The Liberty announces week long series of signings

The Greenville Liberty brings on some local college talent starting with midfielder Ellie Arnold. This London, England native has spent the last four years with the Spartans where she recorded 3,056 in 59 matches and 10 points with two goals and six assists. In her junior year, Arnold notched her first career goal by opening scoring for USC Upstate’s 2022 season.

Prior to becoming a Spartan, Arnold attended Chase Community School in England, while competing at the club level for Arsenal Women FC, Millwall Lionesses, U23 Chelseas Women, and London City Lionesses. During this time, she participated in England’s regional training camp, and reached the FA Cup final with her team, marking a significant highlight in her career. Arnold’s talent was widely recognized, earning her the title of Coaches and Players’ Player of the Season on three separate occasions.

The offensive grows as Nya Baccelli joins the Liberty for the 2024 season. Baccelli has spent two seasons with the Spartans, logging 2,126 minutes throughout 37 games, starting in all but four matches. The Santa Clarita, California native has recorded an impressive total of 25 points with nine goals and seven assists as a Spartan, with another season soon to be underway. Baccelli was named to the Big South All-Conference Second Team and earned Big South Offensive Player of the Week last season.

The forward spent her freshman year competing at University of Mount Olive in North Carolina before transferring to Upstate. Baccelli played in 17 games, making 13 starts, scoring nine goals and three assists in just one season. She was Mount Olive’s leading goal scorer during the 2021 season and the second highest for goals scored in a single match (four). Baccelli’s hard work earned herself a spot on the Conference Carolinas All-Conference Third team. In the summer of 2021 and 2022, she had a short stint with Santa Clarita Blue Heat, a pre-professional women’s soccer team in the Western Conference of the United Women’s Soccer League.

Davis spent her youth career competing for Tidewater Sharks ECNL in Virginia and graduated from Grafton High School where she was a four-year letterman. The goalkeeper was named All-Conference Second Team her senior year. Davis gears up for her inaugural pre-professional season with the Liberty prior to entering her junior year in Spartanburg.

Prior to college, she competed for Archbishop Alter High School and helped the team capture it’s first-ever Ohio State Division II State Championship. Anuci was a four-time All-State selection, finished with 46 career goals and USC All-American status in 2018. She also has experience on the WPSL side for the Dayton Dutch Lions in Ohio and Lady Victory in Indiana.

With one season under her belt, Giulia Rodrigues returns to Greenville for 2024. This defender starred in seven games, made five starts and totaled 418 minutes on the pitch with the Liberty. Rodrigues transferred to Converse for her sophomore year where she started in all 16 matches, finishing with 1,387 minutes and two assists.

Prior to joining the Valkyries, the São Paulo native spent her freshman year at Central Methodist University as a member of CMU’s 2022 Heart of America Conference Championship team. Rodrigues gained a taste of the professional level competing with Brazil’s EC Vitória and Portugal’s S.L. Benefica, both under a training contract. At the youth level, Rodrigues played with São Paulo futebol Clube, where she helped her team win the Paulista U-17 Championship. Her performance garnered some attention leading to a call-up to Brazilian National Team’s U-17 squad. Rodrigues also won Athlete of the Year when she competed for Colégio Paralelo.

Born and raised in the Upstate, defender Angelica Gonzalez joins the her hometown team for the 2024 season. After attending the Liberty’s open tryouts in December, Gonzalez caught the eye of Head Coach Julie Carlson and a spot was carved out on the roster. The Spartanburg native is a soon to be graduate of Converse University, where she spent her last two seasons. With the Valkyries, Gonzalez appeared in 24 games, logging 1,137 minutes and seven points, with three goals and one assist. Gonzalez scored the game-winning goal in the final minutes of a rivalry match versus Francis Marion, helping her team advance in the conference.

Before transferring to Converse, the defender attended Spartanburg Methodist College, playing in 14 matches with an impressive 39 points in just one season. Gonzalez tallied 10 goals and 19 assists, earning her the #2 rank for assists in the NJCAA. She was also recognized with a spot on the NJCAA All-Region team while competing with the Pioneers. The Dorman High School four-year letterman participated in the Clash of the Carolinas in 2019 and earned All-Region honors each year. She also competed with CESA throughout her youth years.

Valerie Hernandez is a local soccer product beginning her collegiate career at North Greenville University. As a freshman, she saw action in all 13 matches, started in seven, and notched five goals and two assists. Liberty teammates Giulia Rodrigues and Angelica Gonzalez will remember Hernandez from conference play as she led the Crusaders to a 1-0 victory over Converse. Last season, the forward was tied for the second-most goals scored and fourth in points (12) on the team.

Just 30 minutes South of NGU, Hernandez played high school soccer with JL Mann where she served as team captain. The 2023 grad, was named an All-Region athlete and awarded a spot at the SC All-Star game. The Simpsonville native, also competed for CESA and was a member of the Liberty’s Academy Cup team.

Former Bob Jones midfielder and Liberty player, Anna Grace Abrams returns to the club for a second run. Abrams joined the Liberty for its inaugural season following an impressive tryout that caught the attention of Head Coach Julie Carlson. During the 2022 season, the midfielder appeared in three matches and notched the first goal in program history. Throughout her two seasons at Bob Jones, Abrams racked up 27 goals and 18 assists, finishing her collegiate career as a two-time NCCAA D1 South All Region First Team member and a 2022 Second Team NCCAA All-American. Following her graduate year, Abrams joined the team’s athletic coaching staff as assistant coach for the 2023 soccer season. Before attending BJU, Abrams played three seasons at Liberty University, recording 381 minutes throughout 21 appearances.

In her youth, the midfielder spent two years at Wilson Fike High School and finished at Wilson Christian Academy, where she tallied 87 goals and tallied 66 assists across four years. With the Chargers, Abrams helped her team win the NCCSA 2A State Championship where she was named All-State, team MVP and team captain. In addition, she played club for the NC Courage ECNL team in Raleigh, N.C. and was a U.S. Soccer training invitee, as well as a North Carolina Olympic Development Program First Team East selection. 

Along with her Bob Jones teammate, Gabriela Gonzalez joins the Liberty’s midfield, marking her second season with the club. Last summer, Gonzalez played a total of 281 minutes across eight matches, including two starts. In her four years with the Bruins, the senior logged a total of 4,770 minutes throughout 76 appearances, 68 starts and garnered an impressive 100 points with 39 goals and 22 assists. In the 2022 season, the midfielder emerged as the leading goal scorer for the Bruins. Her hard work and dedication was apparent, as she earned the title of South Region Player of the Year for Division I by the National Christian College Athletic Association (NCCAA) for both 2022 and 2023. Throughout her time at Bob Jones, Gonzalez was recognized for multiple other awards including:

• 2023 NCCAA Joe and Q Harding Award Recipient for DII Women’s Soccer
• 2022 First-Team All Regional
• 2022 NCCAA Second Team All-American

Before her collegiate career took off, the Antioch, California native attended Heritage Baptist Academy and competed with East County Revolution Football Club Impact Soccer Club, formerly known as the Impact Soccer club. Gonzalez was a crucial member of the Impact U-19 NPL squad, helping secure their victory in the Samford Summer Classic D1 Championship in 2019.