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Gopher Soccer - 2023 Season Preview

8/13/2023

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(Photo: Jeremy Olson)
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​The early word out of Gopher Soccer camp this fall was that the squad had more attacking chops than years one and two. The freshmen group has mountains of potential (even with highly touted attacker Caroline Birdsell out this fall recovering from a knee injury) and they brought in All American Megan Nemec to wreak havoc from the wing. In theory, their ceiling in 2023 should be higher. But after two exhibitions against NDSU (2-0 win) and Iowa State (0-1 loss), it’s not clear whether their floor moved much. As Minnesota approaches their 2023 regular season opener against Niagara on Thursday, August 17th, let’s take a detailed look at this year’s squad. 

Quick glance at the core stats
The best way to describe the Gopher Soccer program early in the Erin Chastain rebuild would be “solid.” They score more goals than they allow. They essentially score and defend the way the stats (expected goals) say they would. They pass and possess ok. And they’ve been quite a bit better at home (11-6-2) than on the road (5-8-4).

As the season gets rolling, here are two things to watch for in order to gauge the kind of progress the program is making in year three of the Chastain era. 

  • Corners/Set Pieces: The Gophers have a history of creating roughly a MOUNTAIN of corner kicks. At times, when the offense isn’t really getting into much of a rhythm, they seem to be actively settling for them even when a true chance on goal seems possible in the run of play. The challenge is that corner kick service has never been consistent and dangerous enough to make those chances into much of a threat. Against Iowa State this fall, Minnesota had something like ten free kicks from dangerous range and another ten corner kicks. Maybe *one* of those set pieces was even remotely close to creating a dangerous chance on goal. Granted, it’s early in the season. Maybe players are able to tighten up their runs on free kicks. Maybe service on corners gets more driven and less lofted (leaving runners with no way to get any momentum on their shot). Freshman Paige Kalal had the best looking corner kick service by our eye. Several of the attackers on the team can shoot from distance. For the Gophers to take a step forward, corner kick service and set pieces in general have to be better. ​

PRESEASON MEDIA AVAILABILITY

Freshman early enrollee @paigekalal on preparing to make an impact whether starting or coming off the bench, how getting reps all spring helped her prepare for her first @GopherSoccer season, and more! pic.twitter.com/qs9jv9t8Sy

— Equal Time Soccer (@EqualTimeSoccer) August 13, 2023
​
  • Sustained Success: Minnesota has never had an issue playing up to their competition. In literally their worst year in program history in 2019 they took down #14 NC State on national television during a season when they only won *three games* total. Their issue has been what happens after those big “play your best” wins. In each of the last two seasons, for instance, the Gophers’ longest Big Ten win streaks have been two games. Now, the Big Ten is tough. Every team you play is capable of knocking you off. Let’s see if 2023 can mark the first three game Big Ten winning streak for Minnesota since that tournament run in 2018. 

How they’re going to line up
Coming into camp, we might have predicted a 4-1-4-1. Early in camp, we might have predicted a 4-3-3. Before the Iowa State exhibition, we would have been pretty comfortable putting down money on a 4-2-3-1. While the “double six” look still appears to be the odds on favorite, it’s worth noting Chastain is not a purist when it comes to formation or even the rotation. When the Gophers were struggling to create true chances against Iowa State, she moved holding midfielder Amelia Brown to centerback in an attempt to unlock some offense. Then, when Iowa State went up 1-0 (in part due to some defensive miscues on the back line), Minnesota shifted to a 4-3-3 to try and get numbers forward. In other words, the starting formation and lineup is not only *not* carved in stone for the season, it’s not even cemented from opening to closing whistle. 

Still, if we assume 4-2-3-1 is where we’re starting, here’s how the rotation might look. Captain Megan Plaschko will be in goal with Abi Frandsen, Jordy Rothwell, and Elizabeth Overberg starting from right back to left center back. Left back appears to be a three horse race between Christa Van Loon, Jelena Zbiljic, and freshman Taylor Heimerl – with Heimerl likely to be given the chance to claim it once she’s fully cleared, presumably by opening night. The Gopher need for more offensive spark may drive the choice here. And Heimerl’s ability to absolutely HUCK the ball all the way into the box should not be overlooked.

When they’re rolling with their double holding midfielder look, expect freshman phenom Kate Childers, Amelia Brown, and Sophia Barjesteh to split those 180 minutes among the three of them. Paige Kalal, Sophia Boman, Megan Nemec, and Sophia Romine appear to have the three attacking midfield spots on absolute lock down, due to both talent and fitness. Which leaves a sole forward spot for Izzy Brown, Khyah Harper, and Sadie Harper to do their damage. Izzy was out for the NDSU game and maybe showed the best of the group against Iowa State. But make no mistake, this spot (and any front line attacker minutes) will be based entirely on production. If someone catches fire and gets themselves in form, they will start. Now, could Sadie also see minutes at one of the “outside mid” spots? Absolutely. If they have to shift to a 4-3-3, could all three of the “forwards” (Harper, Harper, Izzy) be out there? Definitely.

PRESEASON MEDIA AVAILABILITY

Impact transfer @NemecMegan on the team settling in during exhibition play, how she balances setting up her teammates and taking it herself, playing on both wings for @GopherSoccer, and more! pic.twitter.com/qicfDNrCiL

— Equal Time Soccer (@EqualTimeSoccer) August 13, 2023

​And, if things do bog down in the 4-2-3-1 and they go a bit more offensive in the 4-3-3, don’t be surprised if that’s when we see Romine at the tip of the spear for stretches as well. As I mentioned in the early camp preview, that look in particular could be where you see the most pressing potential. Sadie, Romine, Nemec up front, Kalal and Boman behind them running a wild, high work rate press. Bring on Izzy and/or Khyah once the opposing team is tired and flustered to beat the defense in the half court to close out the first half? I can see it. Or maybe I’m just day-dreaming about it/hoping for it. We’ll see. 

Either way, after seeing the two exhibition games, it’s clear the Gophers could use more creativity and creation on-ball, more movement off-ball to stretch the defense and give the ball handler the *chance* to create, and better corner/free kick service to create offense when the first two things aren’t happening. 

Where will the Gophers finish?
We have yet to see the Big Ten coaches poll results, but Chris Henderson of Woso Independent slates the Gophers in at 8th for 2023 – where they finished in 2022. If they play like they did against Iowa State every single game, they could certainly fall well below that mark. If they play like they did against NDSU, 8th place and an opening road matchup against the best team in the conference in the Big Ten Tournament feels about right. If they play to the potential that had coach Chastain excited early in camp – even for stretches – I’d bet they have a shot to climb.

2023 NCAA Women's Soccer Projection #5 - Big Ten (v1.0)

1. Rutgers
2. Penn State
3. Wisconsin
4. Northwestern
5. Nebraska
6. Michigan State
7. Michigan
8. Minnesota
-
9. Iowa
10. Indiana
11. Ohio State
12. Maryland
13. Purdue
14. Illinois pic.twitter.com/eOyju6boYx

— Chris Henderson (@chris_awk) August 4, 2023

​Captain Sophia Boman said the team’s goal is for a Big Ten Championship. Using the most generous definition of *either* a regular season or tournament championship, Minnesota’s most likely path to that goal is almost definitely by doing well enough in the regular season (top four in the conference) to host an opening round game of the conference tournament. From there, hope to play your best and for other matchups to fall the right way. It is absolutely within the *potential* of this year’s Gopher Soccer team to work into form and finish top four. If they’re able to pull off a season like that, it will have meant a significant jump in game to game discipline (read: not dropping games they shouldn’t), a jump in set piece effectiveness (read: both service and finishing improving), and some seriously impressive individual seasons (read: Nemec, Romine, Boman, Izzy, Khyah, whoever going OFF offensively, regularly).

Stay connected with us!
If there are elements of this team you’d like to see us cover more of, please reach out via Twitter, Instagram, email, or anywhere you see us. MJ will be live tweeting all Gopher games this fall, I (Matt) will be broadcasting home games and making it to as many road games as I can. We’ll be hanging out in the parking lot at Elizabeth Lyle Robbie Stadium for the home games and, if folks are interested, we can throw road games on at Black Hart, Makwa, or another women’s soccer supporting location. Just let us know!
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