Mountaineers in the Pros: Former WVU Goalkeeper Rylee Foster Debuts for Liverpool FC

Former West Virginia goalkeeper Rylee Foster made her competitive debut for the Liverpool Football Club Women on Wednesday.

Foster and the Reds picked up a 3-1 win over Manchester United in a Continental Cup group match.

Making her competitive debut for the Reds today 💪

🤩 @_ryleefoster 🤩 pic.twitter.com/ZN0e3GyHPy

— Liverpool FC Women (@LiverpoolFCW) October 7, 2020

West Virginia head coach Nikki Izzo-Brown said the WVU women’s soccer program is incredibly proud of Foster.

“As we know, that’s an incredible stage for Rylee to perform in,” Izzo-Brown said Wednesday afternoon. “We’re so proud of her, I’m so proud of her. I know how hard she’s worked to get to that level of Liverpool.”

WATCH: WVU Soccer Coach Nikki Izzo-Brown Talks about Second Half of Fall Schedule

RMTV Womens Podcast posted a video from Foster’s postgame press conference where she said she was happy with her debut.

“Happy with my performance,” Foster said. “I thought it was a great way to get my debut. It shows that the practice this season has paid off.”

Foster signed with Liverpool FC in January following a stellar four-year carrer with the Mountaineers. The club had eight games canceled between March and May, returning to action in September. Foster said, although she had to wait, her debut came at the right time,

“Some things are meant to come at the right times and I think this is just one of those things that came at the right time for me and I was ready when I was called upon,” Foster said. “I just keep on fighting for more minutes and keep on proving to the team that I’m here to support them and do what I can to keep us up.”

Liverpool FC manager Vicky Jepson said she was impressed with Foster’s debut and sees a lot of potential in her.

“When we brought her to this club we knew she’s got a really high ceiling of potential,” Jepson said. “You’ve seen today, she’s one for the future. I thought she managed the back four well, she managed the game well, she picked moments when to play forward or when to just slow the game down and give us a bit of a breather. I thought it was a real mature, professional performance from Rylee today.”

Foster, a native of Ontario, Canada, played 84 career games with the Mountaineers. She had a 0.72 goals-against average, a 0.768 save percentage, a 56-17-10 record and 39 career shutouts.

Izzo-Brown said Foster playing for Liverpool reflects very well on WVU’s program.

“It’s incredible that not only do we have players playing in our league in the U.S., but now we have one of the best playing in England,” Izzo-Brown said. “It’s just incredible for the program that we can look to a Rylee and say ‘hey, in some way we helped you get there and you’re always going to be a Mountaineer’.”