The Historic Season of Alabama Soccer
When Alabama women's soccer began the season, it was unranked in the United Soccer Coaches top 25 poll. The program and its players received little, if any, national attention.
Twenty-three wins, an SEC regular-season championship and a College Cup appearance later, the reputation of Crimson Tide soccer is in a completely different place, now being regarded as one of the best programs in the country with a batch of All-American players (the first ones in school history) and list of new records that would take a while to go through.
"Nobody believed in us before the season started," head coach Wes Hart said during the final postgame press conference of the season. "We weren't picked in any preseason polls. Nobody gave us any love, any attention."
Hart would say more in his opening statement, but a quote that stuck out was when he said "I hope we made believers out of a lot of people."
That is exactly what Alabama did, and it happened by adding one victory after another against some of the best competition in women's soccer: Clemson, BYU, Ole Miss, South Carolina and Arkansas, to name a few. The Crimson Tide defeated all of them and more during the regular season, one that saw Alabama lose only one game, a 1-0 loss to Miami. The next loss? Over two months later against South Carolina in the SEC Tournament title game.
Alabama also finished the season undefeated at home and in the SEC, the latter of which was something that happened only a handful of times in conference history, let alone program history. The loss to the Gamecocks in the conference title game snapped an unbeaten streak of 15 games, the longest in school history.
Still, the Crimson Tide won the regular season title (another program first) and nearly swept the individual SEC honors:
- Coach of the Year: Wes Hart
- Forward of the Year: Riley Mattingly Parker
- Midfielder of the Year: Felicia Knox
- Defender of the Year: Reyna Reyes
- Freshman of the Year: Gianna Paul
All of the aforementioned players received either First- or Second-Team All-SEC selections, and while Alabama had plenty of players have a great season, it was Parker and Knox who led the team offensively.
Parker's 17 goals and 41 points are both new single-season records, and Knox's 20 assists not only set a school record, but led the NCAA. It's even more impressive with context for Parker, who tore her ACL last season, redshirted, got married and returned to light up the scoreboard.
Soccer is a team sport, and Knox and Parker are quick to say that, but both players deserve individual recognition, which they got by becoming two of the first three All-America selections in program history. Parker and Reyes were First-Team selections, while Knox was a Third Team selection.
Alabama's team success was also rewarded before the NCAA tournament began, finishing third in the final United Soccer Coaches Poll, behind blue bloods North Carolina and UCLA. Consequently, it secured a No. 1 seeding in the tournament, yet another first.
It didn't really surprise anyone when Alabama beat Jackson State, Portland and UC Irvine in the first three rounds, but it was against Duke, one of the perennial elite, that some wondered how Alabama would fare.
The match was a game for the ages, but with Reyes' overtime goal, the Crimson Tide defeated the Blue Devils to reach the College Cup, where it was among the giants of women's soccer: Florida State, North Carolina and UCLA.
It would be inaccurate to call the Tide a Cinderella team. It earned the respect of its peers, namely the Tar Heels head coach Anson Dorrance, who had positive remarks before the Crimson Tide took the field against the Bruins.
"I've watched them play, they're a handful," Dorrance said after the Tar Heels beat Florida State in the other semifinal. "I think they can beat anyone."
The first College Cup match in program history started with a lot of energy and optimism, and if Parker's goal didn't get waived off, the ending may have been different. Nevertheless, Alabama's historic run came to an abrupt end with a 3-0 loss to UCLA.
It was obvious Hart and his players shed a lot of tears before taking their seats in front of the media, but during the press conference, it was less about the loss and much more about how successful the team did this year.
"When I first came here, we were ranked like 200-something," Reyes said. "I knew we had the potential, and it didn't happen overnight. It took four years, and finally all the pieces fell together."
Reyes also shared how when Hart recruited her, she was sold on the idea of helping build something great at Alabama instead of going to a program with a legacy that's been long established.
It took a long time to come to fruition, but the shift in the program has finally come, and Alabama will likely start next season with a lot more credibility and attention, which were earned.
There will be some changes before then: McKinley Crone and Allie Berk have both called it a career at Alabama, and the verdict remains out on Parker, Reyes and other key veterans.
However, a lot of key players will be back: Knox will be entering her senior season; Paul will be a sophomore; Brooke Steere, who was also named to the SEC All-Freshman team, will be back; Macy Clem announced she'll be returning; Kate Henderson only played in 15 games before being injured. Then there are players like Syndey Japic and Aislin Streicek who will likely see an increased role.
This season was the best in program history, but Alabama is set up for future success as well. A new standard was set, and the Crimson Tide has the players to maintain it.
The only difference will be that Alabama's success will be anything but a surprise next time.
See also:
Sights and Sounds From The College Cup
Three Alabama Soccer Players Receive All-America Honors
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