Troy University Athletics
Stuart Gore Previews Troy Freshman Class
8/14/2023 4:57:00 PM | Soccer
TROY, Ala. – This year's Troy women's soccer team is one of the younger ones the program has fielded in recent years, as new head coach Stuart Gore's roster has nine freshman players.
Having such a large freshman class presents its challenges, but also offers opportunities for Gore to shape the team in a way that plays the kind of soccer he expects on the pitch.
This is part one of a three-part series highlighting each of the classes – freshman, sophomore and upperclassmen – prior to the Trojans' regular season opener on Thursday, Aug. 17, against Lipscomb in Nashville, Tenn. Gore answered questions and gave his thought on each class, starting with the freshman.
Q: What are your goals for this freshman class?
Gore: I think it's them buying in and trusting [the overall process]. Trust is a big thing in our sport. It's sometimes not about how good you are, it's about being trusted on the field. Going from club soccer to college soccer is such a big jump from a physicality standpoint. It's a big learning curve.
Q: How do you help the freshman when they are making that leap to college soccer?
Gore: Soccer is a whole game of mistakes. It's all it is. You score from the other team's screwing up, and so it's trying to get them to understand their mistakes and correcting them as they go. It's about them understanding that you can make mistakes, just don't try and make the same mistakes over and over again.
Q: Which freshman have caught your eye so far this year?
Gore: Carly White came in in January, so she was already in the door, and she's really grown. The first two weeks I was here in January, Carly didn't exist, she was non-existent. And then she ended up being probably the best player near the end of spring. She's picked up where she left off, and the rest of them are getting better every day and growing. They are getting used to it.
Having such a large freshman class presents its challenges, but also offers opportunities for Gore to shape the team in a way that plays the kind of soccer he expects on the pitch.
This is part one of a three-part series highlighting each of the classes – freshman, sophomore and upperclassmen – prior to the Trojans' regular season opener on Thursday, Aug. 17, against Lipscomb in Nashville, Tenn. Gore answered questions and gave his thought on each class, starting with the freshman.
Q: What are your goals for this freshman class?
Gore: I think it's them buying in and trusting [the overall process]. Trust is a big thing in our sport. It's sometimes not about how good you are, it's about being trusted on the field. Going from club soccer to college soccer is such a big jump from a physicality standpoint. It's a big learning curve.
Q: How do you help the freshman when they are making that leap to college soccer?
Gore: Soccer is a whole game of mistakes. It's all it is. You score from the other team's screwing up, and so it's trying to get them to understand their mistakes and correcting them as they go. It's about them understanding that you can make mistakes, just don't try and make the same mistakes over and over again.
Q: Which freshman have caught your eye so far this year?
Gore: Carly White came in in January, so she was already in the door, and she's really grown. The first two weeks I was here in January, Carly didn't exist, she was non-existent. And then she ended up being probably the best player near the end of spring. She's picked up where she left off, and the rest of them are getting better every day and growing. They are getting used to it.
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