Witten by: Danny Talbert
Following last year's 8-5-2 season, the LaGrange women's soccer team begins the 2023 campaign in a scrimmage against Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College on Aug. 20, at 11 a.m. at Panther Field. Following the program's first time having a winning record, Coach Fosuhene looks to build off of last season's success and take it to another level with this year's squad. When talking about his team, Coach Fosuhene stated, "It is now about taking the next step in trying to narrow the gap with the top teams… we have done a very good job at closing in on where we came from, but now it is time to take the next step."
One player helping the team take the next step is sophomore midfielder/forward Kaia King. During her freshman season, King led the team with seven goals and six assists. She also received Collegiate Conference of the South Player of the Week (1) and Rookie of the Week (2) honors. When I asked coach about what it means to have her coming back, he said, "She came in freshman year and hit the ground running. We have to build off of her abilities, but also for her she has to continue to grow individually as a player." This summer, King played with the Georgia Impact, a women's semi-professional program. This gave her the opportunity to play and compete with NCAA Division I athletes and semi-professional players.
Another key returner for the team is midfielder Kendyl Anderson. During her sophomore season, Anderson appeared in 13 games and started in 11. Along with Anderson, the Panthers brought back midfielder Lauren Williamson. During her junior year, Williamson started in all 16 games and had one goal on the season. On the defensive side of the field the Panthers return senior Nikki Longmore. In her eight games played she scored one goal and had one assist. After the departure of last year's goalkeepers, Fosuhene brought in a graduate student from Gordon State College and freshman to fill this gap. With this change, he states, "We will see out it correlates to the results on the pitch, but we are very excited to have two high quality keepers who both played at a very high level."
Coach Fosehene enters his third year at LaGrange College. He says that his program is built off of hard work, commitment, unity, and respect. He states, "If we install those things on a daily basis then we are meeting the standard. If we do these things on a daily basis, then we will grow together."
As mentioned, the season begins on Aug. 20, at 11 a.m. at Panther Field, in a scrimmage against Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College. Following this matchup, the men's soccer team will compete in a scrimmage against Truett-McConnell at 3 p.m. also at Panther Field.
