The Rogue Community College Ospreys women’s soccer team is proud to announce that three sophomores have signed letters of intent to play at the university level next season. Ospreys forward Logan Billy and defenders McKenna Frison and Lara Nuttall have signed on to play in the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA). Ospreys Athletics hosted a celebration with friends and family Friday, March 8.
Billy and Nuttall are transferring to Multnomah University in Portland. Frison is heading to Central Methodist University in Fayette, Missouri. The trio make up half the Ospreys’ sophomore class, and their transfers are another sign of growth for the four-year old women’s soccer program at RCC. The team sent its first player to a four-year program last fall when Haley Janky transferred to play for Oregon Tech.
”It’s pretty amazing to say that for every player who has come into this program and truly wanted to play at the next level, we have not only found a home for them but they are also receiving athletic aid,” Ospreys head coach Rusty Veth said at Friday’s celebration. “It’s really cool to have so many people come out to support these ladies tonight because it truly takes a village to get to this point.”
Veth shared a few words about the three transferring players.
Lara Nuttall “stood out to me right away when I first saw her play four years ago,” Veth said. “She ran a back line masterfully. Luckily for Rogue, fate put us in the same place again down the road and I convinced her that she was too good to not be playing college ball. She brought a level of maturity and confidence to the program at a time when we needed it.”
Logan Billy “came into the picture very late in recruiting two years ago but it was clear that she was an athlete,” Veth said. “She was coming back from injury and we talked in great depth about it and how she could come back and still have an impact and be the player she never knew she could be. She stuck to the game plan laid out for her and, in her second season at Rogue, she was the leading scorer for the team and made the NWAC All-Star team. Over her time at Rogue, I’ve seen her love for the sport grow astronomically.”
Of McKenna Frison, Veth said, “There isn’t anyone I’ve ever coached that I could say deserves to be in this position more than McKenna. She is a different breed of person. She never lets anything hold her back. She is honest about strengths and weaknesses and attacks every challenge that comes her way. I’ve never heard anyone speak ill of McKenna and have always admired the way she is able to stay out of drama and on the grind in the classroom and on the field. It’s been one of the greatest joys of my career as a coach to see her confidence grow as she has made such great strides in her technical and tactical abilities. She just has so much character and really is the epitome of someone who leaves it all on the field.”
The Ospreys women’s soccer program is recruiting strong and looking to carry forward an even larger sophomore class this fall. The season opens Sept. 11.