The Lady Trojans’ soccer team has seamlessly continued their success from last year into this season, their latest win being against Georgetown College, winning by a 2-0 score.
The team has many impressive wins, but the most impressive might just be the win against Lawrence Tech, winning 7-0. Seven separate Trojan players scored a goal. Five of those seven scores came in the first half.
This has been their best start years, having six shutouts in a row. The last time this happened was in 2008. This is now the second time starting their season 6-0 since the 2016 season, when they started 9-0. The team currently ranks fourth in the NAIA in goals scored.
The Trojans started the season with ease, beating their first two opponents 6-0. Sophomore Claire Massey recorded two goals in the Asbury match, followed by a key assist to senior Linli Tu in the other 6-0 win against Saint Xavier University.
Massey has already made a huge impact in the impressive start, scoring her first two goals of the season in the first match to kickstart the season.
“I just feel like I have more confidence,” Massey said. “I struggled mentally last year … Just putting in the work in the summer, practicing with my sister to get here has been huge.” She expressed that this year is the first year in her Taylor tenure that she is fully starting.
Massey’s sister, Riley, is one of five seniors on the team. She has also put in a strong start on the defensive side of the ball, and scored a goal in the game against Lawrence Tech, helping the team win in a dominant fashion.
That defense did not allow a goal through their opening six games, and ranks No. 1 in the NAIA in shutouts. Sophomore Hannah Brackenbury has been given well deserved praise for her defense as a goalie.
The other seniors – Ali Vander Kolk, Kate Kortenhoeven,Tu and Erin Teevans have also been huge parts of the Lady Trojans’ success this season.
Head Coach Scott Stan has been impressed with how effective the seniors have been this season.
“The seniors have really had some great success this year,” Stan said. “But it isn’t just the seniors … really everyone increased their game. The sophomores have been getting a lot of minutes. The junior class has played clutch, along with the freshman adjusting so well to the speed of college ball.”
Stan still has the same goals as last year: to compete for conference championships and national tournament appearances, and just to excel in having a winning atmosphere.
Stan also collected his 400th win as head coach against Lawrence Tech. This milestone stretches across all levels of the sport.
Teevans has been a key part of the success. She has notched six goals during her start to the season, leading all seniors in goals made. Things don’t seem to be slowing down for her.
“I think chemistry on the team has helped make this season really successful,” Teevans said. “I am very optimistic about this season. We have so much depth in each position, that no matter who goes on the field, the level of competition won’t drop.”
Teevans had her most impressive game against IU Kokomo. She gave them the work, scoring 3 goals to attain a hat trick in an impressive 7-0 win. Apart from Teevans, three of five seniors also scored in the game (Vander Kolk, Kortenhoeven, Tu), giving IU Kokomo their fourth loss, and the Trojans their fifth straight win.
TU has a road matchup with Mount Vernon Nazarene slated for Saturday before returning home to face Huntington next week.
