STARKVILLE, Miss. – Seniors Elisabeth Sullivan and Morganne Grimes and junior Shannen Jainudeen, were tabbed to the SEC Preseason Soccer Watch List announced by the conference.
“We are proud of Elisabeth, Morganne and Shannen for being named to the SEC Preseason Watch List,” first-year coach Aaron Gordon said. “These are three talented individuals who we will be counting on to lead our team this season.
“Regarded as one of the top forwards in our league, Elisabeth will head into her senior year as one of the best players in MSU soccer history,” Gordon said. “Morganne and Shannen do a great job leading our back line, and they are tough competitors who do a great job defending some of the best attackers in the nation. We will be looking to all three of these players to lead our team when we open preseason training camp on Aug. 7.”
Sullivan earned second-team All-SEC honors a year ago after tallying a league fourth-most 12 goals and 28 points. The Memphis, Tenn., native’s two-goal outing against Ole Miss, her fourth of the season, gave her the Bulldogs’ career record with 23 strikes.
Sullivan enters her final campaign in the Maroon & White needing four points to set the program’s career points record.
With Sullivan pressuring opposing defenses, Grimes and Jainudeen bolster a back line that also includes sophomore Shelby Jordan.
Grimes, the Dawgs’ team captain, has played and started all but one match in her career. The Fayetteville, Ga., native enters the season looking to build on a stellar junior campaign in which she tallied a career-best four assists.
Like Grimes, Jainudeen has been a fixture at the center back position, missing just two contests during her first two seasons in Starkville. The native of Scarborough, Ontario, collected an assist for the Bulldogs a year ago.
Gordon’s inaugural squad takes the pitch Aug. 16 for a 7 p.m. exhibition against South Florida.
The team opens the regular season on the road at South Alabama a week later before starting the home slate against Arkansas State on Aug. 25.
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