MOSCOW, Idaho – 2016 has been a tremendous year for goalkeeper Torell Stewart.  The senior has played every minute thus far for the Vandals, helping to anchor the defensive unit that has been the calling-card for the program since head coach Derek Pittman took over in 2014.
 
But the journey (back) to being the starting goalkeeper for the Vandals has been anything but ordinary.
 
Stewart appeared in all 20 games for the Vandals in 2014, starting 19.  But one year after setting the Idaho record for saves in a season, Stewart was fighting for her job against a crop of freshmen that were eager to jump right in.
 
"I knew it was going to be a challenge and I knew I was going to have to work really hard that summer," said Stewart.  "Derek let me know that there were new goalies coming in and that I needed to train hard.  Then Amanda and Julia came in having trained just as hard so we had a really competitive atmosphere.  We didn't know who was going to start, so we kept pushing each other the whole time."
 
Freshman sensation Amanda Poertner won the job and tore up the conference, earning Big Sky Goalkeeper of the Year honors.  But Stewart just kept doing her job.  Her new job.
 
"Then I found out I wasn't starting, but I knew I needed to keep working and supporting Amanda.  She was just a freshman and I had two years of experience so I knew I could help her through the season and support her.  So I took on that role while still pushing myself to be better, while also pushing Amanda.
 
"You just have to stay engaged during the game, be vocal on the sidelines and be supportive.  I think that's how I stayed involved.  If I just kind of shut off and said 'oh, I'm not going to go in' then I wouldn't have prepared myself.  I did get to go in a couple of times last year and I think that keeping that mental edge and thinking that I could go in helped prepare me."
 
"A couple of times" doesn't do it justice.  In the final game of the season, the Big Sky Championship, Pittman called on Stewart for a goalkeeper's worst nightmare: a penalty kick shootout.  As always, she was prepared and ready to go to work.
 
"I think it was the week before, he told me that if we were to go to a shootout that I'd be going in.  It didn't matter what the score was, I just prepared like I was going to get in.  You just have to mentally prepare yourself while still being supportive from the sideline.  I just had it in my mind that I was going to go in no matter what."
 
Flash forward to 2016.  With Poertner sustaining an injury and missing the spring season, there appeared to be an opening for the starting job and Stewart could just slide back into the role that she held two years prior.  But not without a little bit of hard work.
 
"Derek told me that Poertner was hurt and that he was bringing in another goalkeeper.  I was just like 'another one?', but I knew I had to train even harder to get the spot.  I think it just made me work even harder.  We still have that intensity at practice, everyone is just nipping at each other's heals.  I think that keeps everything at a higher intensity."
 
And the hard work paid off, as Stewart earned the starting spot for the opening weekend and hasn't missed a minute since.
 
Her breakout performance didn't come until week three, when the Vandals traveled to Hawaii for a pair of games against some of the best non-conference competition they faced this season.  Stewart was unbelievable, making a number of ridiculous, jaw-dropping saves to keep Idaho in things.  She followed that performance up with a pair of wins on the road, at Seattle U and Boise State, earning Big Sky Defensive Player of the Week honors for her efforts.
 
"I felt honored, I was so surprised.  It came after Seattle U and Boise State and I didn't do as much during those games so I was honestly really surprised.  But it's definitely a team accomplishment for sure.  That weekend we fought so hard and it was a great travel weekend for us to come away with two wins.  It was definitely a team accomplishment and I was really grateful to find out they picked me."
 
The conference season is finally here and the Vandals are looking to repeat as Big Sky champs.  For Stewart, entering her final months as a college soccer player, there's no time to relax.  It's time to get back to work.
 
"It's nice to see that work pay off.  But I'm still not satisfied.  I want to keep getting better and keep pushing the intensity at practice and raising the bar as much as I can."
 
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