With the close of the 2009 women’s soccer season comes the end of three players’ collegiate careers. Stephanie Beyelia, Nikki Echeverria and Christine Nieva are all moving on to other endeavors, but they recently took some time to reflect on their years at UH.
While this season may not have gone as planned with the Cougars missing the playoffs, all three said they enjoyed their time on and off the pitch.
Echeverria particularly enjoyed the camaraderie that comes with playing a team sport.
‘The most important thing was the girls that I met,’ Echeverria said. ‘Making really good friends, like family.’
Beyelia also said she would miss the interaction with both her teammates and coaches.
‘I enjoyed being around the girls,’ Beyelia said. ‘All the locker room warm-ups, all the pregame talks and all the motivational speeches our coaches have given us.’
Nieva says that her time on Cullen Boulevard flew by and that she would miss being a part of the college environment.
‘Having this opportunity to play ‘- it went by like a flash,’ Nieva said. ‘I’m going miss the whole experience of playing, the college experience, meeting people. Spending time with these girls is what I’m going to miss the most.’
Nieva admitted she would not miss was the hectic schedule that comes with being an athlete.
‘(The hardest part was) trying to handle traveling, making up missed classes and missed exams,’ Nieva said.
While each will leave with a degree in tow, they have not all closed the doors on their playing careers, especially given the expanding horizon of women’s soccer.
‘I think (the sport is) progressive right now,’ Echeverria said. ‘I like that they have the Dallas team coming up soon, so that’s good.’
Beyelia said that proximity is a factor when it comes to continuing her playing career.
‘If they were to create another league in Dallas or somewhere else in Texas, I think I could attempt to tryout for those teams,’ Beyelia said.
Nieva is also hoping to parlay a recent stint in an adult league into an invitation to a professional league.
‘This past summer I was playing in an adult league,’ Nieva said. ‘I hope to be playing in the Women’s Premier Soccer League, depending on how my (injured) knee does.’
But if things don’t work out, Nieva has a fallback plan in place.
‘I am the assistant coach for Episcopal High School,’ Nieva said. ‘That is one of my goals, to continue to coach, and I want to hopefully coach college too.’
Echeverria, a psychology major, says that regardless of what happens, the sport will always have a place in her life.
‘Definitely, soccer is a huge part (of my life),’ Echeverria said. ‘I’ve done a few camps and I kind of like (coaching) the age of 13 or 14, where they’ve developed the basics and understand.’
Beyelia said that she will leave UH a better person, and that her ability to affect young fans is the best part of being a college athlete.
‘For kids to be able to come out and watch us and (us) be role models for them is the biggest benefit,’ Beyelia said.
