Lady Braves looking strong

By Chris Nicolini
Sports/Web Editor

Guided by third year head coach Lars Andersson, the Lady Braves soccer squad has enjoyed its most successful season ever in the team's three year history.

Andersson had two main goals planned for this season. He wanted to improve the team’s goalkeeping situation and field more players that are finishers, or goal scorers.

“We’ve added some great goal scoring and offensive power, I feel like we’ve met… these goals,” Head Coach Lars Andersson said.

Hillary Helms has helped guard the net for the Lady Braves, compiling an impressive 1.10 goals allowed per game average and recording 70 saves so far this season for a .789 save percentage. Simply put, she stops close to 80 out of 100 shots fired at her.

“She’s been outstanding.” Andersson said of Helms. “She has eight shutouts for the season, seven in a row, and she has come up huge, huge in a couple of these games. In the win against (USC) Spartanburg she had a couple of phenomenal saves. She has been a key factor in us not allowing a lot of goals.”

While the Lady Braves may be stingy when it comes to allowing goals, they seem to have little problem scoring on their opponents. The squad boasts an impressive 63-20 goal ratio: the squad has scored 63 goals while holding opponents to only 20 so far this season. With a 6-1home record, the Lady Braves are a force to be reckoned with when competing on home soil.

The young squad, comprised of nine freshmen, six sophomores and seven juniors are accomplishing feats that are usually expected of older, more experienced clubs. The team’s three co-captains lead the squad: juniors Courtney Jones and Crystal Lanoza share captain responsibilities with sophomore Katie Stokes.

Freshman Lefke Boysen leads the team in goals scored with 14, followed closely by sophomore Katie Stokes with 12, junior Simonae Taylor and freshman Kelly Jones with nine apiece,and freshman Jamie Clarke with eight.

Boysen’s four goals and one assist last week earned her an honor that no other Lady Brave has ever accomplished: Peach Belt Conference Player of the week.

With a current overall record of 13-4-0 with a 4-3-0 conference record, the squad looks poised to make a successful run at the conference tournament in November.

The team beat Wingate University 2-1 on Oct. 29 and won at USC-Aiken 6-1on Nov. 1.