Elevating the Standard: RMU Women’s Soccer blends large influx of additions with proven Senior spine for 2026

At the heart of RMU’s internal engine is a freshly announced trio of senior captains: defender Shauna Gamble, midfielder Julia Becerra, and standout forward Ava Trethewey. Together, they represent the spine of a program that has reached back-to-back Horizon League tournament runs and is hungry for more.

“Ava, Shauna, and Julia walk the walk,” Rick praised. “They raise the standard every day and bring out the best in the people around them. They lead through their play, the way they carry themselves, and the example they set for others.”

When Rick took the helm early in 2024, she inherited a program looking for a defined identity in a grueling physical conference. Her answer was not to try and out-muscle opponents, but to out-think them. Drawing on a coaching journey that spans from Ohio youth development to Division II success at Findlay, Rick instituted a system centered on half-space possession and immediate, suffocating counter-pressing.

“We want to control where the game is played, but more importantly, how it’s played,” Rick notes, emphasizing positional discipline. “It’s about creating numerical advantages in areas where teams naturally want to relax.”

Enter Trethewey. The Charleston, West Virginia native transformed from a solid contributor into a terror for Horizon League backlines. After a breakout 2025 campaign that saw her net nine goals and claim First-Team All-Horizon League honors, Trethewey has become the focal point of Rick’s build-up play.

After spending her summer sharpening her form with Brevard Riptide SC in USL W, Trethewey returns to lead an attack that shifted to a two-front system midway through last fall—a move that unlocked both her goal-scoring range and the team’s offensive flow.

“Being named a captain is an incredible honor, and I’m excited for the opportunity to lead this team,” said Trethewey, who will wear the armband for her second season at RMU. “It’s about setting the standard through my actions and helping create an environment where everyone can grow and succeed. Everyone knows when we hit the field, it’s straight business, but we keep it lighthearted before the storm starts.”

While Trethewey fuels the attack, the Colonials boast a seasoned defensive and midfield core. Alongside Gamble, who started all 17 matches in 2025 on her way to All-Horizon League Third Team honors, defender/holding midfielder Bailey Campbell also returns after starting every match last season and tallying two assists. In the midfield, Becerra brings two years of starting experience, complemented by sophomore Ivy Chaskelson, who burst onto the scene in her freshman campaign to lead RMU with three assists.

Between the posts, returning starter Emma Cameron—who notched 79 saves and four shutouts in 15 appearances last season—gives RMU a proven shot-stopper, but she will be pushed by an influx of new goalkeeping talent.

That balance of lighthearted chemistry and competitive drive has been essential as Rick integrates seven incoming freshmen and eight total transfers over the past calendar year. The coaching staff brought in critical transfers to fortify every level of the pitch, adding former Mercyhurst captains Fiona Fraser (1G, 3A) and Madison Sievering (4G, 4A), former Cleveland State contributor Sophia Cucchetti, and West Liberty transfer goalkeeper Cianna Butera, a Canonsburg native who led the Mountain East Conference in save percentage and total saves last fall.

They are joined by an impactful seven-player freshman class featuring local star power in Mount Pleasant goal-scoring phenom Morgan Gesinski (116 prep goals) and Mars Area defender Addison Orehowsky, along with North Carolina products Samyah Costa, Kate Sheehan, and Kally Prescott, and Canadian midfielders Aleesha Chaudhri and Vanessa Pecile.

The goal for Rick isn’t just adding talent—it’s creating a daily iron-sharpens-iron environment in training that matches the physical demands of the conference.

“The Horizon League is tight year after year after year, especially in the middle of the table,” Rick explained. “For us, the last couple of years have reinforced that there’s a fine line between being competitive and being consistent. This season, competition in our training environment is going to be at an all-time high. We need players pushing each other day after day so that training is harder than the game itself.”

That depth will be tested immediately. Opening week features a stark contrast in styles, starting Wednesday in Annapolis against a disciplined Navy side that heavy-loads wide play and crosses into the box, followed by a matchup with a skilled Bowling Green roster that features several local players who competed for the Pittsburgh Riveters this past summer at FNB Stadium.

Yet as the Colonials board the bus for Maryland, the locker room standard has already been set by the veterans who lived through the close calls of seasons past.

“We have a special group of players,” added Gamble, who logged a team-high 1,529 minutes on the backline last season. “We’re ready to set the standard for hard work, accountability, and unity, and see what we can accomplish together.”