The Wildcats won their seventh match of the season this Sunday against Oregon State. Beating the Beavers marked the 41st win for this year's seniors, and made them the winningest class of all time.
That's a feat that began four years ago, as a group of six bright-eyed freshman stepped onto the pitch for the first time alongside their brand new head coach Tony Amato. Seeing that it's senior week and Sunday's match against Cal will be the senior day match, we checked in with our seniors for their final week of home games.
Haley Silverberg
Haley Silverberg is a defender out of Katy, Texas who has played 68 games over the course of her career for the Wildcats. She has seven career points, with three goals and one assist. She was injured at the beginning of her senior season and has been out for the better half of this season. But, she still shared some of her favorite memories and thoughts from her time as a Wildcat.
"The best moment of my career with Arizona Soccer was scoring the winning goal against Oregon last year in the 89th minute of the game," said Silverberg. "Along with making it to the Sweet 16!"
"The legacy my class and I have left behind is a new standard for practices, workouts, classes, and turning Arizona Soccer into a winning team," said Silverberg. "We came together as a team and embraced our core values both on and off the field – it became a lifestyle that will continue to impact our lives even after soccer."
Hannah Stevens
A defender out of Ahwatukee, Ariz., Stevens has been an aerial threat at 6'0" ever since her freshman year. She has tallied nine goals for the Wildcats over the last two seasons. Additionally, she was a Pac-12 All-Academic Honorable Mention pick in 2014 and 2015.
"The best moment of my career will probably always be my game winning goal against Cal last season," said Stevens. "It was such a huge win for the team and it's a memory I'll have for the rest of my life. It also is pretty awesome to have been one of the top goal scorers last season and now this season as well."
"We have had the incredible opportunity to help build a program from the bones," said Stevens. "I feel that our class has an incredible work ethic and heart and that was reflected through our success as a group over the past seasons. I hope we've left a legacy by proving that Arizona can contend with some of the best teams in the country."
Paige Crouch
Paige Crouch is a forward out of Roseville, Calif. with a knack for scoring goals. She has eleven goals over the course of her 61 matches with the Wildcats. After redshirting her freshman season with a torn ACL, Crouch came speeding back to help lead the Wildcats to two postseason appearances. She also was a 2014 Pac-12 All-Academic Honorable Mention pick.
"The best moment of my career with Arizona Soccer would be when we were all sitting around waiting to hear where we were going to go for the NCAA tournament last year and we actually ended up having a home game," said Crouch. "I was so excited as it was our first ever time hosting!"
"I'm just so proud of the seniors and so proud of the team," said Crouch. "With all the highs and lows I consider these girls my sisters for life and I will greatly miss all of them!"
Laura Pimienta
A Tucson native, Laura Pimienta was initially a midfielder for the team when she played eight games as a freshman. The next year, Amato moved her to fill in a vacant spot as a fullback – and she never left. She started almost every match for the Wildcats after that point, and has earned one of the highest tallies for minutes ever since. She even managed to card an assist from a defensive position in the Wildcats match against Northern Colorado last season in the NCAA Tournament.
"The best moment of my career here was getting the first tournament win my sophomore year," said Pimienta. "It was an away game and the program hadn't made it to the tournament in a few years so getting not only making the tournament but getting that first win was a really good feeling."
"It means a lot to be the winningest class of all time," said Pimienta. "I wanted to make an impact and leave my mark on the program and achieve something that the program hadn't in a while. We went to the Round of Sixteen and that was really special. But now being the winningest senior class in history is that much more satisfying. I'm proud of my class because I know how hard it's been and how hard we've worked to get to where we have gotten. "
Lexe Selman-Richards
Prior to joining Arizona, Lexe Selman-Richards was diagnosed with acute myeloid leukemia, a type of blood cancer. She battled through and joined the team in 2013 as a midfielder out of Draper, Utah. Last season, she tore her ACL in the team's season opener. After fighting through that injury, Selman-Richards came back this season to score the team's first goal of the season against Pepperdine. She has earned four goals and five assists for the Wildcats, and was named 2014 Pac-12 All-Academic First Team and 2015 Pac-12 All-Academic Second team.
"I think my class and I have left a legacy of working hard and never giving up," said Selman-Richards. "When we first came in there was a lot of uncertainty about the program and we embraced that challenge. Even when the odds were against us we didn't back down, we always gave everything we had for the team."
"Becoming the most winningest senior class means a lot," said Selman-Richards. "We've gone through a lot together and to be able to leave the program with that recognition helps reaffirm that we gave everything we had to helping make this program better."
Jaden DeGracie-Bailey
DeGracie-Bailey is a midfielder out of Gilbert, Ariz., who holds the all-time record for assists with Arizona Soccer at 24. She has played in every match of every season for the Wildcats as a dangerous asset with her long flip-throws, a technique she learned growing up as a gymnast. She was named to the 2014 & 2015 Pac-12 All-Academic First Team and the 2015 District 8 CoSIDA Academic All-District First Team.
"The best moment of my career was when we beat ASU my freshman year," said DeGracie-Bailey. "It really is the greatest feeling to beat your rival. I scored and assisted that game, and the celebration with my team after was a moment I will hold with me forever."
"From a points standpoint, one legacy we have made is helping the team go the farthest in the NCAA tournament," said DeGracie-Bailey. "Beyond the numbers though is what I feel my class has really left behind. I believe our work ethic, competitiveness, and dedication is what has really made our class successful. This translates both on the field and off, as we give our all in everything do. It is really special to accomplish this with these girls. We have worked so hard to get to where we are at, and doing it together makes it even better. We came in knowing we wanted to "Build a Legacy," and we can walk away knowing we did that."
Come out to see the seniors in their last home game this Sunday against California at Mulcahy Stadium. The match begins at 11 a.m. MST.
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