SAN JOSE — Is Bay FC ready for the start of its second season?
To hear players and coaches tell it, absolutely. Despite operating under the cloud of an active investigation into coach Albertin Montoya, Bay FC is outwardly projecting confidence and reassurance ahead of its season opener at the Utah Royals FC on Saturday.
Are those sentiments correct? Will they pay off with early wins?
Or will the weight of the world appear to be on Bay FC’s shoulders? We’ll find out soon enough when boot meets soccer ball on Saturday night in Sandy, Utah.
“We’re looking forward to a really exciting year,” Montoya said earlier this week. “Things are coming together quite nicely. And we’re here for this first game, because preseason is – it’s a little bit long, but we’re now a few days away from a big game. So I’m definitely looking forward to it.”
Bay FC head coach Albertin Montoya speaks during a press conference at the Bay FC practice field at San Jose State in San Jose, Calif., on Tuesday, March 11, 2025. (Shae Hammond/Bay Area News Group)
Bay FC’s six-week preseason has seen new players Karlie Lema, Taylor Huff and Kelli Hubly join the club and start to integrate into Bay’s team culture. The results, according to holdovers and new captains Tess Boade and Abby Dahlkemper, have gone pretty well thus far.
“We just focus on what we can control,” said Dahlkemper, who played youth soccer under Montoya at the MVLA soccer club based in Los Altos. “We know the type of environment that we’re in, and it’s been awesome this preseason. We really feel really close as a team, on and off the field.”
“From day one last year to day one this year, it looks a world of a difference,” Boade added. “The team culture this year, we put a lot of intentionality into it.”
Bay FC has lost about one-third of its roster from the original 2024 squad. Scarlett Camberos, Lysianne Proulx and Kayla Sharples were traded midseason.
Bay FC’s Kayla Sharples (27) kicks the ball against Angel City’s Kennedy Fuller (17) in the first half at PayPal Park in San Jose, Calif., on Friday, July 26, 2024. (Shae Hammond/Bay Area News Group)
After the season ended, Alex Loera was traded to Utah, Maya Doms was transferred to Sassuolo, a club in Italy; Deyna Castellanos was traded to Portland, and Savy King was shipped to Angel City.
Veterans Jen Beattie and Katelyn Rowland retired, with Rowland hanging up her cleats just weeks before the start of the 2025 season.
Externally, it seems that maintaining the focus on the field will be a challenge this year, at least in the early going. As Montoya himself acknowledged on Tuesday, Bay FC will be playing with an unresolved inquiry hanging over its head for the time being.
Is it possible that all is well at Bay FC? Current players and coaches seem to think so.
Bay FC’s Joelle Anderson practices with teammates at the Bay FC Training Facility at San Jose State in San Jose, Calif., on Friday, Feb. 28, 2025. (Shae Hammond/Bay Area News Group)
“Bay is the most player-centric club I’ve ever been a part of, without a doubt,” Dahlkemper said. “The amount of attention and detail that they put into the players, it’s all about us, which makes your job enjoyable. I’m thankful. I’m grateful to be here and to represent the Bay and to be on this team.”
But it’s certainly not a guarantee, and time will tell just how much the club will be impacted by the revelations that emerged a week before the start of the season, which alleged a toxic culture at Bay FC.
Montoya said he didn’t see the players distracted by the investigation thus far.
“Actually, they’re doing it themselves,” Montoya said of maintaining focus. “They’re so excited. They’re so behind what we’re trying to do, the coaching staff, and you can just see it in the energy, the way they’re playing. They’re focused. They’re ready.
Bay FC head coach Albertin Montoya speaks during a press conference at the Bay FC practice field at San Jose State in San Jose, Calif., on Tuesday, March 11, 2025. (Shae Hammond/Bay Area News Group)
“I mean, we were four minutes away from making it into the semifinals last year. So we’ve got that bitter taste in our mouth, and we’re just looking forward to proving ourselves.”
Bay FC had lofty goals entering last season, stating upfront that “winning everything” was their objective. The player who voiced that aspiration, Castellanos, is no longer with the team.
Bay FC still has high expectations, but they’re tempered by the highs and lows – on and off the field – of the inaugural season. It’s both an indication of how things have changed and how they’ve remained similar in spite of the adversity the club has weathered.
“Get that home playoff game, which is what we’ve been talking about,” Montoya said. “Then see where it goes from there.”
Head Coach Albertin Montoya celebrates winning while playing a game with his team during practice at the Bay FC Training Facility at San Jose State in San Jose, Calif., on Friday, Feb. 28, 2025. (Shae Hammond/Bay Area News Group)
