Ferrell named to All-Peach Belt Conference Soccer Team

GC&SU freshman soccer forward Hayley Ferrell was named to the All-Peach Belt Conference Women’s Soccer Team.

Ferrell is the first GC&SU athlete to achieve such an honor in the two year existence of the women’s soccer program.

Ferrell was surprised by the news that she had been named to the All-Conference team.

“I’m honored, but I didn’t feel like I was a stand-out player,” Ferrell said.

The All-Conference team is chosen by head coaches throughout the conference. Coaches nominate and vote on players within the conference, excluding their own athletes.

GC&SU Women’s Soccer Head Coach Robert Parr isn’t surprised that Ferrell earned a spot on the All-Conference Team.

“(Ferrell) enjoys playing and made the most of her minutes,” Parr said. “It is easier to get recognized by coaches when you score goals against them.”

Ferrell was GC&SU’s second leading scorer this season with eight goals and one assist, receiving 17 points in the 16 games she played. She also led the team with 36 shots and four game-winning goals.

Ferrell’s love for soccer started at a young age.

As a child, Ferrell remembers having the best time and being so excited about getting out on a soccer field and running around with her friends.

In high school, Ferrell was a four-time All-County selection at Eagle’s Landing High in McDonough. She also received Henry County Soccer Athlete of the Year and Region Player of the Year honors and was named to ten different All-Region teams by the Atlanta Journal Constitution.

An ACL and MCL tear during basketball her junior year of high school didn’t slow Ferrell down.

It only made her focus more on soccer and less on basketball as a college aspiration.

Ferrell comes from an athletic family. Chuck Ferrell, her father, played baseball and basketball.

“My dad is my role model,” Ferrell said. “I respect his work ethic and drive in everything he does.”

The best advice Ferrell has ever been given came from her father.

“He tells me to always do the very best that I can so that I won’t have any regrets,” Ferrell said.

Ferrell follows her father’s advice and does agility, strength and endurance workouts during the off-season to keep in shape. Also, during soccer season she doesn’t drink caffeinated drinks. Therefore, her recent end of the year highlight was having a Coke.

Soccer teammate freshman forward Beth Coughlin describes Ferrell as “fun, competitive, hardworking and incredibly dedicated.”

If she were a superhero, Ferrell would be Wonder Woman, said Coughlin.

This Wonder Woman has a GC&SU athletic scholarship and has no problem balancing soccer and her school work.

“I’ve done it my whole life, and I need both of them to balance me out,” said Ferrell.

One can only hope that Ferrell is the beginning of a tradition in All-Conference honors earned by the GC&SU Women’s Soccer Team.

“I think (Ferrell’s) award is an accurate reflection of her performance,” said Coughlin.

Posted by Colonnade Archives on Nov 18 2005. Filed under Sports. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can leave a response or trackback to this entry