NEWBERG, Ore. -- The George Fox women's soccer team is building something new.

The Bruins won the first three games of the 2024 season before ultimately finishing the year 6-11-3 with a 3-10-3 Northwest Conference record. But Bruin head coach Laura Schott won't let the record of years' past define them; instead, Fox will turn to a fresh team that spent the first few weeks getting to know each other.

With seniors Willa Evans and Becca Kozak graduating after earning All-NWC honors and just one returning senior on the roster, it became clear to the Bruin head coach that the team just needed to break the ice

"It's  important that we get together and spend as much time together as possible to allow the players the space to get to know one another," Schott said, "And I'd say that that's gone about as well as it can go."

The one senior on the team who was on the roster in 2024 is Alexis Breer, a defender who has been a steady, stable presence for Schott and the Bruins. In her three years with Fox, Breer has played in 57 games and started 51, including all 20 games the season prior. Though she usually spends her time on the back line, the defender did score one goal and dish out three assists in 2024.

" Lex has always been a quiet leader," Schott said, "Her teammates respect her a lot. Leadership-wise, she's a lead-by-example person. She's not going to be your vocal leader, but her teammates rely on her and really enjoy her. She's looking good again this year."

Joining Breer as a senior will be Isabelle Carrington; the fifth-year senior was initially committed to Oregon State, but will play her first collegiate season with the Bruins.

One other D-I transfer will make her debut for Fox as well in Makena Speer. The Forest Grove High School graduate played six games for Portland State in 2023 before taking a year off from soccer — though after a start against Western Oregon in an exhibition game in the back line, it was clear she didn't miss a beat.

Speer is part of a large nine-person sophomore class that includes several key returners; from Lindsey Kong, a forward who Schott believes can take a leap in her second season, to Tess Scott, who started 13 games in 2024, the Bruins have players ready to step up. And with other hungry players in Eliza Kamphouse, Hannah Hill, Alia Villa, Rylee Galyon, Anna Sofia Foster, and Emilee Souder, there will be plenty of competition for time on the field.

" What we have right now is a very competitive atmosphere for playing time," Schott said, "It's going to be about who really shows out every day at practice. I mean, when we talk about our front line, I can think of six people that I think will have big moments in games."

While the frontline will be competitive, Emily Robey, an All-NWC goalkeeper in 2024, headlines the junior class. Robey had seven shutouts her sophomore season, tied for the second most in a single season in GFU history. Others in the class include Liv Haima, who was second on the team with four goals as a sophomore, everyday starters Isabella Hector and Maci Bowman, as well as Taylor Soo, who will miss time with an injury.

But of course, all that "new-ness" comes with the arrival of nine freshman — twins Marisa Lam and Erin Lam, Myann Johansen, Morgan Phalen, Teresa Wilson, Sarah Burkes, Breckyn Welsh, Grace Bach, and Emelia Childers, all begin their collegiate careers in Newberg. These freshmen have not only challenged their teammates early on, but also have been able to help push more attacks.

"Our wide backs have always gone forward, but I think that we'll see it at a different level this year," Schott said, "You're going to see some brand new back line, and then you're going to see some attackers that are dynamic that will create a lot of chances for us."

The Bruins began their season with an exhibition match against Western Oregon, but will officially kick off the season with a trip to California to play Whittier and La Verne. Then, it's an away game at local NAIA team Bushnell, before Northwest Conference play begins. Those three games should see plenty of lineups as the Bruin coaching staff solidifies its lineups.

"The goal is to look at combinations and who's playing well together and to get a clearer idea of who will start," Schott said," [As for California], we don't go out of state every year. There's benefit to playing teams around here, but there's also benefit to getting Division III opponents out of conference."

As for NWC play, the Bruins are projected to finish seventh in the conference in the coaches' preseason poll. But as Schott says, if the team can focus on playing 90-minute games and not 80-minute ones, they can finish a whole lot higher than that.

It all starts on Sunday, August 31st, when the Bruins take to California to take the West Coast by storm.