Alyssa Glover has become an offensive spark for UW soccer

Oct. 4—Alyssa Glover has established herself as one of the most dangerous scorers in the Mountain West so far this season.

The University of Wyoming sophomore leads UW's women's soccer team in goals (five), shot percentage (23.8%) and game-winning goals (two).

As a freshman, Glover appeared in all 20 games, including 14 starts. She tallied two goals and two assists in her first season in Laramie, which was good enough for fifth on the team with six total points.

Her strong freshman season was recognized with a spot on last year's MW newcomer team. The momentum has carried over to this fall, with Glover earning two MW offensive player of the week awards already this season.

"I take pride in awards, but it takes a lot of work to get there," Glover told WyoSports on Tuesday. "I also try not to think about it because that represents one week, and I'm focused on being my best every week."

The Cowgirls' season hasn't started the way the team anticipated, but Glover is intent on focusing on the games ahead. UW (4-5-3 overall, 0-4-0 MW) is focused on putting all facets of the game together to play a 'Cowgirl tough' brand of soccer.

This season, Glover transitioned from midfield to forward, a change that has allowed her to attack the net more freely. Halfway through her sophomore season, Glover finds herself in a prominent role on the team.

"When I first got to UW, I expected to play an offensive role on this team," Glover said. "It's definitely a bigger role than I thought it was going to be, so being able to step up and have an impact on the front line has been awesome."

Glover felt like her freshman season as a Cowgirl was all about adjusting to the mental component of playing Division I soccer. Once she was able to get out of her own head, the game slowed down for her.

"Last year is when I got the competence to know I just need to play and not think about everyone's expectations," Glover said. "I had to stop thinking about how things are supposed to go, and I think that's definitely helped me improve my play on the field."

Glover looks back to a game against Nevada last fall as the moment a flip was switched for her perspective on soccer. She scored her first college goal against the Wolf Pack, and she felt like that was a turning point for the team's season.

"We were winning games down the stretch where we were down early and eventually made it to the (MW) tournament at the end of the year," Glover said.

While Glover is mostly recognized for her offensive production, she feels like her field vision is an underrated part of her game. Her ability to know when to go into the box, take a shot for herself or dump the ball off to a teammate has helped create more scoring chances on the offensive end.

UW was one of the first schools to contact Glover during her recruitment, and she quickly fell in love with the program. Her hometown of Englewood, Colorado, is a similar size compared to Laramie, so the adjustment was less intimidating when she moved on campus.

"I love everything about Laramie," Glover said. "Our team this year is so close, it definitely makes living in Laramie feel like home."

Glover has naturally filled more of a leadership role for UW this season. That's led her to feel like her voice is heard more often by her teammates during her second season with the team.

"Especially with some of the younger girls, I've kind of been somebody that people can ask questions to better understand different scenarios," Glover said. "To help them get better as a player, it also helps me get better as well because I'm getting to talk through different situations."

Between games, practices, travel and everything in between, Glover has found taking care of her body has become more important in college soccer.

"I'm super cautious of sleep," Glover said. "I make sure everything I have for the day is done by 9:30 p.m. so I can get in bed to relax and go to sleep. I try to be asleep by 10 p.m. every night and give my body enough time to recover, allowing me to train my hardest every day."

There is no offseason with DI athletics, but the majority of college soccer players have played year-round for most of their lives. Glover started playing the sport when she was 4 years old, and and hasn't taken a break since.

"In the offseason when I'm in Laramie, I play in a lot of pick-up practices with the team, and we'll do a lot of running," Glover said. "When I'm home, my old club team gets together, and we'll practice, just so we're all able to touch the ball and have fun."

Glover started playing club soccer in the Colorado Rapids Youth Soccer Academy and spent 14 years in the organization. She decided soccer would be her main priority when she got to middle school.

"She'd be really proud, getting to see how far I've grown as a player and to see that I've gotten to this point," Glover said on what her middle school self would think of the player she's become.

Glover attended Cherry Creek High in Colorado, where she was named Centennial League player of the year as a senior.

"Club was definitely the main developmental thing for me," Glover said. "There was higher competition there than in high school, but high school brought a lot of the fun components of soccer, like getting to represent your school."

Glover's older sister Kaitlyn is a midfielder for the University of Denver. While neither of her parents played soccer themselves, her family has been the backbone for her success since coming to UW.

"My parents and sister have been my biggest supporters," Glover said. "They've always been there, whether things are not going the way I want them to, or (they're going) better than I expected."

Camaraderie is one of the biggest things that Glover has thrived from in her many years of playing soccer. That feeling has only gotten stronger since arriving on UW's campus last fall.

"Especially with the team here, I feel like we're a group of 34 best friends," Glover said. "They are people you can lean on and that I know I want to be a part of my life long after soccer is over."

Austin Edmonds covers Laramie High, University of Wyoming and community athletics for WyoSports. He can be reached at aedmonds@wyosports.net. Follow him on X at @_austinedmonds.