Jefferson Hagen, MacEwan Athletics
EDMONTON – She shares the record for the most minutes played by a Griffins player in a Canada West women's soccer regular season (1,260), never coming off the pitch during the 2015 campaign.
Erika Vecchio then rode off into the sunset after her final university season with the accolades of being one of the finest midfielders the program has ever seen.
Now she's back, officially joining the Griffins as an assistant coach in 2019.
With as strong a grasp as anyone of head coach Dean Cordeiro's system, the one-time workhorse of the Griffins' midfield is now passing on her knowledge to MacEwan's current roster.
"The system hasn't changed," she explained. "Dean still plays the same system and I know it to a T. It's burned in my brain forever, so I can help the new girls with that."
Vecchio left MacEwan in need of a break from the university soccer game, but recently rediscovered a passion for teaching the sport to younger players.
"At the start of the summer, I started picking up some younger teams, coaching at clubs and I kind of always knew the interest was there from Dean to have me on board," said Vecchio. "I just wasn't ready yet.
"It was nice to have a break and after I stepped back, I had a couple of years to myself," she added. "I realized it's my passion, it's what I want to do. So, as soon as he asked me, it was a no-brainer to come back and help."
Vecchio joins a coaching staff which also includes former teammates Jennifer Lam and Hilary Niederhaus. Assistant coach Kelly Hodgson and goalkeeper coach Darren Woloshen also return to round out Cordeiro's coaching staff.
Vecchio's still very familiar with many players on the roster, too, playing with several in club or with the Griffins.
"The fifth years now were rookies in my senior year," she said. "There's a handful of them I still know and then there's a bunch of girls I played club with still. I know all the girls from playing with them.
"There are no strangers either and it feels like a calm. MacEwan's always been my home. It's been an easy transition back in. It's only been a week that we've been training, and it feels like I never left."
FREE KICKS … In their opening match of the Canada West preseason, the Griffins defeated Concordia University of Edmonton 9-0 on Thursday at Clarke Stadium. Rookie striker Shanice Alfred led the way with a pair of goals, while Rachel Cooper, Salma Kamel, Suekiana Choucair, Maya Morrell, Raeghan McCarthy, Sunder West and Meagan Lemoine also scored for MacEwan. Emily Burns and Bianca Castillo shared the clean sheet … The Griffins now embark on a U.S. road trip, set to visit Eastern Washington on Saturday (2 p.m. MT), the University of Montana on Sunday (1 p.m. MT) and Carroll College on Monday (11:30 a.m. MT).