D3 Week Wildcat Spotlight: Jenna Stanley

By Emerson Teller '29

04/09

Many great athletes have strange superstitions that they believe brings them luck.

Examples are many, such as Michael Jordan always wearing his North Carolina shorts, Tiger Woods wearing his red polo on Sundays, and Wade Boggs eating chicken before every game.

Now, Linfield senior Jenna Stanley and her roommates have found their own fun superstition during Linfield’s nine game unbeaten streak to start the season.

“We have to listen to Despacito [by Luis Fonzi] when we’re getting ready before games. It has contributed to me and Lize scoring,”

Laughed senior Jenna Stanley

She rooms with fellow seniors Lize Rendon (#27) and Ruby Lacktrup (#22), and redshirt junior Jocelyn Jacobs (#16), and the tradition has led to Rendon and Stanley leading the Wildcats in scoring with five and four goals, respectively.

Their tradition started early in the season with a suggestion from Midfielder Ruby Lacktrup.

“One time I asked her to turn it on when we were getting ready, and both Lize and Jenna scored in the game, so now we have to do it every time” says Lacktrup.

This season, one of the most successful offensive tactics for the Linfield Women’s Soccer team centers around scoring off of corner kicks. And center back Stanley has feasted off of them, with all four of her goals this season coming off of corner kicks.

Part of her success stems from the skill of Linfield Midfielder Mia Curtaz. “I know for the most part it’s going to be a good ball, so my job in our corners is just to go to the back post and I honestly just stare at the ball and move wherever it moves,” says Stanley. Curtaz takes almost all of Linfield’s corner kicks, so Stanley knows that every time Linfield takes one, she’s got a shot at putting the ball in the back of the net. Playing in the back line means that she doesn’t get a ton of chances to score, but Stanley has come up clutch for the Wildcats when she is called up to receive a corner.

Stanley grew up in Puyallup, Wash, and attended Puyallup High School, lettering eight times across soccer, basketball, and softball. She was a two time 1st Team All North Puget Sound League selection, and her team won the 4A State Championship in her sophomore year.

Leaving the Tacoma area for small town McMinnville has led Stanley away from the traditional women’s soccer powerhouses in the Northwest Conference. Puget Sound and Pacific Lutheran are perennial contenders for the conference title in women’s soccer.

She came to Linfield because: “I was looking for a smaller school, both athletically and academically. I liked the feel of having not a lot of people in your class, and I also loved the coaching staff when I met with them… I just felt like I would fit in good.” said Stanley

Amidst Linfield’s undefeated run to start the season (5-0-4 as of Oct 3), Stanley says that there is a little bit of added pressure on herself. “As a center back, I think a lot of its just making sure that we’re not getting scored on a bunch, but I also feel pressure scoring off of corners and stuff. Fun pressure, Good pressure.”

However, when the Wildcat’s have trailed late in games, Stanley hasn’t let the pressure crack her.

“I think I’ve been in that position so many times in my career, here specifically too, that I’m kinda just like, Ok, every chance we get, let’s see if we can capitalize, and I think right now we’re doing really good with that.”

This season, Linfield has trailed late in the second half against East Texas Baptist, Whitman, and Willamette, and Stanley has bailed the Wildcats out of each game, scoring in each contest with less than 25 minutes to go. All three games resulted in draws, keeping the Wildcat’s unbeaten streak alive a total of nine matches.

Women's soccer's season came to an end, finishing in third in the Northwest Conference standings, their best finish under head coach Steve Simmons, and the best since 2016. Senior Lize Rendon led the Wildcats in scoring this season, with five goals and three assists, totaling 13 points. Senior Jenna Stanley also scored five goals for ten points this season. 15-different Wildcats found the back of the net, with help coming from Mia Curtaz who led the team with six assists, the second most in the conference. Junior goalkeeper Alexa Fritz was a staple in the lineup all season long, recording nine shutouts, the third-most in the NWC.

Jenna Stanley, Linfield Women's Soccer Roster

Stanley’s superstition, it seems, is still working.

She came to Linfield because: “I was looking for a smaller school, both athletically and academically. I liked the feel of having not a lot of people in your class, and I also loved the coaching staff when I met with them… I just felt like I would fit in good.” said Stanley

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