In a year’s time, history will be made for Lincoln University of Missouri when its women’s soccer team begins its first-ever season.

The team will compete in the Great Lakes Valley Conference, an NCAA Division II level league. It will be led by Leah Stringer, a former interim head coach at Missouri Western and assistant coach at Northeast Texas Community College.

On the honour of being Lincoln University’s first women’s soccer coach, Stringer told WSC: “When the announcement came out, my family and friends were all congratulating me and asking how it feels.

“To this day, honestly, I cannot answer that question. I just have this endless to-do list going on in my head.”

That mental ticklist comes with building a program from scratch. Stringer is doing everything, from designing uniforms and locker rooms, getting a feel for the community and recruiting staff and players.

She has a lot of autonomy with what she builds and how she builds it, backed by the trust of those that hired her.