In 2021, defender Tatumn Milazzo broke in with the Chicago Red Stars. And as she enters her fourth year with the team, the amount of change surrounding her has been staggering.
Milazzo can count on one hand the number of original teammates still around — and have some fingers to spare. Goalkeeper Alyssa Naeher and forward Mallory Swanson are the only two.
When asked if she feels like an elder statesman, she laughed.
“I honestly kind of feel like that, but at the same time, I feel like a rookie,” said Milazzo, who prepped at Andrew and grew up in Orland Park. “I’m torn between the two sides.”
Milazzo, 25, will be playing for her third different head coach in Lorne Donaldson. There’s also a new ownership group headed up by Laura Ricketts. Plus, for the first time in her tenure, the Red Stars have a general manager, with Richard Feuz coming aboard.
All of that has kept Milazzo on her toes.
“It’s been different each year,” she said. “There’s always something very new. There’s something to adjust to every year. It’s just one more thing you have to get through.
“But every year the girls have been great, and this year everyone is young and a lot of fun and nice. It’s made the adjustments easier with all of the changes going on.”
She may feel like a rookie at times, but with 70 appearances on her resume with the Red Stars, Milazzo also is in a position to lead.
The preseason roster lists 11 defenders, and many are new faces. Gone are dependable names like Casey Krueger, Sarah Gorden, Tierna Davidson and Kayla Sharples.
Chicago Red Stars defender Tatumn Milazzo (23) heads the ball against Angel City FC in Los Angeles on Sunday, Aug. 14, 2022. (Ashley Landis / AP)
Milazzo will try to anchor a defense with newcomers and rookies.
“We connect really well off the field, and it’s nice that it happened so fast,” Milazzo said. “That helps because everyone is new. It nice to play with people you enjoy being around.”
Milazzo is not sure where she will end up in the lineup. She has shifted positions on defense a few times throughout her professional career.
“I think they are really trying to figure things out,” Milazzo said. “That’s fair. I’m willing to be moved all over the place. It’s nice playing outside back as of late. I missed it.”
Last season, Red Stars fans missed the play of Swanson. The scoring machine suffered a torn patella tendon playing for the U.S. women’s national team.
She played just two games for the Red Stars as the team finished last in the National Women’s Soccer League with 7-12-3 record and missed the playoffs for the first time since 2014.
Swanson, however, is ready to go — having developed a new love for the game.
Chicago Red Stars defender Tatumn Milazzo (23) pushes the ball past Houston forward Nichelle Prince (8) during an NWSL Challenge Cup game in Houston on Sunday, March 20, 2022. (Matt Patterson / AP)
“When something is taken away from you suddenly, I feel like you grow and have so much appreciation for it,” Swanson said. “During the rehab process, I definitely grew a lot of appreciation for what is important for me.”
“I think her comeback is going to be so good,” Milazzo said of Swanson. “I’m excited for her.”
Feuz noticed the Red Stars have a chip on their shoulder after last year’s finish.
“This team is so angry,” he said. “They want to show something is happening here.”
As always, Milazzo will be ready for anything thrown her way in 2024.
“I feel like year to year, the team has ended up in a different position,” she said. “My first year we made it to a final. We also made it to the playoffs but not the final. Then we didn’t make it to the playoffs.
“It gives a different perspective. I feel like I’m very confident to go into whatever situation because I was lucky enough to have faced all three in three years.”
Jeff Vorva is a freelance reporter with the Daily Southtown.
