University of Nebraska-Lincoln – Women’s Soccer College Spotlight

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. 

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Chace Hutchison