Position Preview with Elissa Lane
JEFFERSON CITY, Tenn. – The second installment of the four-part Carson-Newman women's soccer preview focuses on the defense with sophomore right back Elissa Lane.
The Eagles return four defenders from the 2013 season and welcome five newcomers to the squad. The returners are compiled of two seniors and two sophmores.
Carson-Newman's four returners bring experience to the back line, having started 76 games and seeing action in 105 games total.
Senior Jenna Bryan has seen the most action of the returning players. Bryan, a Salisbury, N.C. native, has played in 44 games, making 27 starts. Alex Pinger is the other senior, seeing action in 32 games with 24 starts. The Hendersonville, Tenn. native has tallied two goals in her Carson-Newman career with both goals coming in her sophomore campaign.
The two returning sophomores are Elissa Lane and Megan Peterson.
Lane made starts in 12 games in her freshman season and saw action in 15 total games. Lane, the Knoxville, Tenn. native, is versatile and can play in multiple roles on the field.
Peterson is the team's reigning Freshman of the Year. She played in 14 games, which consisted of 13 starts. The Parrish, Fla. native scored one goal during her freshman campaign, the game-winning overtime goal at Mars Hill.
The Eagles' newcomers consist of a junior and four freshmen. The five newcomers have added competition for the returners, according to Lane.
"They gave us a lot of urgency to work harder. We've all had to work hard to earn our spots on this team. They are just a great group of girls."
Junior Paula Andujar comes to Carson-Newman from Spain. Andujar played on a team that won the Spanish Championship three years in a row.
Katie James is a freshman right back from Poole, England who played for Portsmouth F.C.'s club team.
Freshman center back Helen Seed was the captain for the Blackburn Rovers Ladies FC, a team in England's women's Premier League. Seed is from Preston, Lancashire, England.
Amanda Nugent is a freshman from Lebanon, Tenn. and will play outside left back for the Eagles. She played for the '96 team in the Olympic Development Program.
Jaime DePaul is another outside left back from Rockville, Md. She played for the fifth-ranked FC Frederick club team.
"They've just been great. They have pushed me to work harder," Lane said of the newcomers. "And they've come in and already knew what to do, pretty much."
The third part of the Carson-Newman women's soccer position preview comes Thursday with a look at the midfielders with sophomore Chelsea Jordan.
