OLIVER KIMOKEO | sports editor

Randie Massro has been an unfailing force at midfield for the last four years.

Senior midfielder Randie Massro has started all 80 games in her women’s soccer career at APU. On Tues. Oct. 30, she was honored as the GSAC Player of the Year. For the last four seasons, Massro has been a consistent presence in the Cougar midfield.

“She stepped in right away and did a great job her freshman year. Obviously, she was an impact player from the beginning.” head coach Jason Surrell said.

Massro credits her streak of consecutive games started to good attitude and hard work.

“My coach is all about work rate and work ethic so as long as you keep that consistent and you’re constantly doing that at practice and the games—that’s how you keep your spot,” Massro said.

Massro is not the type of player who would attract attention to herself. Midfielders often have the unspoken performances on the field. However, Massro is integral to the success of the Cougars because she plays the role of getting toward the ball and distributing passes to her teammates.

Under Surrell’s guidance, Massro has developed into a leader whose actions are the focal point of her leadership.

“As a leader, she has grown a ton,” Surrell said. “From a freshman to a senior, you just see maturity come out. It’s more of her leadership on the field than anything else. She brings that intensity when the rest of us tend to go along with it.”

Massro recognizes the value of leadership by action.

“I’m not a very vocal person on the field,” Massro said. “But my coach pointed out to me that you do not really have to say anything. It’s just how you play that you lead.”

Massro is working toward graduating with a degree in business marketing, and says her marketing aspiration came from a cinematic source.

“The way I got interested in marketing is from the movie What Women Want,” Massro said. “I remember the one scene Mel Gibson is in the boardroom and Helen Hunt passes out a box of all these different objects. Their objective is trying to figure out how they would market them. I thought that it was a cool idea.”

If Massro had the opportunity to market the women’s soccer team, she would use unity and community as selling points.

“I would definitely focus on the unity and community of our team,” Massro said. “How we support each other and also our passion for the game.”

Massro has ambitions to work in sports marketing. She said she is working on an internship with the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim.

From the perspective of her teammates, Massro has marketed herself as a player who always comes onto the field with an intensity undistracted by outside forces.

“She’s always out there working hard, trying to be the best, and improve in every practice,” senior goalkeeper Jill Colfer-Martinson said.

Massro has a passion for everything sports-related. In addition to playing soccer, she played volleyball in high school. When she watches a Cougar volleyball game every now and then, she misses the actions of the kills and digs.

Massro also loves to go to the beach and mountains to play sports. From wakeboarding on the ocean and snowboarding on the ice, she loves the rush that extreme sports provide.

In a way, Massro brings her extreme sports mentality to the soccer field. When she is battling for a ball against the opponent, it is a physical battle she is confident that she will win.

“From a soccer standpoint, she brings a certain level of toughness and presence on the field,” Surrell said. “You know when you’re going up in the air against Randie that will be a difficult matchup for you.”

Her impact in the midfield allows the Cougars to rest their defense in their games. When the ball goes toward midfield, Massro and her fellow midfielders work to not let the ball fall to the defensive line.

The midfielders lower the possibility for a shot by the opponent. In the regular season, the Cougars out-shot their opponents, 289-116. As a result, the Cougars only allowed seven goals in 16 games.

Perhaps the biggest impact Massro has had on her team is the fact she has not missed a start in any competition for her whole career.

This year, the Cougars have had more injuries than in previous years. However, the Cougars have not been shaken. They finished with a 14-1-1 overall record with an undefeated 10-0 record against GSAC teams—their first such record in GSAC since 2001.

Senior midfielder Mari Kasamoto said the team was able to persevere despite their injuries because they had an unwavering determination.

“This year, we’ve been very flexible and adaptable, especially to change,” Kasamoto said.

Nonetheless, another contributing factor to a strong team unity lies in the team spirit established by small group meetings.

“Randie was in my small group,” Kasamoto said. “Small groups are a way to keep our team connected and focused on what’s more important than just soccer. It’s a good way to know our teammates on a level that is a lot deeper than what we used to.”

In her four-year career, Massro has scored 16 goals and assisted for another 13 goals. Also, she has four game-winning goals in 2006 and 2007.

Massro’s conviction to come to APU to play soccer was based on the community established by her teammates who also became her friends. She realized APU provided a team atmosphere should could not receieve at other universities.

“My reason for wanting to come here was because of the girls,” Massro said. “I think that I’ve made connections and just great friendship since being here. A lot of the girls I have met on the team have impacted me.”