Of the 37 goals scored by Missouri last season, nearly a quarter were scored by one player: Taylor Grant.
Grant, one of the most storied players in Mizzou women’s soccer history, scored 18 career goals at Mizzou, ranking her tenth all-time in program history.
But Taylor Grant has since graduated, leaving the Tigers without the player who ranked 5th in the Southeastern Conference in goals just one year ago.
“Taylor was obviously a player who scored some goals for us last year, but I think we have other players that will step up,” Mizzou assistant coach Don Trentham said.
One of the players capable of taking the step into the spotlight is senior midfielder Reagan Russell, who experienced a breakout junior campaign in 2014, scoring seven goals.
Russell is embracing the role of being counted on for offensive production.
“I’ll go with my strengths, speed and power up there and play into my abilities,” Russell said. “Hopefully that works out the same way it did last year and hopefully I’ll improve.”
Through the season’s first two games, Russell leads the team with eight shots and has already added a goal to her name.
Behind Russell, freshman midfielder Amanda Shaw ranks second. Wearing the number 18, the number worn by the departed Grant, Shaw’s scoring ability in the open field is key to replacing Grant’s production.
Mizzou has 47 shots in the first two games combined and nine are from freshmen. Besides Shaw, the other three shots came from freshman forward Bethany Coons. Coons, who played high school soccer in Union, Missouri, holds the Missouri high school all-time points record, and was named 2015 Missouri Offensive Player of the Year.
“All of our freshman are awesome players,” Russell said. “One out of ten shots is a goal, and (the freshman) are already halfway there.”
One of the Tigers’ other goal scorers is sophomore midfielder Savannah Trujillo. Trujillo said she is happy with how quick all of the forwards are off the ball, and of their ability to shoot from long-range.
“It’s a big year for us,” Trujillo said. “We’ve got a lot of talent, a lot of untapped potential. It’s good to see that we’re coming out strong.”
Through two games the Tigers are averaging 23.5 shots per game, an average that is nearly 33 percent more than the 2014 season average of 16.4 shots.
“Taylor (Grant) was a huge asset to the team, but with the six forwards we have right now, we can handle our own,” Trujillo said. “It’s our time to shine.”