Lauren Chang
- position Midfielder
- height 5-3
- class Senior
- Hometown Alpharetta, Ga.
- High school Cambridge
- position Midfielder
- height 5-3
- class Senior
- Hometown Alpharetta, Ga.
- High school Cambridge
Lauren Chang Bio
AWARDS:
Graduate season (2021)
· CoSIDA Academic All-America Second Team
· CoSIDA Academic All-District First Team
· SEC Preseason Watch List
· SEC Academic Honor Roll
Senior season (2020-21)
· All-SEC Second Team
· SEC Co-Scholar Athlete of the Year
· SEC Preseason Watch List
· CoSIDA Academic All-America Second Team
· CoSIDA Academic All-District First Team
· United Soccer Coaches Academic All-Region
· United Soccer Coaches All-Southeast Region
· SEC Academic Honor Roll
Junior season (2019)
· All-SEC Second Team
· Offensive MVP of Boilermaker Challenge Cup
· CoSIDA Academic All-District First Team
· United Soccer Coaches All-Southeast Region Second Team
· SEC Offensive Player of the Week (Week 5)
· SEC Preseason Watch List
· SEC Academic Honor Roll
Sophomore season (2018)
· All-SEC Second Team
· United Soccer Coaches All-Southeast Second Team
· SEC Academic Honor Roll
Freshman season (2017)
· SEC First-Year Academic Honor Roll
· SEC Freshman of the Week (Week 6)
2021: Started and played in all 22 matches… Finished the year 26th in the nation and fourth in the SEC with 10 assists… Ranked 48th in the country and sixth in the SEC averaging 0.45 assists per game… Led the team with 10 assists, which ranked tied for sixth all-time… Led the team with five game-winning assists, which ranks tied for third all-time… Registered two assists in an upset win over No. 13 Auburn (10/1), including on the game-winning goal by Ryan Gareis… Tallied points in three straight games to begin the season (College of Charleston, East Carolina, and NC State)… Registered an assist in two NCAA Tournament matches (North Carolina and Hofstra)… Became the program’s leader in career matches played against Ole Miss (10/7).
2020-21: Completed yet another dominate season in the midfield for the Gamecocks, starting in all 16 matches during the split, and shortened, season… Finished with two goals and a team-high five assists for a total of nine points, the fourth-most on the team… Named captain prior to the start of the season… Led all primary midfielders in minutes with 1,129 during the season and was second on the team in shots with 31, 10 on frame… Registered her first goal in the SEC Tournament quarterfinals against Missouri in the 3-2 win… Scored again against the College of Charleston at home during the spring… Registered a pair of assists against Coastal Carolina during the 3-0 victory for her third-career mutli-point performance… Registered an assist after being honored on Senior Night against Mississippi State… Notched her first assist of the season against Missouri in the home opening 4-1 win… Matched her career-high in shots with six against Kentucky… Played over 80 minutes in the midfield six different times during the season… Was named Second Team All-SEC for the third straight season, making her the eighth Gamecock in program history to earn three All-SEC distinctions (not including All-Freshman teams)… Was named the SEC Co-Scholar Athlete of the Year for her outstanding work on the field and in the classroom… Earned three additional academic honors including CoSIDA All-Region, United Soccer Coaches Academic All-Region and was named to the SEC Academic Honor Roll… Earned a United Soccer Coaches All-Southeast Region nod… Was listed as the No. 77 ranked player on the TopDrawerSoccer.com Postseason Top 100… Was listed on the SEC Preseason Watch List for the second year in a row… Announced she will return for the fall of 2021 season after being awarded an extra year of eligibility due to the pandemic.
2019: Started in 16 matches and played in 23… Was tied for third on the team with five goals and was second on the team in assists with five… Finished third on the team in points with 15… Scored the Gamecocks only brace of the season against Georgia in a 3-0 win… Was second on the team with 40 shots and was second in shots on goal with 19… Scored in consecutive matches against Purdue and DePaul to earn the Offensive MVP honor at the 2019 Boilermaker Challenge Cup… Scored against Tennessee for the third-straight year in a 1-1 draw where she played a season high 95 minutes… Assisted on both of the Carolina goals in a 2-0 win over Auburn in the regular season finale… Will enter her senior season as the active leader in career goals with 15 and tied for the active leader in assists (8)… Had at least one shot in 19 of 23 matches played in… Ended the season with a team-high three goals during SEC play.
2018: Started in all 21 matches… Scored a team high eight goals… Totaled team high 18 points… Added two assists during the season… Second on the team in shots with 38… Led the team in shots on goal with 18… Tied for team-lead with three game-winning goals… Scored gamewinner for second year a row against No. 11 Tennessee (9/16) on the road… Found the back of the net for the first time in 2018 against College of Charleston (8/19)… Scored gamewinneragainst Clemson (8/23) at home in front of women’s soccer record crowd of 6,354… Notched gamewinner against UNCG (11/9) in NCAA Tournament off a header… Scored in consecutive matches two different times during the season… Finished 3-of-3 on penalty kicks… Registered game-winning assist against Missouri (9/18)… Added assist against Kentucky (9/23) in 3-0 win… Finished with a team-high .211 shot percentage (min. 10 shots)… Ended season with team-high .474 shot on goal percentage (min. 10 shots on goal).
2017: Appeared in all 23 matches, drawing one start…totaled five points on two goals and an assist…one of four Gamecock newcomers to net a game-winner…found the back of the net in her collegiate debut against UCF (8/18) after scoring from outside the box in the 79th minute…delivered the game-winning goal in Carolina’s 1-0 overtime victory over No. 21 Tennessee (9/24), netting a goal in the 95th minute…her 1,095 minutes played ranked third among Gamecock freshmen…placed five of her eight shot attempts on frame.
PRE-COLLEGE: Attended multiple National Training Centers and competed for Tophat Soccer Club of the Elite Clubs National League (ECNL)…led Tophat to the Georgia State Title four times, and the club was a three-time Region III Champion during her career there…Tophat placed third in nationals…was an Olympic Development Player (ODP) for six years, competing in the Region III Pool for three seasons…member of the Region III team for two years…played for Cambridge High School for one season, grabbing Team MVP honors for that year.
PERSONAL: Born Dec. 9, 1998…daughter of Chris and Fred Chang…played basketball at Cambridge for one season…named to the Academic Honor Roll all four years at Cambridge…received the President’s Award for Academic Excellence and was accepted to South Carolina’s Honors College… Earned her bachelor’s degree in December of 2020 in political science… Graduated with her master’s degree in business administration in May of 2022.
COACH SMITH ON LAUREN: “Lauren is a very crafty and creative central midfielder. She will do well in our possession style in the middle. She plays with a lot of confidence and has shown the ability to be on the ball in the tightest of spaces. Her final pass and ability to read the game will create opportunities for herself and others. She will be a welcome addition to our attack with her ability to be a threat coming out of the midfield in addition to keeping possession and putting opponents under pressure.”