Gagner Excited For Senior Season At Oakland

Sydnye Gagner only has one season left of NCAA soccer with the Oakland University Golden Grizzlies, but she still has personal and team goals she wants to achieve.

“My hopes for this season involve me continuing to grow as a player and be the best teammate that I can be both on and off the field,” said the midfielder, who led Oakland in scoring in 2016.

“As a team we set many goals for ourselves to accomplish this season, the main one being to win the Horizon league tournament and advance onto the NCAA tournament. It was an amazing memory and experience to win the championship in my freshman year and I would be very excited for this team to win it again in my final year at Oakland.”

Oakland has already played a handful of games, with their Horizon League schedule getting underway in mid-September. From what Gagner has seen however, she’s confident in the team she sees on the field.

“From the first day of preseason everyone brought so much energy and passion to the field, it was so inspiring to watch and be a part of. I am confident this is going to be a great year for Oakland Women’s soccer and I am so honoured to be a part of this program and be surrounded by this amazing group of players and coaches who push you every day to be your best.”

Entering her senior season, Gagner isn’t looking only at the future, it has also given the kinesiology major a moment to reflect on past seasons and the experience of playing NCAA Division I soccer.

“This being my last year at Oakland I feel both excited and nervous. As I reflect upon my previous years here and all of the extended family that I have made, I realize how fortunate I have been, this experience has truly been amazing,” said Gagner.

“There have been many positive memories made here both at school and on the field. I am extremely grateful that Oakland gave me this incredible opportunity to play the game that I truly love as well as obtain a great education.”