Women's Soccer | 6/15/2023 11:16:00 AM

MIAMI SHORES, Fla. -- Tafadzwa Ziyenge added two more transfers to his women's soccer squad for the fall of 2023. Midfielders Alia Jaidi and Makenzie Shean join the team this fall.

Jaidi is a 5-6 attacking player, who could also play forward, from Coffeyville CC in Kansas. She led the Red Ravens to a 25-12-2 mark in two seasons, earning All-Kansas Jayhawk Community College Conference honors both seasons. She was a First-Team pick as a freshman, scoring seven goals with four assists in 18 games. As a sophomore, she was a Second-Team selection, scoring seven goals with two assists. She tallied three game-winners each season.

"Alia is a quick hardworking veteran who possesses a keen tactical awareness of the game," Ziyenge said.

Originally, Jaidi hails from Morocco, where she graduated from Lycée Maimonide.

"First, the university's women's soccer team has a long history of success on the field, which gave me confidence that I would be able to continue to develop my skills as a player and contribute to the team's success," Jaidi said. "I was also attracted to the university's commitment to the education and personal development of its student-athletes, which gave me the confidence that I would have strong academic support while pursuing my passion for soccer."

Shean is a 5-3 central midfielder from NCAA Division II Franklin Pierce in New Hampshire. She helped lead the Ravens to a 25-8-7 mark in two years, starting 38 of 40 games played. Franklin Pierce won the East Region championship in 2022 and advanced all the way to the NCAA Final Four at the Fall Sports Fesitval in Washington state. For her career, Shean scored three goals and added two assists.

"Makenzie is a composed veteran midfielder with a very calm presence on the ball," Ziyenge said.

A four-year starter for Agawam High in Massachusetts, she scored 20 goals and added 16 assists. In her CoVID-shortened senior season she scored five goals and added six assists, posting at least one goal or assist in all six games.

"I chose Barry because I've loved Florida ever since I was a kid, and when I met with the coaching staff I immediately felt the positive community Coach Ziyenge was building here," Shean said.

Jaidi and Shean join transfer keeper Maya Caon of NAIA Lindsey Wilson in the 2023 class.