Soccer gears up for 2022 home opener

After opening the season 1-1 on the road, USC women’s soccer gets ready to host the No. 6 Texas Christian University Horned Frogs this Thursday.

USC started their season with a 0-3 loss in West Lafayette against Purdue University, before returning to the West Coast and defeating Long Beach State 1-0 Sunday afternoon. Sophomore midfielder Aaliyah Farmer scored the lone goal for the Trojans. 

However, the Trojans are far stronger than their record thus far would suggest. 

“Last spring, we were playing more with each other, with more freedom as our lineup became older,” junior defender and midfielder Zoe Burns said in an interview with the Daily Trojan. “We have more experience this year going into this season, and so I think we feel really confident in what we have been building for the last six months.”

Now, the Trojans are getting ready to take on their toughest opponent so far this season.

“We feel pretty prepared. We feel like we have taken a good amount of rest and also mixing it with hard trainings to prepare for TCU, because they’re a really good team,” said sophomore defender Brooklyn Courtnall. “We feel good coming off our win from the week before, so we’re going to try and take that momentum into this game.”

Offensively, the Trojans are looking for a hot start to keep their momentum running from their previous win.

“We have a really fast team, we have really fast forwards and people out wide, and I feel like that’s an area that we could win games with,” Courtnall said. “Our speed, getting crosses in and then we have people in the middle that are really good finishers.”

USC will also benefit from the return of three of their top players from stints with their respective national teams: both Courtnall and Burns played with the Canadian National Team at the U-20 World Cup, while sophomore forward Simone Jackson joined the United States team. Courtnall and Burns were also joined on team Canada by sophomore midfielder Simi Awujo, who remains on the national team to join them in their upcoming matches.

Now, USC looks to show off the work they have put in since the spring and the new direction they are taking under first-year head coach Jane Alukonis.

“I think we are really excited to show the NCAA and show everybody watching that we have been working and we are coming out with a different style,” Burns said. “But I think that a lot of us just love what we are doing and we are all really buying in. I think TCU is very good, and it’s a huge opportunity for us to make that known.”

The TCU game will be the Trojans’ first opportunity to show off for USC fans in person, as Thursday marks their home opener for the season.

“It gives us more energy for the game,” Courtnall said. “Getting to see your classmates and friends and family at your game, watching you in person, just brings a whole other level to the game, because you want to play well for them.”

More than anything, with the return of their top players, the Trojans are ready to take on TCU and every other team they face on the path to the NCAAs this season.

“We are a national championship caliber team, and if we really put all of the steps we need to do together, that we could reach that level,” Courtnall said. “The end goal is always to win a national championship, and I think we have so many talented players that we could do that if we just work as hard as possible and do what we need to do each game.”

USC takes on TCU Thursday Sept. 1 at 3 p.m. at Soni McAlister Field.