Recruit Highlight - Emiley Thoms, Women's Soccer

Local recruits are one of the stories of the Lakeland Rustlers offseason and the women's soccer team have a particularly special case.

Emiley Thoms of Lloydminster will suit up for the Rustlers this fall, both having already had a connection to the coach and the program. Thoms, prior to playing U17 in Saskatoon, was previously part of the U15 girls team in the Border City with current Rustlers' Lindsay Slusar and Gracey Smithson, a team coached by Church.

The Rustlers coach said he was excited to see Thoms' development as a player this past spring. Back when he coached Thoms in U15, he thought highly of her potential.

"You could see then she had the drive and passion to keep playing, as well as the skill," Church said.

Thoms said she's excited to compete after going through the early stages of training. Being able to compete in her hometown and play with former teammates and coaches made the decision to come to Lakeland an easy one.

"I know the people here, who are great and I've played with several of my teammates before," she said. "I've been coached by Doyle before and he's a great coach."

Church noted that Thoms possess traits that prized in soccer, being able to play "down the middle."

"Inside players are stronger, more technical, and have the ability to see the game on the full field scale," he said. "She's a player that has those qualities."

Because of those capabilities, Church said he expects her to have an instant impact on the team.

"She's ready to come in and contribute straight away," he said. "She's impressed a lot of the returning players. Mentally, it will take time as a rookie, but she has all the physical tools."

For Thoms, she's just as focused on the other elements of being part of the group.

"I'm always a helping hand as a teammate," she said. "I'm a pretty positive person, so I like to help make it a positive environment."

Thoms is enrolled in Animal Health Technology. She and the women's team play their first league games Sept. 9-10.