ARKADELPHIA, Ark. –The women's soccer team is heading to the Great American Conference tournament this week led by six seniors who will be fighting to play another game in their gold uniforms. One of those seniors is Fort Worth native Tessa Woodcock. Woodcock, the reigning Great American Conference Defensive Player of the Week, plays central defense for the Tigers and has scored four goals this season, while adding one assist.
 
Woodcock began playing soccer at the young age of three, but she got serious about the sport in third grade.
 
"I moved back to Texas and one of my friends invited me to come guest play on her select team," said Woodcock. "I ended up trying out for the team and was immersed in the world of competitive soccer."
 
Woodcock played throughout high school and was interested in continuing to play while in college. She took a trip to Ouachita and fell in love with the campus. However, at the time she was looking at schools, Ouachita did not have a women's soccer coach. The senior soccer players at the time took Woodcock in and recruited her to be a Tiger.
 
"It was a huge deal that the girls on the team cared enough about the school to recruit me," said Woodcock.
 
Woodcock came into the Ouachita soccer team as an outside defender. For some people, their love for the game dwindles as they get older, but that was not the case for Woodcock. The things that she loved about soccer at a youth level have continued into college.
 
"I was talking to my roommate the other day about what I would miss when I graduate, and I told her I would miss the instant community that you get on the team," said Woodcock. "You go through so many highs and lows, from hard practices to almost passing out to winning conference championships, you really build a bond with your team."
 
Woodcock's four years of community have culminated in this year, her senior season. She has had to learn what it means to be a leader and how to encourage the other players on the team.
 
"A lot of being a leader is just the little things. Giving little bits of encouragement during practice or sending out texts before the games go a long way," said Woodcock. "I also let the girls know that I will be there for them no matter what. If they are struggling through school or just trying to figure something out, I will always be there to talk with them. I think it is important for the girls to be able to come talk to me since I am older and have been through everything that they are going through."
 
It has been an interesting season for the Tigers. They opened the season in non-conference play and did not win a single game. Ouachita entered the first Great American Conference game with a 0-4-1 record and low confidence. However, the Tigers defeated Southern Nazarene by a final score of 2-0 in that conference opener. They went on to win eight out of their 12 conference matches and earned the second-highest seed in the Great American Conference tournament. Woodcock attributed the turnaround that the team experienced this season was largely due to learning how to play for each other.
 
"We each put a piece of tape around our finger and put two number on the tape to show that we are playing for each other and not for ourselves. When you are tired late in the game, you are reminded by those numbers to give your all for those players on your team," said Woodcock. "We have a lot of individual talent, but chemistry wins games."
 
The Tigers now head into the conference tournament. Woodcock describes it as being a different atmosphere than any other game in the season.
 
"Knowing that you can get into the NCAA tournament changes things completely," said Woodcock. "There are more fans at the games and the competitiveness of the game is intensified."
 
The Tigers will open the tournament against Harding on Nov. 3 at 12 p.m. If they win, the conference championship will be played on Nov. 5 at 11 a.m. All tournament games are played in Weatherford, Okla.