By Kendrick Jackson, Advertising Manager
Lady Toppers goalkeeper Allie Warsaw has been a critical piece to the women’s soccer team’s recent success in the last few years. As graduation draws upon her, Warsaw and company will look to once again emerge as one of the dominant forces in the Mountain East Conference (MEC).
Born and raised in Monroeville, Pa., WLU women’s soccer head coach Barry Christmas recruited Warsaw out of Gateway (Pa.) High School. There, she helped the Gators secure three playoffs berths and a WPIAL sectional title.
Her three years here at West Liberty have been nothing short of spectacular. As of last season, Warsaw has a career save percentage of .841 percent. She also assisted the Lady Toppers with advancing to their first playoff game in school history.
Before the start of the 2017 season, Warsaw has posted 13 career shutouts, with six of them coming in during last season’s tenure. A shutout is when one team prevents another from scoring any points during the contest.
“The main goal I have for myself is just to have more shutouts,” said Warsaw. “Last year, I had six shutouts out of ten games. This year, my goal is to increase that number.”
As team captain, Warsaw has set even bigger expectations for the team this season. “I think the biggest team goal is to not only make it to playoffs, but also, be able to host that playoff game because we are in the top two,” said Warsaw.
With 26 Lady Toppers back from the previous season, those expectations are undeniably achievable. However, there are plenty of new faces around, as twelve freshmen were brought in during the offseason.
Warsaw has given the younger players some advice as she plays in her final season as a Hilltopper. “My biggest piece of advice for the freshman players is to never take a moment for granted because your college soccer career will go by faster than you think,” said Warsaw.
In 2015, Warsaw was honored as the MEC’s Women’s Soccer Defensive Player of the Week after beating Concord 2-1 and shutting out No. 13-ranked West Virginia Wesleyan.
The season will go by even faster, and before you know it, the Hilltoppers will be facing off against Notre Dame (Ohio), the team that ended their historic run last season. WLU won’t have to wait long, as the Lady Toppers will travel to Notre Dame for a matchup on Sept. 24.
Before the Lady Toppers’ most anticipated game of the season, Warsaw and company will travel to Fairmont State tomorrow night for their matchup. For more updates on WLU soccer, please visit hilltoppersports.com and grab next week’s Trumpet.
Photo credit: Hilltoppersports.com
