It somehow seems appropriate that the first time that Halle Palmedo (Manhasset, N.Y./Manhasset) and Amanda McQuillan (Meath, Ireland/) will be suiting up for the University of New Haven women's soccer team, the game will be in a town called Pleasantville.

Both Palmedo, a defender who spent the last four seasons at UConn, and McQuillan, a highly decorated former Central Connecticut State goalkeeper, walked off the field at the end of the 2021 season with the belief that they had played their last college soccer match.

It was hard to miss the unmistakable joy in their voices that they looked ahead to a new beginning as key members of the 2022 Chargers.

"I wasn't mentally prepared to do a fifth year," Palmedo said while sitting on a couch in the UNH athletic department headquarters exactly a year since she shared the field with McQuillan in a spirited showdown between UConn and Central Connecticut. For four years (she said), 'this is my four years and this is what I am going to do.'

Right before I graduated, I had this epiphany that, 'I am getting this year, why not utilize it?' It was an opportunity for me to make new connections, to try something new. I feel like five years down the line, if I didn't try it, I would have regretted it."

Now she will be one of the key pieces of a rebuilt back line for New Haven. There will be freshmen playing alongside her while McQuillan will be the last time of defense for a New Haven team trying to rebound from a 4-12-1 season.

"Halle makes me feel comfortable on the field and off the field because she comes from a (program) where she is professional and we play a similar soccer in college."

Duncan, who helped Central Connecticut to three NCAA appearances during her playing days, relied on her connection to the Blue Devils as well as her friendship with UConn head coach Margaret Rodriguez to get scouting reports on both McQuillan and Palmedo.

While the talent on the field was important, finding out that the two Division I veterans would fit in with the team off the field was also crucial.

"The nickname for them is that they are the adults on the team,"

Duncan said. "They are both tall, so they bring a presence to the field, but you can just see from their experience and the [confidence] oozes off them a little bit. The two players that didn't know the rest of the team, it didn't take them long to settle in. Their voices have been prominent from the very beginning."

The presence of Palmedo and McQuillan has resulted in some strong showings during the preseason even as they adapt to a new set of teammates.

"I think she has a really comforting presence," Palmedo said of McQuillan. "Just hearing her behind me, I have a lot of trust and faith in her. When you are on a team, you really get to know each other quickly and I really like her playing behind me honestly. Our personalities mesh well together. I think our communication is pretty clear and we already have some sort of connection."

Although Palmedo hails from Manhasset, N.Y. and McQuillan is a native of Meath, Ireland, the on-field chemistry hasn't taken long to develop. That vibe has carried over to their teammates as well.

"The girls are all really welcoming which made it a lot easier to come into a new team and meet all of these new girls," said McQuillan, who was 23-6-1 with a 1.19 goals against average with 14 shutouts in her three seasons at CCSU.

McQuillan was back home in Ireland working in a bank when Duncan got in touch with her. Having a chance for one more season of college soccer was something that she jumped at.

"I was working full time in a bank back home and when Duncs asked to come back over, I kind of said, 'why not?' I didn't want to think what if when I got older, so I just went for it."

The season opener is quickly approaching and with each passing day, the excitement grows for Palmedo and McQuillan.

"It is definitely a second chance," said Palmedo, who started nine times in her 35 career games at UConn. "I feel very grateful that I have had this extra year. I think I would have been happy and settled without but with it, this has been a whole extra layer of something. I get to do what I love, my family gets to watch me do what I love for just a little bit more time and why not, that is kind of my whole thing coming into it, why not, there is no reason why not to take this opportunity."