Top Reasons to Get Excited About Start of Women's Soccer Season
Expectations are always high for South Carolina women’s soccer, especially when you consider the last five seasons in which the Gamecocks have won two SEC championships, reached the College Cup Semifinals as well as two other trips to the NCAA quarterfinals, while making the NCAA Tournament each year. Now in her 19th season at South Carolina, head coach Shelley Smith offers her top reasons, in no particular order, that fans should be excited about the Gamecocks in 2019.
IT’S NOT THEIR FIRST RODEO
South Carolina returns the bulk of its lineup as there was only one senior on the roster last year for a team that went 14-6-1 and reached the second round of the NCAA Tournament. Not bad for a team that had 26 underclassmen on the roster!
“It’s exciting to return so many players,” Smith said. “It was nice not to lose such a big group like we had the previous two years. We return an experienced team that allows us to build on the lineup we had.
Mikayla Krzeczowski
“I think everyone returned in a better place than they were in the spring as they’ve improved in all areas. I also think we have more depth and talent than we finished with last fall.”
The Gamecocks do have some exciting young players as well, and Smith takes pride in keeping the best in-state talent at home.
“Much of our freshman class is from South Carolina,” Smith said. “We’re excited about that. They have a lot of talent and potential with players like Eveleen Hahn (Lake Wylie, S.C.), Sami Meredith (Charleston, S.C.), and Riane Coman (Charleston, S.C.).”
DEFENSE! DEFENSE! DEFENSE!
The Gamecock defense was up to its usual stingy ways last year after posting nine shutouts, and much of the same will be expected in 2019 with the return of senior goalkeeper Mikayla Krzeczowski, who is the South Carolina and SEC career leader with 34 shutouts, and senior two-time SEC Defensive Player of the Year Grace Fisk. The Gamecocks also added junior transfer Anna Patten (Florida State) to go along with several other key backline players.
“Seeing the combination Anna and Grace and knowing they’re both upcoming national team players for England, it’s nice to see them lead in the back four,” Smith said. “Mikayla is a three-time All-SEC goalkeeper, and you also have (senior) Tatumn Milazzo in the back line and (junior) Sarah Eskew, who has played for two years back there. So, having all that experience back there is certainly comforting. They still have to work on things together, but they are a solid group.
“You have (sophomore) midfielder Jyllissa Harris playing in front of them, and she had great freshman year.
“I don’t say we’re defensive-oriented. We’re just solid defensively! If you look at our statistics, we have a majority of the possessions in the game. We’re not sitting back trying to defend all day. We’re difficult to break down. Our outside backs get very involved in the attack. Same thing with our attackers; they’re not just out there scoring goals. They’re there to help out and defend. Our good defense helps start our attack.”
“This year, our attack is stronger. We have more players who can hurt you this year.”
– Shelley Smith
STRONGER ON THE ATTACK
Last year’s young lineup struggled at times to put the ball in the back of the net, but Smith likes the experience the Gamecocks earned last year to create a stronger offensive attack this season.
Luciana Zullo
“Who was going to score was a big question last year that we didn’t answer as well as we would have liked, but we found ways to win” Smith said. “We still won a lot of games. This year, our attack is stronger. We have more players who can hurt you this year.
“Senior Elexa Bahr has come back and has looked better than she did when she finished last fall. (Juniors) Luciana Zullo and Ryan Gareis have a lot of experience now, and Ryan is that much stronger now after trying to come back from a torn ACL from the year before. They’re both healthy and stronger than ever. (Junior) Lauren Chang is coming off a year where she has added to her strength, and (redshirt freshman) Sam Chang is a threat to score from a long range and gets in the box.
“I think our freshmen have shown they have the ability to score; players such as Camryn Dixon. There is a lot of potential with our freshmen.”
CHEMISTRY
Having won three SEC regular season titles and an SEC Tournament Championship in her career at South Carolina, Smith knows that talent alone won’t always win championships.
“The thing that excites me a lot about this team is that they’re fun to work with,” Smith said. “They’re a great group from top to bottom. Everyone wants this team to do well. They’re invested. They show up and give 100 percent effort. They want each other to do well. They’ve really bought in to what we’re trying to do as a program.
“The depth is there. The teams that have won (championships) here in the past, when you look at the sideline, it doesn’t matter whether they’re in the game or not. They were just so excited for whomever was out on the field. That support means a lot. I’m really excited about the potential of this team.”
IT’S NEVER EASY, AND WE LIKE IT THAT WAY
For the second straight year, nine SEC teams played in the NCAA Tournament last season. It marked the 11th time in 12 seasons that at least six SEC teams played in the postseason. While the SEC schedule is never easy, the Gamecocks aren’t exactly taking it easy in the non-conference portion of the schedule either, with matchups against Power-5 conference foes such as Clemson, Notre Dame, Purdue, and nationally ranked North Carolina State in Thursday’s season opener at Stone Stadium.
“I think we’ve always done a good job to challenge ourselves,” Smith said. “You want to schedule the way you think your team can handle it, and we’ll be well-tested heading into SEC play. We start the season with a ranked team, and you want that challenge. I think this team will be ready to play.
“Our whole fan atmosphere is the best in the country. Wherever we go, it’s not the same, like what we have here. We always have a great crowd. Stone Stadium is a special place to play. ‘The Graveyard Shift’ (fans) have been great supporters. You just don’t find that everywhere.”
The Gamecocks kick off 2019 at Stone Stadium this Thursday at 7 p.m.
