West Virginia is obviously no stranger to recruiting on the east coast, but that does not make the Mountaineers any less global of a brand.
For more than a century, Mountaineers have spread the globe, and WVU’s athletic programs do the same, traveling far and wide to recruit and grow the WVU brand. Across its 15 programs, though, no team finds quite as consistent success across the country and abroad as WVU Women’s Soccer, led by head coach Nikki Izzo-Brown for nearly three decades.
Izzo-Brown’s 2024 Mountaineers are no exception to her rule of grabbing several players from several backgrounds. The Mountaineers represent 13 U.S. states this season as well as three Canadian provinces and three countries.
Several players stand alone with unique backgrounds but united with WVU Soccer. One such player is fifth year midfielder Isabel Loza.
After two years close to home at UCLA, the La Mirada, Calif. native landed at WVU through the transfer portal in 2022. Despite playing just four games in two seasons with the Bruins, Loza drew interest from Izzo-Brown and quickly became a key contributor.
Loza played in all 23 matches as a junior at WVU and started in one. Izzo-Brown’s trust in Loza only grew as the year went on, leading to her giving Loza her collegiate high in minutes at the biggest stage: the Big 12 Championship final against TCU.
WVU defeated the Horned Frogs 1-0 in two overtime periods in that match, and just like that, in her first year at WVU, Isabel Loza was a conference champion. To close out her season, Loza scored her first collegiate goal in the first round of the NCAA Tournament against Virginia Tech to help WVU win 2-0.
Since then, Loza seemed primed to become a staple of WVU Women’s Soccer, proven all the more by the significance of her injury last season.
Loza started all of WVU’s first 12 matches at midfielder and posted a goal against UCF and game-winning assist against Iowa State before falling to a knee injury that sidelined her for the remainder of the season on Sept. 28.
In 2024, Loza’s injury continues to keep her sidelined, and her what-if story will stand out in the minds of WVU fans, as well as coach Izzo-Brown, for a long time. At WVU, Izzo-Brown unlocked potential that Loza herself did not see, saying on WVU’s Olympic Sports Coaches Show this week that she saw Loza going pro if things went differently.
“I remember Izzy Loza, I’m like, ‘Iz, you could be a pro,’ and she didn’t believe it, and now unfortunately she gets injured again, but she recognized that she had the ability to do it at the next level,” Izzo-Brown.
On the field or not, Isabel Loza is a Mountaineer through and through and remains a reliable constant for Izzo-Brown this season as support for newer players. Loza admits the job is not easy but knows she is contributing every day with the team.
“It sucks showing up everyday, thinking I was going to be able to play this year then unfortunately having the same injury back-to-back,” Loza said. “It’s hard to show up every single day just watching everyone practice or play, knowing that should be me out there.”
“They need as much support as they can. I know season is hard. I know it’s mentally and physically taxing on your body and everything, so I just try to show up every day and try to be their number one fan and try to support them every single day.”
Isabel Loza will be recognized as a member of WVU Women’s Soccer’s senior class on Sunday against Colorado. The game is set to begin at 1 p.m. at Dick Dlesk Soccer Stadium.
Photo from WVU Women’s Soccer
