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Gallup-born soccer player to play professional indoor soccer

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Taña Chavez joins the Lightning

ALBUQUERQUE – Taña Chavez, born and raised in Gallup, will be playing professional indoor soccer with the newly formed New Mexico Lightning. Taña Chavez has played soccer most of her life. She grew up in Gallup having played soccer in the youth city league and as a varsity player on the Gallup High School Girls Soccer team. Also, while in high school, Chavez played in the Albuquerque Classic team FC Monarchs and for AUFC, both highly competitive Albuquerque teams.

After graduation from high school in 2000, Chavez played college soccer for Neosho College in Kansas. When she returned to New Mexico, she settled in Albuquerque and played soccer in the Albuquerque Soccer Women’s league in the Premier Division, the top level of soccer in the Albuquerque Soccer League. In 2007 and 2008, Chavez played for the Albuquerque Lady Asylum semi-pro soccer team, which played in the Women’s Professional Premier Soccer League (WPSL). She was also a part of two professional league tryouts in 2009 and 2013 for the Women’s Professional Soccer League (WPS) and the National Women’s Soccer League (NWSL).

In 2010, Chavez traveled to France to try out for professional French team ASJ Soyaux, and made the team. The coach of this team, Corinne Diacre is now the French women’s national team coach. In 2019, the first ever women’s arena professional team in N.M. was formed, the New Mexico Lightning. Chavez made the team and will be playing professionally in the Premier Arena Soccer League (PASL) in the  2020 season.

The Lightning is made of players from all over N.M., including Gallup, Belen, Las Cruces, Santa Fe, Bernalillo, Rio Rancho, and Albuquerque. Chavez will be playing the midfield and defense positions.

The N.M. Lightning will play on Feb. 16 at 3:30 pm vs Elite FC Soccer Club, as part of a double-header with the N.M. Runners, a pro-arena soccer league based in Rio Rancho. The games will be played at the Expo New Mexico horse arena at 300 San Pedro N.E. in Albuquerque.

Entry is $10. Parking is $5.