One word describes the atmosphere surrounding the Nease girls soccer team this year: excitement! The excitement begins with a new coaching staff, led by long-time Edward Waters University and Nease assistant, Elias Walton. He is joined in his first year as head coach by assistants Cliff Long, Sam Jennings and Ashley Hagadorn.
The excitement continues with the return of six of the top seven scorers from last year’s team, led by juniors Alana Hornberger (16 goals) and Ellie Larkin (7 goals). The defense, which had six shutouts in its last eight games, is marshaled by senior Wakely McKennon, all four returning back line players and its starting goalie, Madalyn Faires.
After a slow start last year with only two victories in its first eight games, the Nease team finished 13-5-2 as it took a while for the team’s many ninth and 10th graders to adapt to high school soccer. Coach Elias has chosen to challenge the girls this year with a rigorous schedule that includes an opening game on Oct. 26 with 15-time Florida State Champion St. John’s Country Day School.
With a new playing field at the Nease High School stadium to add to the excitement, the opportunity to add to the Nease girls soccer legacy is something that we can all look forward to in this coming year.
