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 Southwest

Head Coach Info – Thomas Nettleton

Previous Records

Players to Watch – Riley Wells (Washburn University soccer signee), Kayla Hassler (University of Nebraska-Omaha soccer commit)

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

NEST Analysis – Another participant for Lincoln soccer supremacy, the Lincoln Southwest Silver Hawks appear ready to contend for the 2021 state title. This is a program filled with flair and style that is an enjoyable watch for any soccer fanatic. That playing style has resulted in tremendous success on a yearly basis. Southwest will be anchored by two returning talents in Riley Wells and Kayla Hassler. Hassler will be the catalyst and provides an exceptional player to build around. Coach Nettleton is a respected presence on the sideline for the LSW program. Few teams will win the coaching battle when facing this squad. In our pre-season Class A poll, the Silver Hawks claim the #9 ranking.

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, 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.

Gretna 

Head Coach Info – Tyler Ortlieb

Previous Records

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

Previous Season Accomplishments – 2019 Class A State Semi-Finalists

NEST Analysis – Gretna is always a competitive program that has transitioned beautifully from Class B to Class A. The 2019 season saw the Dragons fall just short of the championship contest. Nevertheless, it was a terrific season, which has become business as usual for Coach Ortlieb’s team. Gretna finds itself ranked #3 at the Class A level in our pre-season poll. A solid crop of returners, supplemented by talented newcomers such as Colin McClung and Maguire Perkins, justify these lofty expectations. In addition to on-field play, the Dragons have newly updated facilities that are extremely impressive. Training and game-days should be elevated by these resources. 

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, 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.

Kearney

Head Coach Info – Scott Steinbrook

Previous Records

Players to Watch – Caiden Lawn, Ryland Garrett, James Dakan

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 – Led by one the most well respected and knowledgeable coaches in the state, the Bearcats will seek to finish the job in 2021. A magnificent regular season in 2019 came to a surprising end as Papillion-La Vista upset #2 seeded Kearney in the first round of state. 

With that memory still fresh, there is little doubt that Kearney will return more determined than ever. This is expected to be an exciting squad composed of returning players that have fully bought into the Bearcat methodology. Every opponent will face a squad filled with tough, gritty, and disciplined athletes. With expectations high, there are still several unknowns when looking at this Kearney squad. That comes with the territory of being a Central Nebraska team that competes in Class A. The player pool and travel intensity are elements that must be faced on a yearly basis.  Despite those unknowns, our pre-season poll still ranked this team #7 in Class A. Excited to cover their journey.

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, 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.

Columbus

Head Coach Info – John Arlt

Previous Records

Players to Watch – Juan Rodriquez, Israel Robledo, Jorge Tovar, Garrett Esch

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

Previous Season Accomplishments – 2019 Class B State Runner Up

NEST Analysis – In 2019, Columbus surprised many as they rampaged their way through Class B. A season full of success ended at Morrison Stadium as they lifted a runner-up state trophy, a highlight for this program. A surprise no longer, the Discoverers are on everyone’s radar heading into 2021. With winning and success, comes attention and expectation, a welcomed development for a prideful squad. Although they are almost two years removed from that historic season, Columbus returns an excellent core of players. Juan Rodriguez provides the team with an attacking threat that must be accounted for throughout a match. Israel Robledo, Jorge Tovar, and Garrett Esch add to this quality lineup. Coach John Arlt is an experienced leader that demands absolute commitment from his team. With all of those pieces, another memorable season could be right around the corner.

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

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.

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