ODESSA, Texas (July 20, 2026) – The University of Texas Permian Basin women's soccer program heads into year two under Head Coach Garrett Kull with plenty of depth and momentum from last Fall. While only going 3-10-3 (2-10-2 in the Lone Star Conference), Kull managed to tie the best start for a first-year head coach for the program while also having the best defensive performance in program history. The Falcons will add 13 newcomers and return 15 players from last season. The Falcons' high retention includes all but one freshman from the historic class. Kull spoke to the difference in recruiting this year as opposed to last year saying, "Last year we were rebuilding an entire roster," referring to the Falcons only returning six players leading his staff to signing the largest class in program history, "but with this incoming class we've had more time to explore more areas and find players that can help fill holes or bring different things to our roster. It's exciting to have so much returning experience and new talent to help us continue to push the level within the program."

The Falcons will face an uphill battle as they look to replace junior Allyson Reed, who moved up to NCAA Division I East Texas A&M, senior Ella Bertram, who has signed with the defending Division II National Champions Florida Tech, and graduating seniors Natalia Salas, Maria Tarrago, and Ilaya Pata. Kull spoke to the talent leaving the program saying, "It's always tough to see talented players move on whether it be through graduation or transferring, but we know they are all going to accomplish great things. It's the nature of coaching at this level and in this era, we're immensely proud of the players we've developed, and we're excited about the opportunities it is going to provide for our returning and incoming players this season." Kull added that he expects there to be a lot of open position battles heading into preseason. "You can't be afraid to compete at a high level every day in this conference. We look at our roster and say, 'she's going to compete against her' or 'that group is going to be tough to find a true starter in', it means we've only gotten better, added depth, and no one can be complacent."

The paths for each recruit of the Falcon's class will feature players from varying backgrounds and levels of experience. Kull returned to the transfer portal to sign a Division I transfer, a Division II transfer from within the Lone Star Conference, two Division III transfers, and a junior college standout returning to the Permian Basin. The freshmen group will continue to represent some of the best clubs in the state, and feature incomers from Nevada and Oregon.  
 
Aleese Maldonado – JR – San Antonio, TX – Bethany College (WV)
A transfer from Bethany College in West Virginia, with a total record of 2501 minutes, Maldonado adds a lot of on-field experience to the 2026 recruiting class. In her collegiate career, she has been named in the Presidents' Conference Academic Honor Roll, played in 33 games starting in 25 of them, and played a full 90 minutes in 12 of those games last season. Prior to her collegiate career, she was also part of the First and Second All-District teams and Second-Team All-Region for Sandra Day O'Connor High School. She was also a high achieving student being named in the Academic All-District and All-State and played for Classics Elite at the club level.  
 
Emily McCright – JR – Midland, TX – Western Texas College
The Midland native returns to the Permian Basin after two seasons at Western Texas College to begin her collegiate career. At WTC, she played in a total of 12 games with ten starts including seven games and five starts last season. She was a part of a defense that held a goal-against average of 2.00 – the second-best defensive performance for WTC since the 2014 season. McCright played for the FC Dallas and Midland-Lee prior to WTC.
 
Alyssa Pipes – SO – San Antonio, TX – Midwestern State
Pipes arrives at UTPB after playing her freshman campaign for Lone Star Conference foe Midwestern State University, but has ties back to the Midland-Odessa area. She participated in four games and played a total of 144 minutes as the Mustangs advanced to the LSC semifinals and first round of the NCAA Tournament. She graduated from Smithson Valley High School, where she scored 14 goals and had 16 assists in her senior campaign, was named to the first-team all-district 26-5A and all-state tournament teams, and was a state semi-finalist in 2023 and 2025. Pipes also played club for Classics Elite in San Antonio. 
 
Breanna Reagan – SO – Rapid City, SD – Northern Colorado
The Rapid City native makes her way to the Permian Basin after starting her career with NCAA DI Northern Colorado University. She was named the South Dakota Player of the Year in her senior year and scored almost 100 career goals and amassed 50 career assists for Stevens High School. Reagan also maintained a 4.0 GPA and was a member of the national honor society. She played for Black Hills Rapids, where at one point Kull was the assistant director of goalkeeping and college coordinator, leading her team to a national runner-up finish.
 
Brooklyn Westfall – SO – Fort Worth, TX – McMurry
The mid-year transfer from McMurry University joined the Falcons for their Spring 2026 season. In her time with the War Hawks, she played in seven matches as a freshman on a team that went unbeaten in conference play, won a SCAC Tournament title, and made the first trip to the national tournament in program history. Westfall is a product of Arlington Heights High School and the Dallas Texans soccer club.
   
Kendal Bartakian – Henderson, NV
As one of the final commitments to finish off the 2026 recruiting class, Bartakian is a graduate of Coronado High School in Las Vegas, Nevada. She played her club soccer for the Las Vegas Heat in the Elite Club Regional League. She graduated with a 4.0+ GPA, an advanced honors diploma, and was a national honor society member. She also established herself as a dual-sport athlete, winning a flag football state championship.
 
Kally Calcaterra – Las Vegas, NV 
The Palo Verde graduate will make her way to the Permian Basin from Las Vegas, Nevada. The four-year letterman helped guide her team to a conference championship and a second-place regional finish on the soccer field. The dual-sport athlete also was a standout on the track where she was a 4x400 region champion and in 2023 was a state champion. She also played in the Girls Academy for the Las Vegas Sports Academy.
 
Isabella Capra – Canby, OR 
Capra's commitment comes as the first student-athlete from Oregon to represent UTPB. Coming from a small town, Capra was an international indoor skydiver before becoming a standout soccer player, including being named a top forward in Oregon by Sports Illustrated. She was a three-time Second-Team All-State selection as a defender and forward. She was also recognized for track & field with league, district, and state finishes in both the 4x400 and 4x100 meter relays. She concluded her club soccer career with the Westside Metros, members of the Girls Academy.
 
Victoria De La Torre – Spring, TX
The Challenge SC standout was an early commitment to the class and is the second signee by Kull from the club. During her time at Klein High School, De La Torre was a four-time All-District selection including, two First-Team and two Second-Team selections. She was also selected three times as an Academic All-State member. De La Torre has shown rare versatility in playing as a defender, central midfielder, and forward in her career.
 
Nicole Quinones – Horizon City, TX 
Adding to the goalkeeping unit, Quinones is a product of El Paso Surf where she has played semi-professionally for the past two years and represented them on the club level in multiple competitions. The Eastlake High School graduate was the All-District Goalkeeper of the Year in 2022-2023 and won a district title in 2024-2025. She also trained with the CARP GK Academy.
 
Kylie Russell – Corpus Christi, TX
The Corpus Christi commit has an extensive list of achievements while representing Veterans Memorial High School. Russell was named District MVP in 2024 and was First Team All-District in both 2024 and 2026. In 2025, her efforts earned her a spot on the All-District Second-Team. Throughout 2024-26, Kylie has also been named in the Academic All-District as well as in 2026 also being in the Academic All-State awardees. She played club soccer for Sting Corpus Christi, a branch of the Sting SC that has received national recognition. She is also the second UTPB signing in two years from the Sting organization of clubs. Her father was also a standout football player at Midland-Lee.  
 
Sofia Souici-Faivre – El Paso, TX 
The Franklin High School standout goalkeeper allowed only six goals in district play and helped the Cougars to three wins in penalty kick shootouts in route to a district championship in her senior season. She was named to the First-Team All-District and All-City Team, and was twice selected to the PREP1 Senior Soccer Showcase. She also represented FC Juarez at the club level in Mexico.
 
Abigail Symon – FR – San Antonio, TX
Symon was an attacking force at Davenport High School, scoring over 100 career goals and contributing over 50 assists, including a run to the state championship game in 2024-2025. She was a four-time All-District honoree, the 2024-2025 District Utility Player of the Year, earned multiple SA Express News Soccer Player of the Week selections, was the WABC Athlete of the Month, a Second-Team All-State selection, and a State All-Tournament Team honoree. She graduated Magna Cum Laude with a UT OnRamps Honor Cord. She played club soccer for the Classics Elite in the Elite Club National League.