The Master's University women's soccer team signed five new additions to their 2026 squad on Friday, including Saylor Atkinson, Autumn Heeb, Ava Reed, Annika Hernandez and Shay Gawaway.
The Master's finished their 2025 season with a record of 15-4-3, won the GSAC Tournament title and advanced to the NAIA National Tournament.
Atkinson, a defender coming out of Blue Ridge Academy Charter School in Long Beach, Calif., was a two-time champion of the DPL (Development Player League) in 2022 and 2024.
"Next year, we're looking for Saylor to come in and give us some good minutes at defensive mid," TMU Head Coach Esteban Chavez said. "We didn't really substitute at all last year, but Saylor is a great player who will give us options."
Heeb comes in as a striker from nearby Tehachapi High School in Tehachapi, Calif., where she was a first-team all-league selection as a sophomore. She also set the school scoring record and won league offensive player of the year in her junior season.
"Autumn is a very fast left-footed forward," Coach Chavez said. "We only have one other left-footed player on our team, and Autumn is a great goal-scorer."
Reed signed to TMU out of Clark High School in Las Vegas, Nev. As a center back, she won defensive player of the year for her school and started all four seasons.
"I'm looking for Ava to help us in both offensive and defense," Coach Chavez said. "She does a great job of taking players one-on-one."
Gawaway is a forward from Pheonix, Ariz., where she attended Sandra Day O'Connor High School and was a 6A Desert Valley Region champion.
"Shay is one player where she can make us not so one-dimensional," Coach Chavez said. "We don't have to force the ball to our forwards and she can take the pressure off players like
Maddy Traylor."
Hernandez graduated from Whittier Christian High School in La Mirada, Calif. She took home All-CIF honors, was all-league four times and was named midfielder of the year twice.
"Annika is another offensive option for us, after a year when we didn't really sub," Coach Chavez said. "She allows us to do so much more offensively and change our forwards around."
