Title IX at 50: The Pioneers of Aggie Soccer – Texas A&M Athletics

It is doubtless the team bled some talent during those days. Among the most notable is Bettina Bernardi, an All-American with the Aggies, who would transfer to North Carolina, where the commitment to soccer was full throttle, and would earn a pair of national titles.

Texas A&M was still able to attract talent that would have made many schools in the country envious. It came down to their love of Aggieland.

“We had players who were recruited by teams all over the country,” Liz Dalton, an Aggie standout from 1986-90, said. “We had players who turned down scholarships to play at North Carolina and other ‘soccer schools.’ We chose A&M first and soccer second. We’re proud of that.”

Despite the Varsity II status, the Aggies went toe-to-toe with some of the nation’s best.

“I remember we played Central Florida with Michelle Akers (named FIFA Female Player of the Century in 2002),” Nancy Gold, a player from 1986-89, said. “She was such an amazing player. Several other players we played against would make future national teams. Looking back, it was an amazing experience.”

In November 1992, then-Texas A&M Athletics Director John David Crow announced the athletics department’s decision to elevate the women’s soccer program to full varsity status. G Guerrieri was brought on as the athletics department’s first head coach and from that point, the program has become a national force.

“Thank goodness for John David Crow’s vision for what the soccer program could be and his vision to hire Coach G,” Pereira said.

The success of the teams from 1980-92 made it easy for Crow to see the potential for soccer and the ability to succeed on a regular basis.

“I was hired at the end of March, and started on May 1st of ’93, and immediately started recruiting,” Guerrieri said. “I was able to get some really talented players from around Texas and Oklahoma to be freshmen on the team that started training camp with an open tryout in mid-August on the Simpson Drill Field. There was definitely talent on the ’92 Varsity II team, and several players made the inaugural roster for ’93, including our captain, Rennie Rebe.”

The Aggies went 15-3-1 in 1993 and 14-2-2 in 1994, just being left out of the 24 team NCAA Championship Tournament.  They qualified for the ’95 NCAA Tournament and are one of only five teams nationally to have been in every subsequent Big Dance.

What you see today at Ellis Field is light years ahead of the days of the persistent pioneers. The women of the 80s and early 90s…