Friday Features: Lewis, Snell Find Place to Play at VSU
By Ed Hooper
It’s a new era for Valdosta State soccer. New coach. New players.
Among the 15 new players on the Blazer roster this fall are
Ashley Lewis and
Taylor Snell. The sophomore and junior, respectively, are transfers to the Blazer program, after spending their first years of eligibility at Armstrong State University. The two Georgia natives had every intention of staying at the Savannah, Ga.-based school to finish their soccer careers and earn their degrees.
That was until Jan. 5, 2017.
That is when the Georgia Board of Regents announced Armstrong State was being merged with Georgia Southern University. All athletic programs at Armstrong would be discontinued, leaving hundreds of student-athletes without a place to play in the 2017-18 season.
“When we found out…we were coming back from Christmas break,” Lewis said. “As soon as we heard, we called our coach (Eric Faulconer), and we all went into his office.
“It was very uncertain about the future of our program. At one point we thought we would have a final season this fall. But in March, we had an idea we weren’t going to be playing anymore, and if we did we would be done after fall 2017. So everyone knew we were going to have to go to other places.”
Lewis and Snell were left looking for new places to finish their college careers. Having both played club soccer, they had ample relationships they were able to call upon to help make a decision about where they should continue their careers. One of those relationships Lewis called upon was Stephen Andrew, her former club soccer coach in Dacula, Ga., who also just happened to be the newest head coach at Valdosta State.
“That was definitely a big contribution to my decision,” Lewis said. “ I saw the path (Andrew) wanted to take the program and I wanted to be part of that.
Added Andrew: “I started here February, and within my first week here, Ashley contacted me. We had her on campus for a visit in mid-February. She had other offers as well, but she didn’t commit to us until end of March, early April. That was about the same time we talked to Taylor.”
As for Snell, a major cornerstone for her decision to attend school in the Azalea City was the opportunity to continue earning her degree while also playing soccer. Valdosta State was one of the only schools in the state that offered her major —Communications Sciences and Disorders — and the chance to stay on the field.
During the entire recruiting process, Andrew said the one thing that stood out to him was the maturity of both Lewis and Snell.
“They were mature during the process. They didn’t want to rush the decision,” Andrew said. “They were loyal to coach Faulconer. We didn’t put pressure on them to make a decision. They committed to Armstrong, and they were loyal. So if there was an opportunity for them to stay there another year, if that program was given another year, we were going to let them. But the transition, they’ve been great; no issues whatever.”
While at Armstrong, Lewis and Snell were part of a program that won 27 combined matches in the past two seasons, making the second round of the regional tournament each of those years.
Now Lewis and Snell are both trying to help re-establish the tradition of the Blazer soccer program, which won the GSC Championship in 2014, but quickly fell off to just one win last year.
“I wouldn’t say it was scary (joining a losing program) but it was,” Lewis said. “When I found out (Andrew) was coming here and I knew what he could do, I wanted to be part of turning the program around.”
Both Lewis and Snell are doing their part just a few weeks into the regular season. For Snell, she is showing why her new teammates voted her a team captain for the 2017 season, something that took her by surprise.
“I was kind of shocked. I’m not a loud leader on the team,” Snell said. “Coach tells me I lead by example. It was different. I had just met the girls and coach Andrew.”
Snell scored a goal in each of the first two games of the season for the Blazers, to go along with one assist. She followed it up with a two-goal performance — and one assist — in the Blazers’ GSC opening win over Montevallo, which earned her GSC Player of the Week honors. Lewis, who has been recovering from an injury sustained during the preseason, also has a goal, coming in the Blazers’ 6-0 season opening win over Albany State.
“Coming from a high quality program like Armstrong,” Andrew said. “Taylor has been one of our best players through the first two games…Ashley has battled injuries a lot during preseason and isn’t quite healthy yet. But she is coming along.”
Now that they’ve found a new place to finish their careers, and they’ve settled into their new environment — Snell said it’s been an easy transition thanks to the community support in Valdosta — both players are focused on moving forward in helping VSU soccer get back to the top.
The key? Buying into the program goals set forth by Andrew.
“At Armstrong we had a family atmosphere,” Snell said. “The coach invested in the players. Coach Andrew is trying to invest the same things. Slowly and surely everyone is buying into what he is trying to do – win soccer games, score a lot of goals and have fun.”
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