UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. – Penn State women's soccer head coach Erica Dambach announced the addition of veteran defensive presence and four-year Boston College starter Michela Agresti to the 2023 roster on Thursday afternoon.
"Michela brings a wealth of experience to our extremely talented back line," Dambach said. "She was a standout performer and game changer at Boston College for the past few years, and she also developed and excellent track record as a competitor on the international level. Her technical ability and vision will be an immediate asset to our team. Her skillset will help us play the style of soccer that we want to play. She is effective on both sides of the ball and truly epitomizes what it means to be a modern-day center back."
A consistent starting defender in the Atlantic Coast Conference for the past four seasons, Agresti arrives in Happy Valley as one of the most seasoned athletes in college soccer. The Swampscott, Massachusetts, native played 90 minutes in 14 of Boston College's 16 matches last season, tallying 1,407 minutes in total during the 2022 campaign. A standout on the field and in the classroom, Agresti was a two-year team captain for the Eagles and mustered a trio of All-ACC Academic Team selections in addition to an All-New England Second Team nod in 2021.
"I chose Penn State because of the program's consistent success and collective commitment to excellence," Agresti explained. "Both the coaching staff and support staff made me feel right at home as soon as I stepped on campus. With the guidance of our coaches, I am certain that I will be able to grow exponentially as a soccer player and person while in Happy Valley. I can't say enough about how welcomed I felt by all of the players and am looking forward to competing alongside them. Penn State was a no-brainer for me and I can't wait to get started."
Agresti's mainstay status in the Boston College lineup began in her first collegiate season, starting all 18 matches of the Eagles' 2019 campaign and playing the full match in 17 of those starts. She led all Boston College women's soccer players, including goalkeepers, in minutes played over the course of her freshman year with 1,642. The following season, Agresti played at least 90 minutes in every Boston College match and tallied her first collegiate goal against Rhode Island. Her BC career culminated in 67 starts with 5,933 minutes played with six points split between a goal and four assists.
One of the most promising youth prospects in recent memory, Agresti was a member of the United States U17 Women's World Cup National Team in 2018. During her freshman campaign at Boston College, she was invited to the U.S. U20 Women's National Team training camp and appeared on the team's roster for training camp the following January. In her youth career, she was an ECNL National Finalist in 2016 and 2017 and led her club team, the FC Stars, to a trio of ECNL Northeast Conference titles while serving as the team's captain in 2015, 2016 and 2017.
Agresti will look to bolster an accomplished back line in Happy Valley next season, joining the likes of two-time Big Ten Defensive Player of the Week and Third-Team All-Big Ten selection Mieke Schiemann as well as Ellie Wheeler. The Nittany Lions finished the 2022 campaign with the fifth-best goals-against average in the Big Ten Conference with a 0.947 mark in addition to the second-best shutout percentage in the B1G and 36th-best mark nationally with a 0.522 finish.
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