Although it is rarely covered by the traditional media giants of the state, Nebraska is filled with exciting and competitive collegiate soccer programs. In fact, Nebraska contains a grand total of THIRTY programs for men and women. Those thirty programs compete across a wide variety of collegiate levels including Division I, Division II, Division III, NAIA, and junior college.

Nebraska Soccer Talk is here to examine, cover, and promote all of these teams. This task has been made a bit more challenging by the circumstances created by COVID-19. Depending on the playing level, conference, and school, the season outlook changes drastically. Roster information can also be in flux, depending on the school. Despite these challenges, our staff attempted to put together the best program summaries possible. To our knowledge, we are the only outlet providing such coverage to our state’s college programs.

Just like Nebraska Soccer Talk, this column will grow and become more in depth as the years pass. In the future, we hope to provide sideline coverage of games, facility features, coach and player interviews. We look forward to the journey ahead. Thank you for being a part of our community. The sport of soccer is growing in Nebraska, and we intend to see it thrive.

Disclaimer – In the making of this article, team websites and other research sources were utilized. Although we attempt to avoid them whenever possible, errors can occur. Please contact us directly with corrections.

University of Nebraska-Omaha

Head Coach – Tim Walters

Coach Walters arrived as the head of the program in 2016. Since that time, results have not fulfilled the expectations of a program with UNO’s standing. 2018’s advancement in the Summit league tournament provided a glimmer of progress and optimism for the future. However, it really needed to be followed up with a strong campaign in 2019, and that failed to materialize. Coach Walters seems to be a good candidate for this job, but it does need to be demonstrated by on-field success. From all accounts Coach Walters has been a dedicated and passionate soccer advocate as he honed his skills across many different levels of the game. The next few seasons will be crucial for the direction of his program.

Assistant Coaches – Kelly Farrell, Denzel Woods, Erin Bunker

Mascot – Mavericks

Nebraska Homegrown Players On Roster – 

• #0 Madeline Smith – So – Millard South – GK
• #2 Carly Cameron – RFR – Elkhorn High – GK
• #3 Maria Eubanks – RFR – Lincoln East – D
• #5 Grace Ostergaard – Fr – Millard West – M
• #6 Gracie Parsons – Fr – Omaha Burke – M
• #7 Grace Crockett – Fr – Omaha Marian – D
• #12 Grace Thede – RFr – Omaha Marian – D
• #13 Brylie Meyer – Jr – Lincoln Pius X – D
• #14 Laurin Mertz – So – Omaha Skutt – F
• #17 Mali Seran – RSo – Omaha Skutt – M
• #19 Regan Zimmers RFr – Millard North – M
• #20 Bailey Cascio – Sr – MIllard North – F
• #23 Avery Ripple – RSo – Papillion-LaVista South – D
• #25 Alyssa Hansen – Fr – Lincoln Pius X – M
• #26 Leah Kirchner – Jr – Millard West – D

15/27 = 55%

Known Recruiting Class – 

• Sena Ahovissi – Millard North – D
• Cece Behrens – Omaha Skutt – Mid
• Reagan Bourgeois – Houston, TX – M
• Mia Reedtz Olesen – Denmark – GK
• Mo Gohr – Kansas State / Elkhorn South – F
• Kayla Futakami – Northglenn, CO – F

NEST Analysis – Since its jump to division one athletics in 2011, UNO’s women’s soccer side has struggled to find consistent success. Since 2011, this program has not recorded a winning record. Simply put, that is very surprising given its location, facilities, and local recruiting pool. There have been moments of hope during that time with 2018 being the highlighted year of the Maverick program under Coach Walters. The state and the sport of soccer within our borders need more of that success. Women’s soccer at UNO must elevate itself to being a brand synonymous with winning, advocacy, and an attractive style of play. 

An uptick in local talent acquisition also serves as a point of optimism. Approximately half of the current roster is made up of homegrown Nebraskans, most of which are in their first or second year. Hopefully those players can serve as a launching point for Coach Walter’s program. On a lighter note, if you are a female soccer player that is located in the metro area and named Grace you have a very high chance of playing on this squad.

Thank you for reading and being a part of our new community. A like, share, comment or recommendation of content would be greatly appreciated. In order to financially support our efforts, sponsorship/partnership opportunities have become available. Sponsors will receive vast exposure to the Nebraska soccer community through multiple different media avenues. The sponsorship process is easy and reasonable.

Contact us on our website or email @ nebraskasoccertalk@gmail.com.

Connect with us on Twitter, Instagram, or listen to our podcast on Spotify.

Chace Hutchison

Previewing an upcoming season is never an easy task. To do so properly takes countless hours of emails, observations, statistical research, conversation, and reflection. Adding onto that difficulty are challenges, such as a cancelled 2020 season and lingering COVID restrictions, making our preview preparation feel almost impossible.

Despite these obstacles, the approaching 2021 season and its participants – whether that be players, coaches, fans, or families – deserve some semblance of normalcy. Soccer in Nebraska and all those who participate deserve to be promoted. In the following article series, we will reveal our Pre-season Top 10 rankings for the 2021 season.

This poll was developed while considering many different factors including program track records, recommendations from coaches, and roster strength. With that being said, much of this is subjective and opinions can vary. The rankings will be updated on bi-weekly basis. To the best of our ability, these rankings will reflect the reality of the soccer environment. Adjustments will be made as the season progresses and many conversations will take place. We look forward to those discussions. At season’s end, we will look back to review these preseason rankings. What did we get right? Where did we go wrong? Which team surprised us all?

Also including in each article is a section title Teams on the Verge. These teams ranked just outside our Top 10 but are considered to be in contention. The rankings are fluid and flexible, any team could quickly enter our Top 10 list.

Class B Boy’s Pre-Season List

1. Omaha Skutt
2. South Sioux City
3. Lexington
4. Crete
5. Omaha Gross Catholic
6. Columbus Scotus
7. Blair
8. Holdrege
9. Norris
10. Omaha Roncalli Catholic

Teams on the Verge: Schuyler, Elkhorn, Mount Michael Benedictine, Waverly, Grand Island Northwest

Thank you for reading and being a part of our new community. A like, share, comment or recommendation of content would be greatly appreciated. In order to financially support our efforts, sponsorship/partnership opportunities have become available. Sponsors will receive vast exposure to the Nebraska soccer community through different media avenues. The sponsorship process is easy and reasonable.

Contact us on our website or email @ nebraskasoccertalk@gmail.com.

Connect with us on Twitter, Instagram, or listen to our podcast on Spotify.

Chace Hutchison

Although it is rarely covered by the traditional media giants of the state, Nebraska is filled with exciting and competitive collegiate soccer programs. In fact, Nebraska contains a grand total of THIRTY programs for men and women. Those thirty programs compete across a wide variety of collegiate levels including Division I, Division II, Division III, NAIA, and junior college.

Nebraska Soccer Talk is here to examine, cover, and promote all of these teams. This task has been made a bit more challenging by the circumstances created by COVID-19. Depending on the playing level, conference, and school, the season outlook changes drastically. Roster information can also be in flux, depending on the school. Despite these challenges, our staff attempted to put together the best program summaries possible. To our knowledge, we are the only outlet providing such coverage to our state’s college programs.

Just like Nebraska Soccer Talk, this column will grow and become more in depth as the years pass. In the future, we hope to provide sideline coverage of games, facility features, coach and player interviews. We look forward to the journey ahead. Thank you for being a part of our community. The sport of soccer is growing in Nebraska, and we intend to see it thrive.

Disclaimer – In the making of this article, team websites and other research sources were utilized. Although we attempt to avoid them whenever possible, errors can occur. Please contact us directly with corrections.

Concordia University

Head Coach – Thomas Goines

Assistant Coaches – Chris Luther

Mascot – Bulldogs

Previous Records  

Nebraska Homegrown Players On Roster – 

• #0 Kassidy Johnson – Fr – Raymond Central – GK
• #16 Kaitlyn Radebaugh – Sr – Norris – F
• #17 Jaiden Beecher – So – Millard West – M
• #Sydney Ross – Fr – Skutt Catholic – D
• #23 Grace Soenksen – So – Lincoln Lutheran – D
• #27 Cassie Montiel – Sr – Columbus – D
• #33 Zoe Peterson – Fr – Waverly – M

7/39 = 18%

NEST Analysis – A disappointing 2019 season goes against the norm for Concordia. Generally this is a high level program that performs well above a losing or .500 record. The Bulldogs belong in the title conversation as they have proven to be a premier Nebraska team. 

 A resurgence has taken place thus far into the 2020 season and that is no surprise to those that are familiar with the team. A return to GPAC contention and superb soccer demonstrates the resilient mindset that has been established by Coach Thomas Goines early on in his Concordia tenure. With their season resuming in March, it will be fascinating to observe how the Bulldogs will carry their regular season momentum into the GPAC tournament. 

Thank you for reading and being a part of our new community. A like, share, comment or recommendation of content would be greatly appreciated. In order to financially support our efforts, sponsorship/partnership opportunities have become available. Sponsors will receive vast exposure to the Nebraska soccer community through multiple different media avenues. The sponsorship process is easy and reasonable.

Contact us on our website or email @ nebraskasoccertalk@gmail.com.

Connect with us on Twitter, Instagram, or listen to our podcast on Spotify.

Chace Hutchison

Previewing an upcoming season is never an easy task. To do so properly takes countless hours of emails, observations, statistical research, conversation, and reflection. Adding onto that difficulty are challenges, such as a cancelled 2020 season and lingering COVID restrictions, making our preview preparation feel almost impossible.

Despite these obstacles, the approaching 2021 season and its participants – whether that be players, coaches, fans, or families – deserve some semblance of normalcy. Soccer in Nebraska and all those who participate deserve to be promoted. Over the course of the next several weeks, NEST will overview EVERY high school soccer program in our state. This was done to the best of our ability using all of the information we could collect.

Nebraska Soccer Talk is here to support many fantastic teams, coaches, players, fans, and referees that make our game possible. One mission of this venture is to discover and centralize newsworthy information. This can only be done in collaboration with individual programs. As a whole, our sport must better promote itself in order to grow the player and supporter pool. We encourage every team to proudly and consistently advertise itself to us and the general public. The more information available, the more our game will grow. Soccer is a game historically left behind to linger in the background in the United States. That circumstance is changing, but that change will not happen automatically. Growing and covering all aspects of our sport will take effort from all of those who love it.

Disclaimer – To prepare for these articles, a questionnaire was sent to every school’s head coach and athletic director. Many of these questionnaires were returned in a timely fashion, others were not. Nebraska Soccer Talk prides itself on equal and in-depth coverage but cooperation is needed to meet that goal. Please consider this to be our reasoning when it comes to article length and accuracy.

Lincoln Southeast

Head Coach Info – Liz Sundberg

Previous Records

State Status – Front Runner, Contender, Dark Horse, Up-And-Coming, Building, Too Early To Tell

Previous Season Accomplishments – 2019 Class A State Qualifier

NEST Analysis – A true battle for Lincoln city supremacy will take place yet again during the 2021 season. Lincoln Southeast is one of two LPS team’s that have a chance to contend for a state title which will add more fuel to their rivalry. The Knights are a highly organized and motivated squad that demonstrates a winner’s edge. Just by watching their warm up, you will understand the previous statement. Coach Sundberg has demonstrated herself to be a true tactician and team builder. A fantastic culture that demands buy-in from every individual has taken root at LSE.  Discovering known game changers and consistent performers will be a vital task for Southeast and a major storyline to watch for Nebraska Soccer Talk. There is faith that those critical pieces can be found in their large player pool. Lincoln Southeast begins the season ranked #5 in our Class A poll.

Thank you for reading and being a part of our new community. A like, share, comment or recommendation of content would be greatly appreciated. In order to financially support our efforts, sponsorship/partnership opportunities have become available. Sponsors will receive vast exposure to the Nebraska soccer community through different media avenues. The sponsorship process is easy and reasonable.

Contact us on our website or email @ nebraskasoccertalk@gmail.com.

Connect with us on Twitter, Instagram, or listen to our podcast on Spotify.

Chace Hutchison

Although it is rarely covered by the traditional media giants of the state, Nebraska is filled with exciting and competitive collegiate soccer programs. In fact, Nebraska contains a grand total of THIRTY programs for men and women. Those thirty programs compete across a wide variety of collegiate levels including Division I, Division II, Division III, NAIA, and junior college.

Nebraska Soccer Talk is here to examine, cover, and promote all of these teams. This task has been made a bit more challenging by the circumstances created by COVID-19. Depending on the playing level, conference, and school, the season outlook changes drastically. Roster information can also be in flux, depending on the school. Despite these challenges, our staff attempted to put together the best program summaries possible. To our knowledge, we are the only outlet providing such coverage to our state’s college programs.

Just like Nebraska Soccer Talk, this column will grow and become more in depth as the years pass. In the future, we hope to provide sideline coverage of games, facility features, coach and player interviews. We look forward to the journey ahead. Thank you for being a part of our community. The sport of soccer is growing in Nebraska, and we intend to see it thrive.

Disclaimer – In the making of this article, team websites and other research sources were utilized. Although we attempt to avoid them whenever possible, errors can occur. Please contact us directly with corrections.

University of Nebraska – Lincoln

Head Coach – John Walker (25th Season)

Over the course of two and a half decades at the helm of the Cornhusker program, Coach Walker has cemented himself into Nebraska state soccer history. During his tenure, the team has consistently put together competitive performances even in the midst of conference realignment. The majority of that success can be traced back to the late 90s and early 2000s with exceptional runs also taking place in 2013 and 2016.

Assistant Coaches – Ian Bridge; Marty Everding; Jaycie Johnson

Mascot – Cornhuskers

Nebraska Homegrown Players On Roster – 

• #5 Lily Sturek – Fr – Lincoln Southwest – Mid
• #7 Reagan Raabe – Fr – Millard West – F
• #10 Kenzie Coons – Jr – Millard West – Mid
• #12 Katie Stoneburner – Fr – Millard West – Mid
• #13 Hannah Davis – Jr – Lincoln Southwest – F
• #23 Gwen Lane – Fr – Lincoln Southwest – F/Mid
• #26 Elana Weber – Fr – Lincoln Pius X – Mid
• #28 Lexi Thomsen – Fr – Elkhorn High – D

8/27 = 30%

Known Recruiting Class – 

• Briley Hill – Lincoln East – F
• Haley Peterson – Lincoln East – M
• Allison Napora – Papillion-La Vista South – F/M
• Abbey Schwarz – Omaha Roncalli – F
• Sarah Weber – Gretna High School – F
• Margaret Altman – San Francisco, CA – F
• Florence Belzile – Ontario, Canada – M
• Aislinn Boyle – Ontario, Canada – M
• Cece Villa – Altoona, IA – GK
• Mia Wildeman – San Antonio, TX – GK
• Jordan Zade – Olathe, KS – MF

NEST Analysis – Good things are ahead for the women’s soccer program. Newly revamped facilities, higher level of commitment from the university, quality coaches, and an increased emphasis on in-state talent allow for that optimism. The last two recruiting cycles have been filled with a lot of the area’s best talent. Those new additions will be exciting to watch for the next four to five years. The BIG 10 is a highly competitive league and thus far Nebraska has been a mid-tier program since its arrival in 2011. Everything seems to be in place where the Huskers can take the next step and regularly compete for league titles. 

Thank you for reading and being a part of our new community. A like, share, comment or recommendation of content would be greatly appreciated. In order to financially support our efforts, sponsorship/partnership opportunities have become available. Sponsors will receive vast exposure to the Nebraska soccer community through multiple different media avenues. The sponsorship process is easy and reasonable.

Contact us on our website or email @ nebraskasoccertalk@gmail.com.

Connect with us on Twitter, Instagram, or listen to our podcast on Spotify.

Chace Hutchison

Previewing an upcoming season is never an easy task. To do so properly takes countless hours of emails, observations, statistical research, conversation, and reflection. Adding onto that difficulty are challenges, such as a cancelled 2020 season and lingering COVID restrictions, making our preview preparation feel almost impossible.

Despite these obstacles, the approaching 2021 season and its participants – whether that be players, coaches, fans, or families – deserve some semblance of normalcy. Soccer in Nebraska and all those who participate deserve to be promoted. Over the course of the next several weeks, the NEST will overview EVERY high school soccer program in our state. This was done to the best of our ability using all of the information we could collect.

Nebraska Soccer Talk is here to support many fantastic teams, coaches, players, fans, and referees that make our game possible. One mission of this venture is to discover and centralize newsworthy information. This can only be done in collaboration with individual programs. As a whole, our sport must better promote itself in order to grow the player and supporter pool. We encourage every team to proudly and consistently advertise itself to us and the general public. The more information available, the more our game will grow. Soccer is a game historically left behind to linger in the background in the United States. That circumstance is changing, but that change will not happen automatically. Growing and covering all aspects of our sport will take effort from all of those who love it.

Disclaimer – To prepare for these articles, a questionnaire was sent to every school’s head coach and athletic director. Many of these questionnaires were returned in a timely fashion, others were not. Nebraska Soccer Talk prides itself on equal and in-depth coverage but cooperation is needed to meet that goal. Please consider this to be our reasoning when it comes to article length and accuracy.

Omaha Westside

Head Coach Info – Michael Dean

Previous Records

State Status – Front Runner, Contender, Dark Horse, Up-And-Coming, Building, Too Early To Tell

NEST Analysis – A team that is accustomed to success, the Warriors will attempt to rebound after a disappointing 2019 season. A 6-10 record is highly unusual for Westside, a program rich in tradition and talent. Normally this would be a team easily placed in the contender or front runner status category. However, for right now they are in the “dark horse” classification until evidence of a turnaround is apparent. Coach Michael Dean will need to refocus his players in order to reclaim their traditional stature.

Do not be shocked to see Omaha Westside at Morrison Stadium in May. The Warriors have been placed on our list for Teams on the Verge. They could easily enter our Top 10 sooner rather than later.

Thank you for reading and being a part of our new community. A like, share, comment or recommendation of content would be greatly appreciated. In order to financially support our efforts, sponsorship/partnership opportunities have become available. Sponsors will receive vast exposure to the Nebraska soccer community through different media avenues. The sponsorship process is easy and reasonable.

Contact us on our website or email @ nebraskasoccertalk@gmail.com.

Connect with us on Twitter, Instagram, or listen to our podcast on Spotify.

Chace Hutchison

Previewing an upcoming season is never an easy task. To do so properly takes countless hours of emails, observations, statistical research, conversation, and reflection. Adding onto that difficulty are challenges, such as a cancelled 2020 season and lingering COVID restrictions, making our preview preparation feel almost impossible.

Despite these obstacles, the approaching 2021 season and its participants – whether that be players, coaches, fans, or families – deserve some semblance of normalcy. Soccer in Nebraska and all those who participate deserve to be promoted. Over the course of the next several weeks, the NEST will overview EVERY high school soccer program in our state. This was done to the best of our ability using all of the information we could collect.

Nebraska Soccer Talk is here to support many fantastic teams, coaches, players, fans, and referees that make our game possible. One mission of this venture is to discover and centralize newsworthy information. This can only be done in collaboration with individual programs. As a whole, our sport must better promote itself in order to grow the player and supporter pool. We encourage every team to proudly and consistently advertise itself to us and the general public. The more information available, the more our game will grow. Soccer is a game historically left behind to linger in the background in the United States. That circumstance is changing, but that change will not happen automatically. Growing and covering all aspects of our sport will take effort from all of those who love it.

Disclaimer – To prepare for these articles, a questionnaire was sent to every school’s head coach and athletic director. Many of these questionnaires were returned in a timely fashion, others were not. Nebraska Soccer Talk prides itself on equal and in-depth coverage but cooperation is needed to meet that goal. Please consider this to be our reasoning when it comes to article length and accuracy.

Elkhorn South

Head Coach Info – Jon Shaad

Previous Records

Players to Watch – Sam Sundstrom, Tyler Parks, Miles Schmit, Carson Chochon

State Status – Front Runner, Contender, Dark Horse, Up-And-Coming, Building, Too Early To Tell

NEST Analysis – Just like Elkhorn High, South will feel some effects of a third high school opening in the district. Less students equals a smaller player pool to choose from, which is never great for the coaching staff. However, unlike the Antlers, Elkhorn South has stability and known talent in the coaching ranks. After the team took a step back during the 2019 season, Coach Jon Shaad will be overseeing a program full of motivation and expectation. Elkhorn South can and should be competing at the top of Class A on a yearly basis. Sam Sundstrom, Tyler Parks, Miles Schmit, and Carson Chochon form the core of this team going into the 2021 season. The Storm begin the 2021 season just outside the Top 10, as they are a Team on the Verge. That situation could change drastically after a few early season results.

Thank you for reading and being a part of our new community. A like, share, comment or recommendation of content would be greatly appreciated. In order to financially support our efforts, sponsorship/partnership opportunities have become available. Sponsors will receive vast exposure to the Nebraska soccer community through different media avenues. The sponsorship process is easy and reasonable.

Contact us on our website or email @ nebraskasoccertalk@gmail.com.

Connect with us on Twitter, Instagram, or listen to our podcast on Spotify.

Chace Hutchison

Although it is rarely covered by the traditional media giants of the state, Nebraska is filled with exciting and competitive collegiate soccer programs. In fact, Nebraska contains a grand total of THIRTY programs for men and women. Those thirty programs compete across a wide variety of collegiate levels including Division I, Division II, Division III, NAIA, and junior college.

Nebraska Soccer Talk is here to examine, cover, and promote all of these teams. This task has been made a bit more challenging by the circumstances created by COVID-19. Depending on the playing level, conference, and school, the season outlook changes drastically. Roster information can also be in flux, depending on the school. Despite these challenges, our staff attempted to put together the best program summaries possible. To our knowledge, we are the only outlet providing such coverage to our state’s college programs.

Just like Nebraska Soccer Talk, this column will grow and become more in depth as the years pass. In the future, we hope to provide sideline coverage of games, facility features, coach and player interviews. We look forward to the journey ahead. Thank you for being a part of our community. The sport of soccer is growing in Nebraska, and we intend to see it thrive.

Disclaimer – In the making of this article, team websites and other research sources were utilized. Although we attempt to avoid them whenever possible, errors can occur. Please contact us directly with corrections.

Wayne State College

Head Coach – TBD

Assistant Coaches – TBD

Mascot – Wildcats

Nebraska Homegrown Players On Roster – 

• #3 Morgan Rhodes – Fr – MIllard West – Mid
• #5 Brea Kreikemeier – Fr – Lincoln Pius – Mid
• #11 Olivia thompson – So. – Gretna High – D
• #15 Jaiden Thompson – Fr – Elkhorn High – F
• #17 Madison Craig – Sr. – Omaha Central – D
• #18 Payton Haliburton – So. – Omaha Central – Mid
• #21 Skylar Stueckrath – So – Elkhorn South – F

7/24 = 29%

Known Recruiting Class – 

• Kaelyn Reeves – M – Skutt Catholic
• Kailey Crawford – M/F – Iowa
• Molly Michaelson – D – Minnesota
• Maia Vack – M – Florida
• Alicia Green – M – Arizona

NEST Analysis – An exciting program that appears to be heading in the right direction. During the 2019 campaign, the Wildcats qualified for the NSIC post-season tournament for the first time since 2006. With that momentum, the program signed perhaps its most complete and diverse recruiting class during the 2021 cycle.

WSC is now undergoing a national coaching search as Joe Cleary decided to step away from the collegiate game. This is a process that we will follow with great interest as WSC is both an appealing and challenging job. High levels of support from administration and upgraded facilities make it a job that the right coach can flourish in. However, its rural location and rigorous conference schedule do present obvious challenges. 

The athletic department has done well with the last two hires for this position. This is not uncharted territory for the decision makers at Wayne State. An organized and thorough search is expected to take place. 

Thank you for reading and being a part of our new community. A like, share, comment or recommendation of content would be greatly appreciated. In order to financially support our efforts, sponsorship/partnership opportunities have become available. Sponsors will receive vast exposure to the Nebraska soccer community through multiple different media avenues. The sponsorship process is easy and reasonable.

Contact us on our website or email @ nebraskasoccertalk@gmail.com.

Connect with us on Twitter, Instagram, or listen to our podcast on Spotify.

Chace Hutchison

Previewing an upcoming season is never an easy task. To do so properly takes countless hours of emails, observations, statistical research, conversation, and reflection. Adding onto that difficulty are challenges, such as a cancelled 2020 season and lingering COVID restrictions, making our preview preparation feel almost impossible.

Despite these obstacles, the approaching 2021 season and its participants – whether that be players, coaches, fans, or families – deserve some semblance of normalcy. Soccer in Nebraska and all those who participate deserve to be promoted. Over the course of the next several weeks, the NEST will overview EVERY high school soccer program in our state. This was done to the best of our ability using all of the information we could collect.

Nebraska Soccer Talk is here to support many fantastic teams, coaches, players, fans, and referees that make our game possible. One mission of this venture is to discover and centralize newsworthy information. This can only be done in collaboration with individual programs. As a whole, our sport must better promote itself in order to grow the player and supporter pool. We encourage every team to proudly and consistently advertise itself to us and the general public. The more information available, the more our game will grow. Soccer is a game historically left behind to linger in the background in the United States. That circumstance is changing, but that change will not happen automatically. Growing and covering all aspects of our sport will take effort from all of those who love it.

Disclaimer – To prepare for these articles, a questionnaire was sent to every school’s head coach and athletic director. Many of these questionnaires were returned in a timely fashion, others were not. Nebraska Soccer Talk prides itself on equal and in-depth coverage but cooperation is needed to meet that goal. Please consider this to be our reasoning when it comes to article length and accuracy.

Grand Island

Head Coach Info – Jeremy Jensen

Previous Records

Players to Watch – Javier Baide

State Status – Front Runner, Contender, Dark Horse, Up-And-Coming, Building, Too Early To Tell

NEST Analysis – Grand Island is one of the most interesting programs in Class A on a consistent basis. The interest factor stems from the fact that they regularly compete with and beat metro area teams on the biggest of stages. 2021 could be one of those special seasons on the island. The Islanders debut in our pre-season poll ranked #8 in Class A. 

Traditionally this is a team that has a fast, aggressive, and possession heavy style of play that is fantastic to watch. During his freshman season in 2019, Javier Baide introduced himself with authority. In 15 appearances, Baide totaled 13 goals and 9 assists in 2019. Now in his junior season, Baide and his teammates will look to make a run at state. 

Thank you for reading and being a part of our new community. A like, share, comment or recommendation of content would be greatly appreciated. In order to financially support our efforts, sponsorship/partnership opportunities have become available. Sponsors will receive vast exposure to the Nebraska soccer community through different media avenues. The sponsorship process is easy and reasonable.

Contact us on our website or email @ nebraskasoccertalk@gmail.com.

Connect with us on Twitter, Instagram, or listen to our podcast on Spotify.

Chace Hutchison

Previewing an upcoming season is never an easy task. To do so properly takes countless hours of emails, observations, statistical research, conversation, and reflection. Adding onto that difficulty are challenges, such as a cancelled 2020 season and lingering COVID restrictions, making our preview preparation feel almost impossible.

Despite these obstacles, the approaching 2021 season and its participants – whether that be players, coaches, fans, or families – deserve some semblance of normalcy. Soccer in Nebraska and all those who participate deserve to be promoted. Over the course of four articles, NEST will recognize many outstanding athletes that everyone should look forward to seeing on the pitch.

This list was put together using several resources such as coach recommendations, past all-state lists, statistical analysis from previous seasons, and observational research. The inclusions vary greatly in terms of location, age, and future plans. The listed athletes live in every corner of the state from Omaha to Scottsbluff. Many have signed or are committed to play soccer at the Division I level, while others are pursuing other interests in the future.

Even so, there are two traits that all inclusions of the inaugural NEST Players to Watch preview have in common.

1. Show stopping and jaw dropping ability on the field.
2. An admirable love for the sport of soccer. With their ability, passion, and outreach, this game will grow; that is the ultimate goal of Nebraska Soccer Talk.

A special congratulations to all of the athletes. Your hard work, skill, and dedication deserve to be recognized. Nebraska Soccer Talk will be observing closely as your season and career progress.

Class A – Girls

Players are not ranked, instead listed alphabetically by first name.

1. Allie Napora
   • High School: Papillion-La Vista South
   • Class of 2021
   • Future Plans: University of Nebraska-Lincoln soccer signee
2. Alyssa Judkins
   • High School: Omaha Burke
   • Class of 2021
   • Future Plans: Creighton University soccer commit
3. Annie Mulder
   • High School: Lincoln East
   • Class of 2023
   • Future Plans: Kansas State University soccer commit
4. Briley Hill
   • High School: Lincoln East
   • Class of 2021
   • Future Plans: University of Nebraska-Lincoln soccer signee
5. Campbell Zimmers
   • High School: Millard North
   • Class of 2021
   • Future Plans: University of South Dakota soccer signee
6. Ella Guyott
   • High School: Papillion-La Vista
   • Class of 2022
   • Future Plans: University of Nebraska-Lincoln soccer commit
7. Emma Prososki
   • High School: Omaha Marian
   • Class of 2022
   • Future Plans: University of Nebraska-Lincoln soccer commit
8. Gracie Haneborg
   • High School: North Platte
   • Class of 2021
9. Haley Peterson
   • High School: Lincoln East
   • Class of 2021
   • Future Plans: University of Nebraska-Lincoln soccer signee
10. Kayla Hassler
    • High School: Lincoln Southwest
    • Class of 2022
    • Future Plans: University of Nebraska-Omaha soccer commit
11. Lauryn Anglim
    • High School: Papillion-La Vista
    • Class of 2022
    • Future Plans: University of Nebraska-Lincoln soccer commit
12. Mykena Turner
    • High School: Papillion-La Vista
    • Class of 2021
    • Future Plans: South Dakota State University soccer signee
13. Sarah Weber
    • High School: Gretna
    • Class of 2021
    • Future Plans: University of Nebraska-Lincoln soccer signee
14. Savannah DeFini
    • High School: Gretna
    • Class of 2022
15. Sena Ahovissi
    • High School: Millard North
    • Class of 2021
    • Future Plans: University of Nebraska-Omaha soccer signee
16. Taylor Cumblidge
    • High School: Lincoln North Star
    • Class of 2021
    • Future Plans: University of Missouri-Kansas City soccer commit
17. Taylor Daffer
    • High School: Gretna
    • Class of 2021
    • Future Plans: Creighton University soccer signee

Once again, congratulations to the above athletes for all of their accomplishments. Your future in the game of soccer is incredibly bright. 

Additionally, it must be mentioned that this is not intended to be an all encompassing or complete list. There are a great number of talented soccer players in Nebraska that we have simply not discovered yet. As the 2021 season gets underway, those athletes will be seen and recognized. That is truly the whole point of Nebraska Soccer Talk. 

If you are a soccer player or know of a soccer player that should be on our radar, feel free to contact us. NEST is always looking to cover more soccer and add to our lists.

Thank you for reading and being a part of our new community. A like, share, comment or recommendation of our content would be greatly appreciated. In order to financially support our efforts, sponsorship/partnership opportunities have become available. Sponsors will receive vast exposure to the Nebraska soccer community through different media avenues. The sponsorship process is easy and reasonable.

Contact us on our website or email @ nebraskasoccertalk@gmail.com.

Connect with us on Twitter, Instagram, or listen to our podcast on Spotify.

Chace Hutchison