​NASHVILLE, TENNESSEE – AUGUST 22: Courtney Jones of Vanderbilt Soccer dribbles against Belmont 5-0 at Vanderbilt Soccer/Lacrosse Complex on August 22, 2024. (Photo by Photo by Vanderbilt Athletics/University Images via Getty Images) | Getty Images Moving up the field one “line,” the midfield will likely be composed of 2 wide midfielders (one on the left and one on the right), 2 holding midfielders, and 1 attacking midfielder. The holding midfielders and attacking midfielder will roughly form a triangle. That shaft may twist and elongate during play, but that general shape is sort of an elementary thought process in soccer where creating triangles always gives a play in possession at least two passing options. Just like in the back 3, the midfield 5 has some players to replace but just as much, if not more, talent returning.Wide MidfieldersKnowing who will start and play out wide could be tricky. The two departures of significance here are Vivian Akyirem (769 minutes played) and Brooke Dardano (527 minutes played). They were 3rd and 5th among the wide players in minutes if you count Olivia Stafford here. She did transition to spending more time at striker/forward in the later stages of the season, but Stafford was back out wide in the Black-Gold scrimmage. She can play both and may be more effective at striker, but there may a bit of “how do we get our best eleven on the field together?”Even without Stafford, who scored 5 goals and had 8 assists in her freshman campaign, the most likely starters would be Grace Freeman (1 goal and 4 assists in 1,292 minutes played) and Adysen Armenta (3 goals and 1 assist in 552 minutes). Vicky Pugh (1 goal in 451 minutes as a freshman) could be similar to Stafford in that she could play at forward or as a wide midfielder.There is also a slight chance Ella Eggleston stays wide, even with her listed as purely a Forward on the roster. Eggleston missed 2025 with an injury after putting up 5 goals and 2 assists in 2023 then 3 goals and 2 assists in 2024. She is an electric, athletic player who has raw speed to kill. The way she returns from such a long injury is a concern.It is difficult to pin down where freshmen will play with the roster just saying “midfielder,” but a quick glance at some highlights indicates that Lawson Hopkins and Ana Ramirez both played in wide positions as either fullbacks or midfielders.  That makes their most likely landing spot as a wide midfielder in the 3-5-2. Soccer recruiting info is scarce and generally requires paying for subscriptions that I do not have. Hopkins has played with the NC Courage’s academy team, so she should be a promising option now or in the future. Ramirez played with Lou Fusz Soccer Club and won the U16 National Championship in the Academy ranks.The good news is that with the experienced options ahead of them, if either freshman is going to grab playing time like Stafford did last year, then it just means more growth for the program, not relying on youn