2015 Preseason NCAA Goalkeeper Rankings

cover photo by Khoa Nguyen

Picking up from the end of last season's rankings, here are Everybody Soccer's preseason NCAA goalkeeping rankings, sorted by class. Ages may not be exact as some of their exact DOBs aren't listed but you get the idea.

#. Name (school) age

Seniors

1. Paul Blanchette (Loyola Marymount) 21.3
2. Matt Bersano (Penn State) 22.8
3. Zach Bennett (Michigan State) 21.6
4. Ashkan Khosravi (UC Riverside) 21.5
5. Alex McCauley (North Carolina State) 20.9
6. Wade Hamilton (Cal Poly) 20.8
7. Ryan Herman (Washington) 22.1
8. Matt Pacifici (Davidson) 21.9
9. Connor Sparrow (Creighton) 21.2
10. Chris Knaub (Bryant) 21.6

Notes: The top three return from PDL action and are looking ready to go this upcoming fall. Blanchette struggled to nail down the starting role at Loyola last fall but he should regain the number one role soon. Bersano is transferring from Oregon State to Penn State for his final year. Zach Bennett is looking for another strong run with Michigan State, who reached the quarterfinals last year. I interviewed Khosravi earlier this year. Of the rest, Hamilton is probably the most known as a USYNT product from the 2011 U17 team but the other five are more than capable to lead their schools into the final 48.

Juniors

1. Eric Klenofsky (Monmouth) 20.8
2. Grayson Rector (Belmont) 20.9
3. Alec Ferrell (Wake Forest) 21.3
4. David Greczek (Rutgers) 20.8
5. Ricky Brown (Colgate) 20.5
6. Andrew Epstein (Stanford) 19.5
7. Andrew Putna (UIC) 20.8
8. Nick Ciraldo (Cleveland State) 20.3
9. Andrew Tarbell (Clemson) 21.5
10. Will Steiner (Villanova) 20.9

Notes: Only four of these goalkeeper made the big dance last year so all the more reason to become familiar with these names now. Klenofsky leads the pack as an explosive 6'6" goalkeeper (watch here). Epstein carries the USYNT badge as the only 19 year old on the list. Coming from the Colorado Rapids academy, he is definitely playing above his grade. Red Bulls academy product David Greczek is looking help Rutgers get back above .500 this year. 

Sophomores

1. Evan Louro (Michigan) 19.5
2. Jeff Caldwell (Virginia) 19.4
3. Paul Christensen (Portland) 19.3
4. Ben Willis (Gonzaga) 19.5
5. Eric Dick (Butler) 20.5
6. Aitor Blanco (Radford) 20.5
7. Adrian Remeniuk (Wisconsin) 19.6
8. Bobby Edwards (Saint Joseph's) 19.5
9. Josh Weiss (Siena) 19.4
10. Ben Lundgaard (Virginia Tech) 19.8

Notes: Perhaps the most star-studded cast: Louro, Caldwell, and Christensen have all been with the U20s. Most of these goalkeeper are looking to establish themselves as the starter for their respective schools, riding the bench for most of the year last year. There will be some rough bumps in the road but the potential is clearly there for each goalkeeper. Remeniuk looks to tie down the starting spot in Wisconsin and (another) 6'6" goalkeeper, Bobby Edwards returns after a successful year with St. Joe's.

Freshmen

1. Elliott Rubio (Akron) 18.9
2. Justin Vom Steeg (UC Santa Barbara) 18.3
3. Craig Duggan (South Carolina) 19.3
4. Carter Richardson (Wake Forest) 18.9
5. Cameron Keys (La Salle) 18.5
6. Charlie Furrer (Stanford) 18.4
7. Austin Aviza (Syracuse) 18.4
8. Hunter Harrison (Oral Roberts) 19.7
9. Tucker Schneider (SIUE) 18.3
10. James Pyle (North Carolina) 19.8

Notes: Most of these goalkeepers won't start many games. (Two of them have their team's starters higher on this list.) Still, many will go on to have successful tenures with their schools and likely afterwords as well. Aviza probably has the best chance of starting of all the 18 year olds but he's still very young for the job. Harrison, who I interviewed back in March, is older and if he gets his feet under him he will thrive. Half of the group have MLS connections: Richardson (Columbus), Keys (Philadelphia), Furrer (Dallas), Aviza (New England), and Schneider (Colorado).

Mallori Lofton-Malachi Interview: Concussion Shortens a Promising Career

Mallori Lofton-Malachi played four years at the University of South Florida before having a successful career in Europe. Mallori was easily one of the most athletic goalkeepers in the USWNT pool, displaying an unreal amount of explosiveness in her spring. Now retired at the age of twenty-seven, Mallori talks about her time overseas, her concussion, and where she is now.

 

How early did you start playing goalkeeper? And when did you figure out you wanted to play in college?

I started playing goalkeeper when I was 13 years old. The starting goalkeeper on our team got hurt and I decided to step in. The rest is history. I ALWAYS knew I wanted to play college soccer. It was just one of those things that in my mind I knew I was going to achieve.

You played four years with South Florida, setting multiple records during your tenure. What stands out about your time at USF?

The thing that stands out most about my time at USF is the friends that I made. Yeah, there are definitely certain games that stand out in my mind (beating UConn my senior year on senior day) but the most valuable thing that I got from going to USF are my life long friends. Going to USF was one of the best decisions I've ever made. The school was amazing, the coaching staff (Denise, Chris and Mendoza) was super supportive, and I met teammates that have turned into my best friends.

Was playing professionally the goal from the start?

I always wanted to play professionally. A lot of women talk about seeing the '99 World Cup and being inspired by them, but I remember watching the '96 Olympics and seeing Briana Scurry play. I thought to myself, "I'm gonna do that one day." My Dad passed away my sophomore year of college. At that point, I was overweight and out of shape. I sat down with Denise, Chris and Mendoza, and they told me that I could definitely play soccer professionally, but that I would have to start taking my fitness and training more seriously. I completely changed the way I went about playing that season, and I'll be forever grateful to the three of them for pushing me and showing me that i could achieve that goal.

You played in Iceland, Finland, and then finally in Germany with SC Sand. What was the motivation that moved you from club to club?

To play in the best league in the world. I saw that there weren't a lot of opportunities to play in the US so I decided to play in the top leagues overseas.

There are a number of American goalkeepers playing in the Nordic countries. What about the area draws players from America to play there?

Definitely the opportunity to actually play. When I played in Atlanta I was sitting behind Hope [Solo] and another goalkeeper who had more experience than I did. I was also only making $442 every two weeks in Atlanta. I got an offer to play in Iceland where I would not only be the starting goalkeeper, but I'd be making much more money. It was an easy choice.

How does American soccer compare to German?

The major difference between American and German soccer is the speed of play. We play a faster game in the US, whereas in Germany it's slower. I'd say that we have a lot more athletes that play soccer in the US. It makes us more dynamic players. In Germany, players usually only play one sport while growing up so they aren't as dynamic soccer players as Americans are.

What’s it like being an American representative to so many people overseas? Are there common questions you’re asked?

Guns. People always want to know how many guns I own. They also ask me why President Obama is spying on other countries, as if President Obama and I are best friends.

How did you think the USWNT performed during the World Cup? Is there anything you’d like to see improved upon over the next cycle?

I was very happy to see them finally win the World Cup. They found a way to win in the group stage and completely outplayed Japan in the final. My biggest criticism for the USWNT is what I perceive to be a major lack of player development. You have great players retiring because, one, they can no longer afford to struggle financially and, two, they feel as though there are no opportunities for growth in women's soccer. I feel that the USWNT needs to do scouting overseas, and they'll see that there are A LOT of talented women players that have been overlooked. I've played with Katie Fraine and I think she's a good goalkeeper. I would honestly love to see ANYBODY my age at least get a call up.

Going back to your time in Germany, talk about your concussion. How did it happen? How were you dealt with?

It happened on December 6, 2014. We were playing against Jena, a German team. I came out for a 1v1. I had possession of the ball, and instead of jumping over me the forward kneed me in the back of my head. (I only know that happened to me because I saw the video a couple of days afterwards.) I woke up 30 minutes later in an ambulance with two EMT's.

My concussion wasn't handled properly, which is why I decided to leave Germany and come back home to Philadelphia. The thing that stands out the most for me is that I was at the hospital by myself. There were four coaches at the game that day, and they did not check on me until halftime, when my teammates forced one of our assistant coaches to go to the hospital. I felt very alone and unsupported.

Why do you think the coaches at Sand weren't extremely helpful with the concussion? Was it more ignorance of your injury or lack of awareness of how dangerous concussions are?

I think that is was a lack of awareness of how dangerous concussions are. Although, It shouldn't matter what the injury was. You always send someone to the hospital so that the player isn't alone. Especially, if they aren't from that country and German is their second language. That's just common sense.

So what are your plans now with soccer? And what’s your injury status?

I'm retired from playing professional soccer. My plan was to come back to the U.S. after last season and join a NWSL team, but the concussion happened and changed everything. I've been told by my doctor that it would be in my best interest not to play again. I'm feeling much better today than I was three months ago. At that time I was experiencing every post concussion symptom. I still have the daily headaches and ringing of the ears, but my sensitivity to light and sound is much better. I continue to receive treatment at my local TBI clinic each week to try and eliminate all of my symptoms.

I played soccer for 20 years and it was a GREAT 20 years. I'll always love soccer, but my main focus right now is to recover from the concussion. I'm very interested in real estate. Possibly buying and flipping houses. We'll see, I still have time to figure it out.

Last question, who would you say is the best player you have ever played with?

This is a tough one. Tina Ellertson. She's the most athletic soccer player I've ever played with. Her recovery speed was unlike anything I've ever seen. She also had a great work ethic and is a really nice person.

US Women's National Team Goalkeeper Pool - July 2015

U-S-A! U-S-A! We did it!

And what better way than to celebrate than to take a look at the top seventy goalkeepers that could suit up for America in a moment's notice? That's right! We're expanding from 60 to 70 this month because the WPSL and W-League started back up and there are a number of good goalkeepers playing there. Honestly, the difference between the two leagues is unclear to me despite the fact that the WPSL has 80-something teams to the W-League's 18. But we added around twenty goalkeepers from those two leagues so it sounds like a win-win.

Unfortunately we do have some exits from the pool since last month's post. Chanté Sandiford is now playing with Guyana and Mallori Lofton has retired, which I'll have an interview on later this week. You can see the entire history of the rankings here, dating back to March of this year.

Lastly, Michelle Betos was named NWSL player of the week in late June for this last second header to tie the game. Betos is number six on the list and the second goalkeeper to win the award this season, after Henninger won it earlier this year.

rank. name (team / league) - rating (age)

1. Ashlyn Harris (Washington Spirit / USA.1) - 57.8 (29.8)
2. Hope Solo (Seattle Reign / USA.1) - 57.7 (34)
3. Alyssa Naeher (Boston Breakers / USA.1) - 57.6 (27.3)
4. Libby Stout (Liverpool / England.1) - 57.4 (25.1)
5. Katie Fraine (Linkoping / Sweden.1) - 57.2 (27.6)
6. Michelle Betos (Portland Thorns FC / USA.1) - 57.1 (27.4)
7. Michele Dalton (Chicago Red Stars / USA.1) - 56.9 (27.2)
8. Chantel Jones (Western New York Flash / USA.1) - 56.6 (27)
9. Ashley Thompson (Sandviken / Norway.1) - 56.5 (29.5)
10. Nicole Barnhart (FC Kansas City / USA.1) - 56.4 (33.8)

11. Brittany Cameron (Sky Blue FC / USA.1) - 56.3 (28.6)
12. Adelaide Gay (Kvarnsveden / Sweden.2) - 56 (25.7)
13. Brett Maron (Kristianstad / Sweden.1) - 56 (29.1)
14. Alyssa Whitehead (Mallbacken / Sweden.1) - 56 (25.6)
15. Arianna Criscione (Saint-Étienne / France.1) - 55.7 (30.4)
16. Catherine Fitzsimmons (ASPTT Albi / France.1) - 55.7 (26.7)
17. Jeannette Williams (Vikingur Olafsvik / Iceland.2) - 55.6 (26.5)
18. Adrianna Franch (Avaldsnes IL / Norway.1) - 55.5 (24.7)
19. Allysa Clark (Masinac Nis / Serbia.1) - 55.5 (28.8)
20. Alexa Gaul (SC Sand / Germany.1) - 55.2 (24.2)

21. Haley Kopmeyer (Seattle Reign / USA.1) - 55.1 (25.1)
22. Vikki Alonzo (Thor / KA / Iceland.1) - 54.9 (25.5)
23. Shelby Tomasello (Höttur / Iceland.2) - 54.8 (24.8)
24. Bianca Henninger (Houston Dash / USA.1) - 54.6 (24.8)
25. Kelsey Wys (Washington Spirit / USA.1) - 54.6 (24.4)
26. Dijana Haracic (Krokom/Dvarsatts IF / Sweden.2) - 54.4 (23.5)
27. Kelli Cornell (Beach Futbol Club / USA.2P) - 54.4 (24.8)
28. Aubrey Bledsoe (Sky Blue FC / USA.1) - 54.1 (23.7)
29. Samantha Depken (New York Magic / USA.2W) - 54 (26.3)
30. Rebecca Ritchie (Real Salt Lake Women / USA.2P) - 53.6 (27.5)

31. Robyn Horner (Charlotte Lady Eagles / USA.2W) - 53.5 (30.5)
32. Katherine Linn (Issy / France.1) - 53.5 (23.5)
33. Yiana Dimmitt (Spurs East Bay / USA.2P) - 53.5 (25.5)
34. Audrey Baldwin (Keflavik IF / Iceland.1) - 53.3 (23.3)
35. Caitlin Updyke (Free Agent / None) - 53.3 (23.2)
36. Victoria Johnson (FC Tulsa Spirit / USA.2P) - 53.1 (26.5)
37. Che Brown (Boston Breakers / USA.1) - 53.1 (23.2)
38. Victoria Christ (Västerås BK30 / Sweden.2) - 52.5 (23.5)
39. Emily Krueger (Portland Thorns FC / USA.1) - 53 (23.5)
40. Jami Kranich (Boston Breakers / USA.1) - 53 (23.2)

41. Megan Kinneman (Houston Dash / USA.1) - 52.8 (23.1)
42. Lindsey Maricic (LA Premier FC / USA.2P) - 52.7 (23.3)
43. Kaitlyn Stroud (Free Agent / None) - 52.5 (23.5)
44. Ryan Torrero (Santa Clarita Blue Heat / USA.2W) - 52.5 (25.5)
45. Brittany Anghel (Free Agent / None) - 52.3 (22.9)
46. Paige Burnett (Boston Breakers / USA.1) - 52.3 (22.8)
47. McKenzie Sauerwein (Thróttur Reykjavík / Iceland.1) - 52.2 (23.2)
48. Caroline Stanley (Seattle Reign / USA.1) - 52 (22.3)
49. Emily Lillard (Washington Spirit / USA.1) - 52 (22)
50. Jillian Mastroianni (New York Athletic Club / USA.2P) - 52 (24.8)

51. Caitlin Hoffer (New York Magic / USA.2W) - 51.7 (24.5)
52. Monica Gonyo (Chicago Red Stars / USA.1) - 51.6 (22.8)
53. Katherine Courter (North Jersey Valkyries / USA.2W) - 51.6 (23.5)
54. Kristina Utley (San Francisco Nighthawks / USA.2P) - 51.4 (21.9)
55. Lyndse Hokanson (Washington Spirit / USA.1) - 51.3 (23.3)
56. Abby Smith (Texas / USA.N) - 51.2 (21.8)
57. Jordan Day (Houston Dash / USA.1) - 51 (22.3)
58. Bryane Heaberlin (North Carolina / USA.N) - 50.6 (21.7)
59. Katelyn Rowland (FC Kansas City / USA.1) - 50.5 (21.3)
60. Shauni Kerkhoff (Temple / USA.N) - 50.3 (21.5)

61. Morgan Glick (IA Akranes / Iceland.1) - 50.3 (22.1)
62. Alex Kubrick (Charlotte Lady Eagles / USA.2W) - 50.4 (23.2)
63. Megan Tock (Western New York Flash / USA.1) - 50.3 (23.2)
64. Rebecca Lewis (Central Connecticut State / USA.N) - 50.2 (23.5)
65. Lindsey Harris (North Carolina / USA.N) - 50.2 (21.7)
66. Britt Eckerstrom (Penn State / USA.N) - 50 (22.2)
67. Jane Campbell (Stanford / USA.N) - 49.9 (20.4)
68. Holly Van Noord (Liberty / USA.N) - 49.9 (20.9)
69. Emma Kruse (VCU / USA.N) - 49.9 (22.1)
70. Hannah Steadman (West Virginia / USA.N) - 49.8 (22.8)

The cover photo comes from Sports Illustrated's 25 cover gallery, which you can see each cover here. And of course feedback is welcomed on the list so if you have any opinions on the names above, let's hear it.

Everybody Soccered - June 2015

cover photo by Craig Mitchelldyer

ES is a little quiet during the summer so please accept this apology and late post. Yes I know it is July but never mind that. This is for June.

I wrote a few goalkeeper-related things last month. Of course there's the top 100 USMNT goalkeepers (and what gloves they use) but I also covered the top 15 in the U23s pool. And my monthly post on ASA featured a battle royale of sorts.

Easily most important, Hope Solo and the USWNT have advanced to the World Cup Final. Solo, who essentially owns every USWNT goalkeeping record, has only conceded one goal in competition and honestly has had a quiet tournament. Even Germany, the favorite for many, hardly tested Solo as the US was stellar at getting numbers back when the Germans lobbed cross after cross into the box. The US takes on Japan Sunday in a rematch of the 2011 final.

Libby Stout weighed in on the team before the tournament started but it's still a good read. Steven Goff wrote about the "quiet" World Cup Solo has had so far, in multiple ways.

The U20s finished a respectable seventh in the 2015 U20 World Cup. Starting goalkeeper Zack Steffen conceded three goals over 840 minutes (including qualifying) and made a penalty save look really easy in the first round of the knockout stage. Perhaps Steffen's greatest accomplishment was throwing himself into the U23 goalkeeper pool. The U23s start qualifying in October, near the same time the U17s kick off their World Cup journey. (The draw for their group is August 6th.)

Both Kasey Keller and Brad Friedel have been encouraging of Zack Steffen recently. Keller went into long form while Friedel kept it under 140.

USMNT did a 1-2 punch in Europe against juggernauts Netherlands and Germany. (You can catch highlights of Brad Guzan's outings here and here.) Guzan looks like he is rebounding from the sour ending at Aston Villa and will be starting for the Gold Cup. However, once Tim Howard returns to the scene this fall, Guzan will have to convince Klinsmann that the changing of the guard is the right move. Here's a great picture of Guzan keeping himself big on a 1v1 save. Only slightly cooler than this one.

The U23s finished third it the Toulon Tournament, somehow. After going 2-2 in group play, where goalkeeping was a sore spot for the Americans, they topped England 2-1 in the third place game. All three U23 goalkeepers are likely to be somewhere else this next fall. Charlie Horton signed with Leeds United while his counterpart Cody Cropper signed with MK Dons, another second division English team. MK Dons are recently promoted from the third division, which makes me even less excited about Cropper's new club. Not that playing time will be hard to come by, but that the opposition could be too much for Cropper, and Horton for that matter. Neither have really excelled at the U23 level to the point where I'd trust them to be starting for a club that is equal, if not better, than an MLS team. (Cropper had the opportunity there as well.) Hopefully it works out but there are better options out there. The third U23 goalkeeper, Tyler Miller, is back in Seattle after what one could call a dreadful time in Germany: two red cards and ten starts, all of which were losses. USL Sounders goalkeeper Charlie Lyon has been performing admirably so Miller could be looking elsewhere for playing time.

David Meves did maybe the shortest interview ever.

Michelle Betos joined the exclusive goalie goal scorers club with this sick header. A youth goalkeeper had actually done the same a week earlier, while others tried their best to imitate Betos.

The Developmental Academy season is coming to an end. Three goalkeepers were picked for tops from the east, central, and west conferences. Mason Stadjuhar (17 years old, Orlando City), Marcel DaSilva (Shattuck-St. Mary’s, Tulsa commit), and J.T. Marcinkowski (San Jose Earthquakes, Georgetown commit) were the three winners, respectively.

Angel Alvarez advanced to the 2015 US Youth Soccer National Championships with his team Las Vegas Soccer Association (LVSA 97s). I interviewed Alvarez about his interesting career earlier this year. The national tournament features the best non-DA clubs in the country and kicks off July 21st in Tulsa, Oklahoma.

Some American goalkeepers are starting for other nations and while it's not in the red-white-and-blue, we're still proud of them. Doug Herrick has kept Guam in the chase for the World Cup and Keasel Broome originally earned two shutouts against Aruba but the last game was nullified for an illegal player. So Barbados is officially out of the running despite Broome's efforts. Herrick and Guam find out later in July who'll they'll be playing in the third round of qualifying.

This isn't goalkeeper-centric but last year I interviewed Coppell's high school coach, Chad Rakestraw, over at Top Drawer Soccer. The academy he spoke of then is now coming to fruition. Another friend of the site, Joe Funicello, is heading off to coach in Iceland and we wish him the best of luck over there. 

Other tidbits that don't need a ton of commentary:

 

And here are a bunch of saves for you:

 

Lastly, John McCarthy has been doing some really great charity work, including donating his time and hair.