By Ryan Makuch
AFC Ann Arbor are pleased to announce the signing of Macayla Harris ahead of the 2022 USL W League campaign. Harris, a local product, spent last season as a freshman at Ashland University, playing alongside fellow AFCAA women’s squad member Bella Petrock.
In her freshman season, Harris made a statement as a strong force for the Eagles coming off the bench. In the early stages of the season, Harris seized her opportunities with both hands, starting in her first three collegiate games. She logged her first career goal in that second match, the lone goal in a 1-0 victory over Bloomsburg.
Her total seasonal tallies and highlights include four goals, an assist, an excellent three-point game (a goal and assist) in a 6-1 romp over Lake Erie away from home, and 763 minutes total played. She was one of two Eagles to play over 700 minutes with the majority of her appearances coming as a substitute.
Harris also was quickly able to learn about team success, as the Eagles found themselves ranked nationally throughout the season and the Great Midwest Conference Tournament champions by the end of it.
“I would describe my game to someone who has never seen it before as a playmaker,” said Harris. Harris broke down her role for much of her soccer career, primarily as a target player upfield. “My main job is to look for the ball up top and hold it up so I can play it on to people running on to it. So, a lot of the play starts with me and my ability to hold up play.”
Women’s Head Coach Boyzzz Khumalo saw the footage and liked what he saw. He also received a crucial recommendation from a well-respected club source and a type of source that he always appreciates receiving commendations from.
“Macayla was recommended to us by Bella [Petrock]. I think it’s good for our players to also recommend players to the club. That’s because they know we are searching for players, and players want to play with good players. Like I keep saying, it’s a people’s club. She’s a local player, we want to have local players so fans can see their local players play.”
The feeling was mutual for Harris, with Petrock being the connecting thread.”What drew me to playing for AFCAA over the summer was a lot from my collegiate teammate Bella Petrock. We talked about it some during the off-season, and then seeing how Bella said Coach Boyzz was a huge reason why she came back was another huge influence.”
She would also add, “Besides that, I’ve heard about AFCAA through some other teammates from high school and all I’ve ever heard is good things.”
Harris represents another sense of locality for the club, as she hails from Belleville, and played her high school soccer at Salem in the Plymouth/Canton area, just 24 miles from Saline High School, the venue of The Mighty Oak for the 2022 campaign.
We would like to welcome Macayla Harris to the AFCAA Family and welcome her back home to Michigan for the 2022 summer season.
About AFC Ann Arbor
Association Football Club Ann Arbor (AFC Ann Arbor) was founded in 2014 and competes in USL2 (men’s) and USLW (women’s) national amateur leagues. We are a community-based club, focused on equity, justice, and anti-racism. We consider all of our stakeholders, including supporters, players, staff, and ownership to be part of the #AFCAAFamily. Come On You Mighty Oak!