Inside HOKIE SPORTS | Vol. 9 No. 1 | August 2016

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34 Inside Hokie Sports
The biggest unknown with this team is at goalkeeper.
Last season, Kaylyn Smith started all 21 games and
recorded 72 saves, allowing just 21 goals on the season.
But Smith decided to leave the program, creating an
important vacancy that needs to be filled.
Returning goalkeepers on the roster are Blayne Fink and Zoe
Foxhall, with Fink possessing the only game experience—three career
games, including two last fall. Mandy McGlynn, a top-50 prospect
nationally out of Jacksonville, Florida, signed with the Hokies this past
spring and she could find herself in the lineup rather quickly.
“We have a couple of good options,” Adair said. “Blayne Fink will
be our senior coming in. She has a tremendous personality and is a
great leader. She’s really outwardly expressive and a personality that
everyone loves. Mandy McGlynn is a freshman who is coming in and
will be competing and Zoe Foxhall is coming off an injury, so we’ll have
to see where she is. Mandy finished high school early and she was able
to step in and provide us with some depth.”
McGlynn joins the program along with a talented group of freshmen
who figure to keep the Hokies rolling in the future. The contingent
includes three Pennsylvanians—Jessica Boytim, Katherine Roth,
and Mikayla Mance—who not only give the roster talent, but also an
element of toughness. Jaylyn Thompson, a New Jersey native, also
provides toughness, and California product Chandler McDaniel has
been a part of the Philippines National Team. Lilly Weber, a Northern
Virginia native, deserves mentioning as well, ranking as one of the best
recruits in the state.
“All of our recruits have a chance to come in and play,” Adair said.
“Typically three or four play, but it all depends on their fitness and how
they adjust to the speed of the game and how physical they are.”
Adair and the Hokies will be tested early in the season by playing
two SEC teams—LSU and Mississippi State—to start the fall. They
also get a rematch with Ohio State on Sept. 1 and play a solid Indiana
program on Sept. 9.
A week after that Indiana game, the Hokies start conference play.
Their first three games are at UVA, at North Carolina, and Duke—not
WOMEN’S SOCCER
2016
Continued from page 33
1 Caroline Kerns
Kerns played in 17 matches as a
true freshman, scoring two goals and
recording an assist. The coaching
staff expects her to make a big leap
in her sophomore season.
2 Alani Johnson
Someone needs to step forward
and take some of the scoring load off Murielle Tiernan and Johnson
could be the one. The forward scored nine goals last season as a true
freshman while mostly coming off the bench.
3 Madi Conyers
Conyers made the All-ACC Freshman team two years ago and has
played in 43 career games. The junior midfielder could be another big
threat for the Hokies this season.
4 Laila Gray
Gray could play one of the most important positions on the team. She
scored seven goals last season as a sophomore and has the ability to
be an All-ACC performer for the team this season.
5 Kelsey Irwin
The California native missed her freshman season after suffering a
torn ACL last summer. The coaching staff hopes that the defender
can bring some of the toughness lost with Jordan Coburn’s departure.
5TO
WATCH