STATESBORO - The 2021 season for Georgia Southern women's soccer was one of the most successful in recent history, with the Eagles earning their first Sun Belt Conference tournament championship berth en route to an 11-win campaign.
All thoughts of the program resting on its laurels after a breakout campaign, however, have been left by the wayside as Head Coach Chris Adams prepares the Eagles for what should be a very challenging 2022 season.
In addition to losing eight seniors - five starters, including leading scorer Marcela Montoya - the Eagles also have to deal with a much tougher Sun Belt Conference that has added four new schools, three of whom finished the season with RPIs above Georgia Southern. So when the Eagles were picked to finish fourth in the East Division in a preseason poll of the league's coaches, it was not surprising to Coach Adams.
"Last year was important," Coach Adams said. "We gained some respect, because in some years, Georgia Southern was considered an easy out. But this year, within the conference, we're picked fourth in the East and our hope is to surpass that expectation. We lost eight seniors, and we're having to replace those upperclassmen with young players. But I don't think it's automatically not going to be a successful season because we're inexperienced. Our togetherness, our ability to execute will determine that. I believe we have a very deep and talented group. I'm willing to accept that it's an inexperienced group, but with so many good players at practice, it's highly competitive to be a starter or earn a spot on a travel roster. That's what you really want. Competitors want that kind of environment and thrive in it."
The Eagles will learn very quickly just how talented they are with an upgraded schedule that not only includes the improved Sun Belt slate, but P5 opponents such as the University of Georgia and Arizona State. "I think the success we had last year gave me the confidence to schedule more competitively," Coach Adams said. "I know that it's a quite a bit to bite off, but that intent is to prepare us for the Sun Belt tournament. The only guaranteed way into the NCAAs is to win that tournament championship. But if our preseason is any indication, our group is very coachable and we're excited going into the opening of the season."
The season opens on Thursday, August 18, at Georgia in the first meeting between the two in-state rivals since 2005. Here's a look at how the Eagles will look in 2022.
DEFENDERS
A huge key to the Eagles' success in 2021 was the defense, which allowed a minuscule 1.04 GAA and recorded seven shutouts, the most in a single season since 2012. And the center back pairing of Megan Przybysz (5-5, R-Sr. , Ada, Mich.) and preseason All-Sun Belt honoree Sade Heinrichs (5-9, Jr., Monchengladbach, Germany) returns after starting every contest for the Eagles a year ago. The outside backs include Coastal Carolina transfer Kamryn Nobles (5-3, Sr., Augusta, Ga.) and Isabel Kopp (5-3, Sr., Haarlem, The Netherlands) on the left, with returner Maya Zovko (5-5, Jr., Waite Hill, Ohio) and newcomer Erin Wilkins (5-7, Fr., Tacoma, Wash.) on the right. In the mix for minutes as well in the back are returners Larsyn Reid (5-10, Soph., Flowery Branch, Ga.) and Courtney Jebavy (5-6, R-Fr., Cumming, Ga.) as well as incoming freshmen Kennedy Crowder (5-8, Fr., Marietta, Ga.), Anna Wheatley (5-5, Fr., Madison, Miss.) and Maci Dunlap (5-8, Fr., Warner Robins, Ga.).
"Three of our four spots were solidified in the Spring" Coach Adams said. "Our center backs, Sade and Megan, have had a great partnership, and they've been there for two years now. Megan's ability to organize and Sade's ability to read the game and distribute, it works really well. Kamryn came in the spring and it was a relatively seamless transition. Isabel Kopp is fantastic at left back, but Kamryn's a little more physical, and we can move Isabel higher up the field because she simply doesn't give the ball away. At right back, we've got quite a few people that can do that task. Erin Wilkins has won out so far, and she comes out of a club (Crossfire Premier) that produces fantastic players. She doesn't play like a freshman. Maya Zovko did a good job in the spring and our confidence has risen in her."
MIDFIELDERS
Coach Adams termed his midfield as an "embarrassment of riches" so focusing on just four to start will really come down to a game-by-game basis with an intriguing mixture of newcomers and returners. Olivia Durham (5-8, 5th Year, Marietta, Ga.) returns after an outstanding debut season that saw her earn All-Sun Belt Tournament honors, along with Kopp, Smith Cathey (5-8, Soph., Madison, Ga.) and Karin Winka (5-5, Sr., Falun, Sweden), who tallied the game-winning goal in the Eagles' Sun Belt semifinal win over ULM. Ole Miss transfer Ellie McIntyre (5-2, R-Fr., Buford, Ga.) flashed in the Spring after joining the team in January, and the Eagles also picked up transfer Anseligh Crenshaw (5-6, Soph., Savannah, Ga.) from Palm Beach Atlantic. Katie Jebavy (5-7, Jr., Cumming, Ga.) and Meghan O'Brien (5-7, Soph., Cincinnati, Ohio) also return and the Eagles add a pair of talented freshman in Carley Borgelt (5-5, Fr., Dacula, Ga.) and Emma Armstrong (5-7, Fr., Cumming, Ga.).
"We have a tremendous amount of depth in our midfield," Coach Adams said. "Right now our biggest question is who we play as the holding mid. We played Olivia Durham at attacking mid last year, with [graduating senior] Nora Falnes in the hole. But she had formerly been a holding mid. Carley Borgelt's been a little more steady. It's an embarrassment of riches. Ellie McIntyre is a tireless worker, Smith Cathey's a very dynamic and physical player who can play a lot of different places. Emma Armstrong's been a pleasant surprise, and when you add in Isabel Kopp, that's six to play four spots. We expect our midfield to be disciplined and keep their shape defensively. And I think our attacking should improve."
FORWARDS
The group of forwards begins with returning All-Sun Belt performer Elis Nemtsov (5-5, R-Soph., Bradford, Ontario), whose debut campaign in 2021 resulted in eight goals. Faith Phillips (5-3, Jr., McDonough, Ga.) also had a solid debut after transferring from UAB, while Simone Timm (5-5, Jr., Toronto, Ontario), Alejandra Gracia (5-5, Sr., Sant Feliu de Llobregat, Spain) and Kyleigh Drew (5-4, R-Fr., Gainesville, Ga.) also return. Add to that group freshmen Bri Conley (5-3, Fr., Midland, Ga.), Kendall Wilson (5-6, Fr., Fort Walton Beach, Fla.), Megan Rhonemus (5-7, Fr., Davenport, Fla.) and Amina Okumu (5-1, Fr., Savannah, Ga.) and Coach Adams believes the depth will allow him to work throughout the season to find the right pairings to play up top.
"Right now, it's forward by committee," Coach Adams said. "Which is not necessarily a bad thing. We have a bunch of different weapons, so what we're trying to figure out is who plays well with who. Kendall Wilson, for example, is typically a holding mid, but we need help up top and her ability to strike the ball means the closer we get her to goal, the more dangerous she's going to be. But she's more like Elis Nemtsov, a target. We're trying to find two tandems, a group of four who play well together so we can divide the halves up, including breaking that second half into smaller segments with the re-entry rule. That way, players aren't pacing themselves. Our ideal situation is to have, by the end of the season, four strikers who are all dangerous and have multiple goals to their names."
GOALKEEPERS
Perhaps the biggest question mark to the season is the goalkeeper situation as the Eagles will have to rely on a pair of freshmen after losing all three keepers from a season ago. Katie Oakley (5-3, Fr., Covington, Ga.) gets the starting nod early, and she will be backed up by Michaela Mikko (5-7, Fr., Newnan, Ga.).
"Katie Oakley has been the most consistent," Coach Adams said. "She was just named to the Southeast ECNL Region First Team, as the top goalkeeper in the region in the highest competitive level of women's club soccer. So she's played against a lot of these players in club, which leads me to believe the moment's not going to be too big for her. Michaela continues to grow. She's a good athlete and she's definitely learning and taking to the coaching."
THE FINAL WORD
The Eagles made huge strides in Coach Adams' first full year at the helm of Georgia Southern in 2021. With 21 sophomores and freshman, however, the youth of the 2022 squad will be a key storyline for how much the team can build off of last year's success. Coach Adams is adamant that the young players are talented and determined enough to step up to the challenge, meaning another run at the program's first Sun Belt Conference title is not out of the question.
