2022 Preview: Women’s Soccer Loaded For 2022 Campaign
August 12, 2022 at 10:50 p.m.
2022 Preview: Women’s Soccer Loaded For 2022 Campaign
By Josh Neuhart-
Head coach Michael Voss has high hopes for the Lady Lancers this year. Voss, the winningest coach in program history, wants the 2022 campaign to be the best year in team history.
Voss has reason to be excited. Grace is fresh off four straight appearances at the NAIA National Championships, and the program claimed the 2021 NCCAA national championship in December.
The Lady Lancers boast an All-American ensemble of returners, led by the dynamic scoring duo of JJ Aalbue and Madison Tuma. The pair has amassed 53 combined goals and 42 assists, as well as numerous NAIA and NCCAA All-American accolades, over the past few seasons.
Midfielders Lea Moessinger and Lea Fricke also are back for their senior seasons, providing stability, leadership and poise as they control the middle of the field.
“Our midfield has played together for awhile now, and that continuity has made it very easy to unlock our whole roster,” Voss said. “They have an ability to adjust and make dangerous movements happen on the field, enabling us to play at the pace we want.”
Defensively, Voss believes this may be his strongest group yet. Amber Meade, Erin Crew and Kimberly Aalbue each made at least 15 starts last year, and they are joined by several talented newcomers.
Freshmen Lucy Schmitt, Lilli Oberhoff, Luna Gianotti and Simone Castaneda have impressed during the preseason. The group has the benefit of facing an All-American attack each day during practice, and the newcomers have not shrunk from that challenge.
“Our back line was good last year, and we’ve added to that with young talent,” Voss said. “Our defenders are fast and can move the ball fluidly, which helps us transition into our possession attack.”
Grace’s attack will be bolstered by a mix of familiar faces and new ones. Each attacker brings a different element to the offense, allowing Voss to choose which combination to use for each game.
“Our intent this year is to score goals from multiple players. We have the ability to create and finish from different locations on the field; we have really good pace, strength and finishing ability,” Voss added.
One area that will be addressed is at goalkeeper. Bethany Blackwood graduated last year, leaving a void that she filled as a four-year starting goalie.
But returning sophomores Libby Stratton and Sofia Lerro provide two strong options between the goalposts. Both players have been sharp in the preseason, according to Voss.
Grace will likely field one of the deepest teams in the Crossroads League. The Lady Lancers are hoping to use that talent and depth to challenge some of the top teams in the NAIA. Grace is scheduled to play five teams in the NAIA Top 25 Preseason Poll, including four of those on the road.
The Lady Lancers, ranked No. 24 in the NAIA poll, are not shying away from their goal of playing elite teams and playing with quality.
“Our goal is to increase our quality so much that opponents have to match us. We want to dictate how games are played and obviously we desire to win every game. We have the potential to play top-quality football, so we’re going to keep hammering to be at our best. We have an excellent quality to our team, and I’m going to be stoked when we get all the pieces together,” Voss said.
Voss maintained that the Lady Lancers will not be breaking from their patented style of “possession-attacking futbol.” But what excited Voss was how this group seems to have the quality to take that style of play even further than before.
“I really like this group and love working with them every day. They are high-character people, and they are a joy to be around. Their level of competency and intelligence is very high, and I want to push them to be the best they can be. I want this to be the best Grace football played so far,” Voss said.
The Lady Lancers have one exhibition match at home on Aug. 15 against Holy Cross. Grace begins the season with a four-game homestand, including Aug. 22 (Indiana Tech), Aug. 27 (Ohio Christian), Sept. 3 (West Virginia Tech) and Sept. 5 (Point Park).
Head coach Michael Voss has high hopes for the Lady Lancers this year. Voss, the winningest coach in program history, wants the 2022 campaign to be the best year in team history.
Voss has reason to be excited. Grace is fresh off four straight appearances at the NAIA National Championships, and the program claimed the 2021 NCCAA national championship in December.
The Lady Lancers boast an All-American ensemble of returners, led by the dynamic scoring duo of JJ Aalbue and Madison Tuma. The pair has amassed 53 combined goals and 42 assists, as well as numerous NAIA and NCCAA All-American accolades, over the past few seasons.
Midfielders Lea Moessinger and Lea Fricke also are back for their senior seasons, providing stability, leadership and poise as they control the middle of the field.
“Our midfield has played together for awhile now, and that continuity has made it very easy to unlock our whole roster,” Voss said. “They have an ability to adjust and make dangerous movements happen on the field, enabling us to play at the pace we want.”
Defensively, Voss believes this may be his strongest group yet. Amber Meade, Erin Crew and Kimberly Aalbue each made at least 15 starts last year, and they are joined by several talented newcomers.
Freshmen Lucy Schmitt, Lilli Oberhoff, Luna Gianotti and Simone Castaneda have impressed during the preseason. The group has the benefit of facing an All-American attack each day during practice, and the newcomers have not shrunk from that challenge.
“Our back line was good last year, and we’ve added to that with young talent,” Voss said. “Our defenders are fast and can move the ball fluidly, which helps us transition into our possession attack.”
Grace’s attack will be bolstered by a mix of familiar faces and new ones. Each attacker brings a different element to the offense, allowing Voss to choose which combination to use for each game.
“Our intent this year is to score goals from multiple players. We have the ability to create and finish from different locations on the field; we have really good pace, strength and finishing ability,” Voss added.
One area that will be addressed is at goalkeeper. Bethany Blackwood graduated last year, leaving a void that she filled as a four-year starting goalie.
But returning sophomores Libby Stratton and Sofia Lerro provide two strong options between the goalposts. Both players have been sharp in the preseason, according to Voss.
Grace will likely field one of the deepest teams in the Crossroads League. The Lady Lancers are hoping to use that talent and depth to challenge some of the top teams in the NAIA. Grace is scheduled to play five teams in the NAIA Top 25 Preseason Poll, including four of those on the road.
The Lady Lancers, ranked No. 24 in the NAIA poll, are not shying away from their goal of playing elite teams and playing with quality.
“Our goal is to increase our quality so much that opponents have to match us. We want to dictate how games are played and obviously we desire to win every game. We have the potential to play top-quality football, so we’re going to keep hammering to be at our best. We have an excellent quality to our team, and I’m going to be stoked when we get all the pieces together,” Voss said.
Voss maintained that the Lady Lancers will not be breaking from their patented style of “possession-attacking futbol.” But what excited Voss was how this group seems to have the quality to take that style of play even further than before.
“I really like this group and love working with them every day. They are high-character people, and they are a joy to be around. Their level of competency and intelligence is very high, and I want to push them to be the best they can be. I want this to be the best Grace football played so far,” Voss said.
The Lady Lancers have one exhibition match at home on Aug. 15 against Holy Cross. Grace begins the season with a four-game homestand, including Aug. 22 (Indiana Tech), Aug. 27 (Ohio Christian), Sept. 3 (West Virginia Tech) and Sept. 5 (Point Park).
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