Minium: Winning Three Conference titles in a row has won ODU Women's Soccer a Ton of Respect
The ODU women's soccer team opens at home tonight against VCU. The Monarchs were picked to win their fourth conference championship in a row and feature a schedule with two SEC teams, including a home game against LSU on Sept. 1.
By Harry Minium
NORFOLK, Va. – The Merriam-Webster dictionary defines a dynasty as “A powerful group that maintains its position for a considerable time.”
The Old Dominion women’s soccer program may or may not yet be a dynasty. But the Monarchs have won three consecutive conference titles in a row – Conference USA in 2021 and the Sun Belt the last two seasons – and that obviously has earned them a ton of respect.
And nothing says respect more than having two SEC games on your schedule.
LSU visits ODU on Sunday, Sept. 1. Then 13 days later, the Monarchs play at Auburn.
“LSU coming here is a great game for our players and our fans and a testament to where we are and where others see us in the country,” said Associate Head Coach Michelle Barr.
“When we’ve played Auburn they have always been good games. They wanted to play us and did all they could to get us to come there.”
While it’s fun to look ahead, ODU has a lot of games to play before Sept. 1, including its home opener tonight against VCU. And while VCU isn’t in the SEC, the Rams and Monarchs carry on a torrid rivalry on the pitch, as they do in every sport in which they compete.
The 7 p.m. game is the opener for both schools.
“We don’t care about any other teams right now,” said Andrea Balcazar Algarin, a junior midfielder from Mexico City, Mexico.
“The only game we’re thinking about is VCU. It’s always a tough game, a battle when we play against them.”
Forward Yuliia Khrystiuk, a redshirt senior from Vinnytsia, Ukraine who missed 2023 with an injury, said that there is no love lost between VCU and ODU.
“But at the same time, I think both teams respect each other. We know VCU has a really good team,” she said.
“We will see if we can set the tone physically. The game will give us an understanding of where we are right now.”
Head Coach Angie Hind scheduled VCU as the opener, rather than a lesser opponent, so the Monarchs could test themselves early.
And while ODU was better last season (the Monarchs won, 2-0), VCU has a lot of returnees while the Monarchs are relatively young and thin on numbers.
ODU has 24 players, down from 30 last season, and 16 of the 24 are freshmen or sophomores. ODU lost its best player in All-American Ece Turkoglu, who is playing professionally in her native Turkey.
The top returner is goalkeeper Emily Bredek, a senior from Huntington Beach, California who started for the first time last season and became one of ODU’s best players.
Bredek was Sun Bult Goalkeeper of the year and set records in single-season shutouts with 11 and a save percentage of .836.
In spite of gaudy stats, Barr said she’s being pushed for playing time by Erin Jones, a graduate student who was backup last seasonn, and that Ellie Goodrich, a sophomore from Alexandria, Virginia, has also played well in goal.
“We’ve got three really good goalkeepers,” Barr said.
ODU has some key returnees in Ashlynn Kulha, a 5-foot-11 sophomore from Holly Springs, North Carolina, who had four goals last season; and Rhea Kijoswki, a senior forward from Waynesburg, Pennsylvania, who had three.
Bredek and Kulha were named to the All-Sun Belt Conference preseason team.
Riley Mullen, a sophomore from Staten Island, New York; Gry Boe Thrysøe, a senior midfielder from Klarup, Denmark; and Katie Lutz, a sophomore midfielder who graduated from Smithfield High School in Carrollton, Virginia, are returning veterans who all had assists last season.
Other upper classmen include senior Danae Harper, a defender from Grafton, Massachusetts, and junior Katie McCormick, a midfielder from Haddonfield, New Jersey.
Laura Klebek, a sophomore midfielder from Cleszyn, Poland, transferred from Jacksonville.
ODU has nine sophomores, including Sydney Somers, a skilled defender from Littleton, Colorado; Mia Serna, a midfielder from Leesburg, Virginia; Makayla Jaffe, a forward from Middletown, New Jersey; and Laurence Delorme, a defender from Montreal, Quebec, in Canada.
ODU’s freshman class: Alice Thompson, a defender from Seaforth, Australia; Kendall Mesh, a defender from Spencerport, New York; Grace Hillis, a defender from Shoreham, New York; Hannah Morgan, a forward from Mullica Hill, New Jersey; Sophia Ruys, a forward from Santa Clarita, California; Madison Toone, a midfielder from Berryville, Virginia; and Brooke Edwards, a forward from Jamison, Pennsylvania.
“Every year the freshmen get better and better,” Algarin said. “They all came to camp in shape and ready to play.”
The Monarchs were picked to finish first by Sun Belt coaches. And while Barr said predictions before the season “mean absolutely nothing,” she and Hind said it shows that ODU has gained respect.
“Being picked first is certainly a sign of respect and I think we’ve earned that,” she said.
“But we’ve been picked to finish sixth and eighth and then won a conference championship,
“We take it and appreciate it. It’s respect and we like that. But it doesn’t change anything for us.”
Minium is ODU’s senior executive writer. Contact him at hminium@odu.edu or follow him on Twitter, Facebook or Instagram