Breaking News
Local Sports

Skoglund, Eagles girls soccer having record-breaking seasons

By Ari Selvey 6 min read

NEW ULM -- This past Tuesday, the New Ulm girls soccer team set a season-high in goals, rolling Tri-City United 13-0 in a Big South Conference match.

But that wasn't the only scoring achievement on the day for the Eagles as New Ulm put two new entries into the record books.

Not only did New Ulm break its single-season goals record as a team, recording 77 goals in a season after the game to break the previous record of 73, but Jesalyn Skoglund also broke the individual single-season goals record, scoring four goals in the game to earn 23 on the year, breaking the previous record of 22 set by Livia Reinarts in 2022.

After a 4-3 win against St. Peter on Thursday where Skoglund scored two more goals, the team sits at 81 goals while Skoglund has recorded 25 goals with one regular season game remaining against Southwest Minnesota Christian on Monday.

New Ulm head coach Jonathan Johnson said that the team has brought a different level of dedication to this season.

"I think the intensity of the players," he said. "They're more in-tune to each other than any other year that I've coached. They're feeding off of each other's energy and knowing where to be and when to be there out on the pitch to either receive a pass or make a pass. Their presence on the field is so much better than it has been in years before."

Skoglund, for her part, said she was excited to reach a goal she has been aiming at for the past two seasons.

"It definitely feels great, especially being a senior," she said. "I was also working towards that goal last year, and I got 21, so I almost made it, so I was a little sad. So I'm excited this year, even being out three or four games I missed. It just means a lot that I can do that in my last year here."

Skoglund said getting the individual record came down to having right mentality.

"For me, just not getting down on myself," she said. "I think it was two games in a row where I didn't score, and so I was just like, 'You've got to keep going.' I think our team has been really good with having a positive mindset this season and getting over our bumps in the road and just keep pushing and do better in the next game."

Johnson said Skoglund has put in a lot of work to get her shot right.

"Comparing this year to last year, I think Jes is way more focused this year," he said. "She's taken big strides to getting her shot down. Last year, she took a lot of shots, and she scored a lot last year too, but a lot of her shots sailed, and she's taken great pride in figuring that shot out. When she sees it, she takes it, and she's been landing a lot of them this year. Really proud of her achievement."

Skoglund said that the team success has come from an all-around effort from multiple talented players.

"We have really good players, and a lot of us like to score," she said. "I think 11 or 12 different people have scored this year, I think more after [Tuesday], probably like 15 now. I just think that we have really good players and we're really excited about this. Last year we struggled a bit to score in some games, so I'm glad we figured out our offense and how to put the ball in the back of the net now."

Johnson has been a member of the New Ulm coaching staff since the team's inception in 2006. He said the overall dedication and talent the team has didn't just start this season.

"A lot of the players, their effort started probably a couple of years ago," he said. "They've been going to different camps and clinics throughout the offseason. A couple of the girls were over in Sweden for like 10 days, doing some training and sightseeing. And other college camps getting some higher-level training and things of that nature. I'm thankful to their parents for letting them do that. The level of them wanting to make themselves better is way higher than it has been. They're all striving to be the best and be the best team, not just the best individual."

This season, Johnson is impressed with how his team has held itself to a high standard.

"It's been very exciting for me," he said. "I've had some really good teams in the past, and this one, just the way they're playing tough teams and not slacking off against teams that aren't as competitive, it speaks to their discipline and integrity to the sport. Everybody is holding their head up high and not getting down on themselves too much. The intensity has been there since day one of this year, and I expect it to continue to the end of the season."

New Ulm has won 11 games so far this year, with just one loss in the season opener to Mankato East and two draws. With one game to go in the regular season, the Eagles have proved to be a well-balance team despite their offensive output.

"Our midfield has been controlling a lot of transition," Johnson said. "Either taking it away from the opponent or moving the ball into their end into scoring position. We run a three- or four-person midfield, and both of them are good for our purposes. We can change on the fly without any interruption, so the girls are really versed in that.

"And another attribute is our defense, our defense has been stellar for this year. We've had a few stronger opponents that have gotten some breakaways, and our centerback Yessenia Fernandez -- super fast -- she goes in and cuts them off. But we've been catching them in offsides traps quite often, and that works really well for us."

Skoglund said that the team has been driven to work hard for every win.

"Our focus has been great," she said. "We all want to win, we all want to be there. We were down 1-0 against St. Peter when we played them at home, and we came back and won 3-1. Just not giving up and all wanting to win helps a lot."

In order to close out the season strong, New Ulm will have to continue to do the things it does well.

"We just have to continue to play our game, to stay on track," Johnson said. "Each game from here on out is going to get more and more difficult. We have to stay focused on that. When the opportunities come, we have to take advantage of them."

"I think we just need to stick to what we're doing," Skoglund added. "We work on our defense and not stabbing … adjusting our playstyle to who we play and playing with a formation that will set us up for success and putting up shots that will score."

Starting at /week.