do what we did. It's still surreal that we actually won."
"I think it took a while to realize what we did," says sophomore forward Izzie Bromage. "Right after we were like, 'Oh, we did it'. We were just so focused and so driven that we were always like, 'What's the next game? That's all that matters.' Eight months out it's amazing, and I think we're all just ready for the new season."
When they begin their title defense at Rick Stottler Field on Thursday night with a national championship game rematch against Franklin Pierce, they'll know that a season's worth of every opponent's best effort awaits them. It's what comes with being a national champion and having the preseason #1 ranking in the nation. They do not mind that pressure because they maintain the priority of what allowed them to scale the mountain last December: being the best possible team they can be.
"I think for sure we get ahead of that narrative when we talk about it," says third-year Head Coach Katy Freels. "I don't think we look at games from a win and loss perspective as much as we just need to build, we need to play the game well, we need to do what we do. I think that we're trying to empower the girls to be free and to play with the freedom that they need to play to go out and do what we need to do. So, I think that yes, we know that we're going to get everybody's best shot, but that doesn't impact anything for us."
It wasn't an easy path for the Panthers to become national champions and many will point to the Sunshine State Conference Tournament in early November as the moment everything clicked and began to reach the levels that allowed them to accomplish the ultimate goal. There were many lessons learned during that special run and the team are confident that they can continue to apply them over the course of a full season this time.
"I think all of last season we did a really good job of learning from our mistakes," says graduate student goalkeeper Kaitlin Sinkler. "Little details about the game, certain balls that we play each other or how we can communicate better. I think we did a really good job of learning from that, and I think a lot of that showed in the national championship game too. I think the biggest thing that we can take away and apply to this season is the grit and the determination and how much hard work it does take to get there."
"We grew tactically. We became more versatile in how we could play and how we could approach games," says Freels. "I think we learned the importance of depth and how important it was to have really good players that could impact the game that maybe weren't starting. That was really important for us.
As has been the case over the past five seasons, which have seen Tech win a Sunshine State Conference best 65 games, newcomers, whether they be transfers or true freshmen, will be expected to make an immediate impact to elevate the team's fortunes. Players who once went through the process of finding their feet quickly themselves have noted how quickly this year's group has done the same.
"I think the thing that's impressed me the most with this group is just how well they fit in straight away," says Bromage. "We've always been a team where we go the extra mile for all the players. We all love each other, no drama, no nothing. Just seeing them in practice and everything, you can tell they get it, which is amazing to me that they're just like 'Okay, this is how we do it. This is what we're gonna do."
"I think the coaches have always been really good at recruiting, especially for the culture we set as the team," says junior midfielder/defender Alice Mottershead. "When they come here, they're all ready, they've really sunk into the environment we're trying to create. Despite it being a bigger squad this year, everyone's already getting along and we're already building that momentum early on."
Perhaps the biggest challenge the Panthers will face this season is not so much replacing the departed production from last year's squad, they've conquered that in seasons past, but rather
the leadership group that graduated. The likes of Savannah Oxley, Rebecca Storr and Halla Helgadottir not only brought talent but experience and poise to Tech, the kinds of intangibles every championship side will tell you got them over the line.
The positive on that front is that the leadership process, especially for teams at the top level, is an always evolving one. The team has made it known that anyone can be a leader, that accountability isn't just a word that's said but something that's put into action. The ones who step into the position of leading from the front will be joined by Sinkler, the 2025 NCAA Tournament's Most Outstanding Player. A keeper's voice is one of the most important on the pitch and while Sinkler will remain active in that regard, she believes it paramount that anyone can make the difference.
"I think it's given a lot of individuals a good opportunity for them to grow into new positions," says Sinkler. "Alice, Ada [Geier], Anae [Malbete], Carol [Falcao] and all these girls are stepping up because we need someone on the field who has a big voice and who has a presence that we can depend on. We have younger players, too, who we're recognizing how developing these players to like step up when it's their time. Ellie and Izzy are doing a really good job helping develop more players' voices and make them feel comfortable that they can be heard and that they have that role on the team."
As they so often have during their five-season run of excellence, the Crimson and Gray were intentional with their scheduling for 2026. Including Thursday night's title game rematch, Florida Tech will face seven teams who reached last year's NCAA Tournament. That includes fierce competition in the SSC, which will see them host Nova Southeastern and Embry-Riddle before the end of September. That may seem like a tall task for many teams, but in order to become the fifth Division II program to go back-to-back, they'll continue to remember the only three numbers that matter: 1-0-0.
"Our tactic last year was one game at a time," says Blaasternes. "And I really believe in that philosophy and trust in ourselves, our playing style and in our identity as a team."
"I think the way [Assistant Coach] Scott [Wilson] and I operate is we don't get so worried about each game and its result as much as seeing the big picture," says Freels. "What type of team do we want to be? How can we get there? There's going to be ups and downs, how can grow through that process of just understanding what our team's about this year, how they operate, what they may need from us and from what we can learn from games."
