CLEMSON, S.C. – As the 2023 roster blends together a group of nationally regarded returners, highly skilled reserves and some talented new faces, a new era will begin for Clemson Women’s Soccer. Coming off a successful preseason run, these Tigers are ready to prove themselves at the national level.
“Our group is very much looking forward to the 2023 fall season. We have been working for this moment ever since the start of the spring semester of last year,” Head Coach Eddie Radwanski said. “Our group is dialed in, intense and looking forward to getting after it and competing in the ACC and NCAA. I think we have a little bit of something to prove this year, a little bit of a chip on our shoulder and I think we just need to continue our theme of ‘were just going to worry about us, were going to be the best version of us we can be and we will trust that our results will carry themselves’.”
Ranked No. 25 in the nation, the Tigers bring back a unique force of returners with Hal Hershfelt, Megan Bornkamp and Caroline Conti leading this team in the orange and purple. Both Bornkamp and Hershfelt were named to the Preseason All-ACC Team and were named players to watch by the United Soccer Coaches. Conti led the team in points in the 2022 season as she tallied 13 total points with five assists and four goals on the year.
“I’m excited to be back playing with the team I love and to play another season at Riggs. The atmosphere we have at home games is unreal,” Hershfelt said. “We have a lot of goals this season, and it being my last year it really is all or nothing. We have to do all we can to leave our mark.”
The Tigers wrapped up the 2022 season with an 8-5-5 overall record and a 4-3-3 record in conference play. For the ninth-straight season, the Tigers continued their run in the postseason as they earned a No. 5 seed and a bid to the NCAA tournament where they took on Vanderbilt in the first round to end the season.
Wearing the gloves for the Tigers this season will be Halle Mackiewicz, who was a key component for this team in the 2022 campaign. Mackiewicz started all 18 matches last season and ended the campaign with 59 saves and .759 save percentage.
Also returning to the roster for Clemson is senior Makenna Morris and junior Renee Lyles. Both players were in the top three for total points at the end of the 2022 season as they followed Conti with 11 (Lyles) and 10 (Morris) points.
Putting on the Tiger threads for the first time this season is Jenna Tobia, Tatum Short, Eleanor Hays and Dani Lynch. Tobia and Short impressed all with their preseason performances and will look to continue that success in their freshman campaigns.
The coaching staff of 13 seasons is made up of Head Coach, Eddie Radwanski who will look to lead this team to the top. Radwanski is supported by Associate Head Coach Jeff Robbins and Assistant Coach Siri Mullinx. The trio also added Allison Wetherington to their staff as she takes on the role of an assistant coach and will add a professional perspective with her experience in the NWSL as a guiding light.
