After two seasons at the University of Washington, outside midfielder Deanna Montero traded in her purple and gold jersey for Vandal black and pride gold and hopes to make an instant impact in this upcoming season.
“Coming here, I feel like I can reach my highest potential as a player. I know I have that trust in people behind me that believe in me,” Montero said. “I got that from Coach Jeremy, Coach Ashley and Neil. They were very sure of me from the start. I want to be in a place where the coaching staff believes in me as a person and as a player.”
Montero hails from Edmonds, Wash., where her soccer journey began at 13 years old. After watching her brothers play high level soccer, Montero wanted to try out the sport and began playing on a recreational team in Edmonds, quickly growing fond of the sport.
“I love how creative you can be,” Montero said. “I feel like in soccer, you can do almost anything, and I think that’s what I like. There’s never a wrong answer. You can be a player and express yourself.”
Montero quickly shot up the ranks and joined Seattle United ECNL, where she got her first taste of higher-level soccer within the youth development club. At 15 years old, Montero and her team won the annual Surf Cup tournament, which stuck out to Montero as one of her favorite memories of her soccer career.
“We won the Surf Cup. That was the first time I ever played [in the cup], and it was just really good to be with my best friends and win that because it’s a super good tournament,” Montero said.
Montero went on to attend Edmonds-Woodway High School where she built her way up to get to her dream of playing college soccer. While at EWHS, she led the team in scoring for three seasons and was named team captain.
Even though she began the sport late, Montero’s talent showed through and she was offered a chance to stay close to home when she committed to the University of Washington to achieve her dream.
In her freshman season for the Huskies, she appeared in three games and in her following 2024 season, she did not play. Now, Montero brings her talent to the Palouse and is excited to join the Vandals.
“The level of competitiveness everyone holds each other to is a high standard,” Montero said. “I want to be at a place that’s going to keep pushing me to get better every day. And I feel like I get that from all my teammates. I need to be in a place that holds me accountable, so I can keep pushing myself as a player.”
Ever since she stepped on campus, Head Coach Jeremy Clevenger has liked what he has seen from her so far this spring and is excited to see what she does going forward.
“She’s going to be fun to watch. She is good on the ball and can score in dangerous areas,” Clevenger said.
“My favorite part of the spring was our first game. I was nervous, but now I’ve gone in, I’ve played, and I feel like I’m ready. Getting those nerves out of the way,” Montero said. “That’s what I was most looking forward to all winter, and especially at the start of spring.”
Away from the field, Montero is studying education and political science. When she is not on the field or in the classroom, she enjoys being a homebody and watching her favorite TV show, “Grey’s Anatomy.”
With the spring season underway Montero is looking to provide a lasting impact on and off the field and will be an exciting player for the Vandal fans to watch.
“I’m looking to bring a lot of creativity and just play-making. And I want to be as impactful as I can. So, yeah, I just want to, you know, just make an impact and also leave a lasting impact. But yeah, just want to bring more creativity and play making, maybe score a few goals.”