Aug. 15, 2017
2016 Rewind
Midfielders Lindsey Lane and Dominique Babbitt provided stability on the defensive side last season after starting 23 of Carolina’s 24 matches. The pair helped the Gamecocks record an SEC-best 14 shutouts and rank sixth in NCAA Division I with a program-record 0.41 goals against average.
Chelsea Drennan, Carolina’s all-time leader in assists (40), enjoyed a productive senior season that resulted in NSCAA Second Team All-America laurels. The team captain boasted career highs in points (27) and goals (8) and ranked third on the team with three game-winners. She led Carolina in assists for the fourth-straight season after totaling 11 to end the season ranked 10th in Division I in the statistical category.
The Returnees
Lane and Babbitt mark Carolina’s two returning players in the midfield, as both Gamecocks enter their senior seasons this fall. The two will again be tasked with providing defensive support for a new-look Gamecock back line. Lane has appeared in all 67 of Carolina’s matches over the last three seasons, and the Lusby, Md., native tallied a career-best three assists last season.
Babbitt sported career highs in points (5) and assists (3) in 2016 after seeing time in all 24 contests. Her three assists as a junior were tied with Lane for the second-most among Gamecock midfielders, and the Holly Springs, N.C., native netted the game-winner in Carolina’s 3-0 win over UNCG last fall.
Senior Alexis Pendergraft, who has appeared in four career games for South Carolina, has been declared medically ineligible for the 2017 season.
The Newcomers
Georgia natives Lauren Chang and Sarah Eskew, Bianca Galassini of Illinois and Vermont’s Breukelen Woodard each enter their freshman season with the Gamecocks this fall. Chang competed for Tophat Soccer Club, where she led the team to the Georgia State Title four times. Eskew served as the team captain for the Concorde Fire of the Elite Clubs National League (ECNL) and earned All-Region honors while playing for Northside High School.
Galassini, a native of Frankfort, Ill., comes to Carolina after playing for Windy City Pride Soccer Club (WCP) of the ECNL. She was part of the WCP U-17 squad that earned U.S. Club National Finalists honors in 2017, and Galassini guided Lincoln Way High School to three-straight regional championships from 2014-16.
Woodard also competed in the ECNL, playing for the FC Stars of Massachusetts. She was tabbed her club’s MVP in 2015 after leading the team to the national finals, and the Rutland, Vt., native was an All-American candidate while playing for Burr and Burton Academy.
