Every championship team leaves behind clues.
The trophies, rankings and final matches may define a program’s success, but the foundation is built long before a team reaches the biggest stage. Over the last three seasons, the NCAA women’s tennis champions have looked different on the surface, but their roster construction has followed a similar formula.
International recruiting. Impact freshmen. Experienced transfers. A veteran presence to connect generations.
Those ingredients helped build championship
teams at Texas A&M and Georgia, and now Missouri head coach Robin Goodman is attempting to establish the same type of foundation in Columbia.
Missouri is not a finished product. The Tigers are entering a new era after a complete roster reset, but Goodman’s first recruiting class shows a clear vision. Instead of chasing a quick rebuild, Missouri is following the same blueprint that has become common among the nation’s top programs.
The Tigers are building a roster designed for sustained success.
A global approach to recruiting
The best teams in college tennis are no longer built from one recruiting region.
The recent national champions have featured players from across the world, creating rosters with different styles, backgrounds and experiences.
Texas A&M’s championship teams featured players from countries including Peru, Israel, Sweden, Romania and Canada. Georgia’s title-winning roster included athletes from Ukraine, Turkey, Germany, Lithuania, Ecuador, Czech Republic, Russia and Thailand.
The trend is clear. The best programs are searching globally.
Missouri’s new roster follows that same philosophy.
The Tigers enter the season with players representing five different countries. Leticia Bazan comes to Columbia from Lima, Peru. Mariana Higuita Barraza arrives from Medellin, Colombia. Alba Salles Canudas joins the program from Barcelona, Spain. Danielle Chapman comes from Benoni, South Africa. Millie Skelton adds international experience after beginning her college career at SMU and growing up in Hull, England.
Along with sophomore Alex Ackman from Stuart, Florida, and freshmen Evelyn Whiteside and Daria Budko from Texas, Missouri’s roster reflects the type of diversity seen throughout championship programs.
For Goodman, building a roster with different experiences was not just about adding talent. It was about creating a team capable of competing in the SEC, where international recruiting has become a standard among the conference’s elite.
Freshmen are not just the future
Championship teams do not wait years for young players to make an impact.
Georgia and Texas A&M both relied on freshmen who were trusted in important moments on their paths to national titles. Those players were not viewed simply as projects. They were expected to compete immediately.
Missouri’s roster is built with that same expectation.
The Tigers’ freshman class includes Leticia Bazan, Daria Budko, Danielle Chapman, Mariana Higuita Barraza, Alba Salles Canudas and Evelyn Whiteside.
Seven of Missouri’s eight players are freshmen or sophomores, making this one of the youngest rosters in the SEC.
But youth does not mean inexperience in Goodman’s eyes.
These players were recruited because of their ability to contribute now while continuing to develop into the foundation of Missouri tennis for years to come.
The goal is not simply to replace an old roster. It is to create the next one.
The importance of experience
While freshmen have played a major role in recent championship runs, the best teams also find ways to blend youth with experience.
That balance is where Millie Skelton enters the picture.
After competing at SMU, Skelton brings college tennis experience to a Missouri roster where nearly everyone else is entering a new chapter. She provides a connection between the expectations of college tennis and the development of a young team.
Recent champions have followed the same model.
Georgia added Oklahoma State transfer Sofia Rojas, while Texas A&M incorporated transfers such as Carson Branstine from Virginia and Nicole Khirin from Texas.
Missouri is not relying only on freshmen to build the program. Goodman has combined a talented recruiting class with a proven transfer who understands the demands of college tennis.
A bridge between two eras
When Missouri begins its new era, one player will connect the past and the future.
Alex Ackman.
The sophomore is the only returning player from Missouri’s previous roster, making her importance extend beyond statistics and match results.
Ackman represents continuity in a program undergoing significant change.
Last season, she posted an 11-13 singles record, earned a conference win against Ole Miss. But her biggest role this season may come from helping guide a group of newcomers through their first season together.
Championship programs always have players who understand what it takes to build culture.
For Missouri, Ackman is that player.
Building the structure behind the roster
Before building a championship roster, programs need the right foundation behind the scenes.
Goodman has done that by assembling a complete coaching staff with associate head coach Manny Raga and assistant coach Bronte Murgett.
The structure mirrors what has become common among elite programs. Championship teams are not built by one person. They are built by staffs that can recruit, develop and create consistency year after year.
Goodman arrived in Columbia with a vision, and the coaching staff gives Missouri the resources to execute that plan.
The roster is young. The program is still developing. There will be challenges along the way.
Missouri is not Georgia. Missouri is not Texas A&M.
Not yet.
But if the blueprint for building a championship program can be found by studying the last three NCAA champions, the Tigers are beginning to assemble many of the same pieces.
International recruiting. Young talent. Transfer experience. A complete coaching structure.
Whether those pieces eventually turn Missouri into an SEC contender will be determined over the next several seasons.
Tiger Top Spin returns Monday with another feature exploring the people and stories driving Missouri tennis, while Columns & Courts continues every Wednesday with analysis, roster breakdowns and a deeper look inside the Tigers’ season ahead.
