Columbus Eagles FC

Columbus Eagles Football Club is a women's soccer club based in Columbus, Ohio. The Eagles have been a member of the Women's Premier Soccer League (WPSL) since the club's inception in 2014. The team currently plays its home matches at Otterbein University's Memorial Stadium in Westerville, Ohio, 20 minutes from downtown Columbus.

Columbus Eagles FC
Full nameColumbus Eagles Football Club
Nickname(s)The Eagles
Short nameCEFC
Founded2014
GroundMemorial Stadium - Otterbein University
Capacity2,500
PresidentMark Wise
ManagerMatt Ogden
LeagueWomen's Premier Soccer League
WebsiteClub website

In 2018, the team's fifth season, the Eagles finished second[1] in the Valley Division of the WPSL and set club records for league wins (5) and points (16) in a season. The team was founded by its current CEO Mark Wise. The head coach is Matt Ogden, who's also the head women's soccer coach at Capital University in Columbus, Ohio.

History

The Eagles were founded in 2014 and started WPSL play shortly after. The club has had three managers in its history – Mark Wise, Daniel Seiffert, and Matt Ogden – and is 15-28-9 in six seasons in the WPSL. The Eagles' best league finish was in 2018 when they finished 2nd in a 9-team division.

Mark Wise founded the Eagles and managed the team from 2014-16. The team's first win came against FC Indiana (1-0) in June 2015. The team struggled through its first three seasons, amassing just four wins in 26 matches, but Sydney Blomquist led the way that season and went on to play professionally overseas.

Daniel Seiffert took over the team in 2017 and the tide began to turn. Former NCAA Division I players Kelly DeNiro (University of Akron) and Lisa Nouanesengsy (Indiana University) joined the squad along with Dani Gunderson (Christopher Newport University) and the Eagles finished 3-4-1 (good for third place) in the WPSL's Valley division. Seiffert [2] talked to Midfield Press about the team's evolution and progress during the early months of 2018.

The 2018 version of the Eagles was another record-breaking one. Midfielder Ashley Gogolin (Wright State University and Chicago Red Stars), defender Megan Minnix (University of Charlotte), and midfielder Micaela Powers (University of Wisconsin) joined the roster and helped the Eagles to a 5-1-2 record and 16 points. The club finished second in the Valley division behind eventual-East regional winners Cleveland Ambassadors. Columbus was the only team to take points from Cleveland in the season, after coming back from 3-0 down to draw 3-3 with the Ambassadors.

Seiffert and his wife Mary Seiffert (who was the Eagles' club captain) left to take over Indiana Wesleyan University's women's soccer program in late 2018, and the Eagles hired Matt Ogden as head coach. Ogden is the head women's soccer coach at Capital University and won an Ohio Athletic Conference title with the Crusaders in 2015. Under Ogden, the Eagles found a new, attacking style and brought in a new crop of talented college players from Ohio University and Bowling Green State University, among others. Columbus finished 3-5-2 (fourth place) in the Valley division in 2019, but scored the most goals in a single-season in club history (18) and set a record for single-match goals (6) in a win over Dayton Dutch Lions in May.

Club Colors, Crest & Kits

The Eagles announced a new crest and logo in October 2018. The crest was designed in-house by former Eagles midfielder Larissa Najjar (Ohio University) and received much public praise, making it to MLS Reddit and UniWatch. The club began selling new merchandise shortly after.

The team's primary colors are black (#101010) and gold (#fecd08), with accent colors of purple (#50384f), gray (#787878), and white (#ffffff). The team's colors closely align with that of Columbus Crew SC, which helps unify the soccer colors in central Ohio.

In March 2019, the Eagles announced that they would play in custom matchday kits for the first time in their history. Najjar (now the lead designer of the Eagles) designed the home, away, and goalkeeper kits along with Eagles COO Grant Burkhardt. The Eagles' home kit is black with gold dots, and the away kit is gold and white with diagonal stripes. The designs were thoughtful ones, constructed with female soccer players in mind.

WIkiJerseys

Apparel Sponsors & Primary Sponsors

Period Kit supplier Shirt sponsor
2014-17 Adidas Comprehensive Wealth Partners
2017–Present Diadora None
2019-2022 Errea TBD

Matches at MAPFRE Stadium

The Eagles are the only WPSL side ever to host a match at a Major League Soccer stadium. The club has twice played at MAPFRE Stadium, the home of Columbus Crew SC.

In 2016 at MAPFRE, Eagles forward Molly Cornwell scored twice in the final 10 minutes of the match to beat Cincinnati Sirens FC, 2-1. In 2017, the Eagles and Sirens played again at MAPFRE and Columbus won 4-2 on the back of two goals from Gunderson, one from defender Corie Moore, and one from forward Erin Brockway.

Player Accolades

2019:

Four Eagles were named to the WPSL's All-Conference team in 2019 – Gogolin made it back-to-back appearances on the team, and Micaela Powers, Madison Costner, and top-scorer Alivia Milesky also made the team.

2018:

Gogolin, Minnix, and captain Amber Kern (University of Akron) were named WPSL All-Conference players in 2018 after leading the Eagles to a record season. Eagles fans voted goalkeeper Hannah Sargent (Western Michigan University) as the club's "Player of the Year" for her performance throughout the season. Sargent started all 8 WPSL matches and allowed just seven goals in more than 650 minutes played. She recorded four shutouts.

2017:

Four members of the 2017 Eagles earned WPSL All Star status: Midfielders Kelly DeNiro,[3] Dani Gunderson,[4] and Lisa Nouanesengsy[5] earned the honor, as did defender Amber Kern.

Club Records & Accolades

2019:

In 2019, the Eagles set their season membership record for the second straight year and broke its single-season attendance record. The club won social media and marketing awards for best Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook pages, as well as best social media graphics and video work.

In a July match at Cleveland, the Eagles set a club record for most-watched live match at over 1,700 viewers.

2018:

Weeks before the start of the 2018 season, the Eagles surpassed a record number of season ticket holders.[6] The Eagles have once again broke that record in 2019, more than a month before their WPSL season begins.

In 2018, the WPSL named the Eagles the "Social Media Team of the Year" for its marketing efforts across Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, and YouTube. The club also won awards for its in-match updates, video content, and graphic design.

The club set its single-match attendance record on June 16, 2018 against Empire United. That match was played in front of a record crowd of more than 400 people at Columbus's home field at Otterbein University. Columbus also set its single-season attendance record in 2018.

Previous Seasons/Results

2019 Results
Date City Opponent Result Eagles Goal Scorer(s)
March 31, 2019* Columbus, Ohio Ohio Dominican University L 0-2
April 7, 2019* Westerville, Ohio Ohio University L 0-3
April 14, 2019* Westerville, Ohio Otterbein University W 5-0
April 26, 2019* Asheville, NC Asheville City FC L 2-1 Erin Brockway
May 11, 2019 Ann Arbor, Mich. AAFC Lumberjills W 1-0 Alivia Milesky
May 19, 2019 Westerville, Ohio Cincinnati Sirens FC L 2-3 Cameron Shedenhelm, Natalie Horner
May 26, 2019 Dayton, Ohio Dayton Dutch Lions W 1-6 Milesky, Abby Townsend (2), Sarina Dirrig, Ashley Gogolin, Nikki Cox
June 2, 2019 Detroit, Mich. Motor City FC L 4-1 Micaela Powers
June 9, 2019 Westerville, Ohio Cleveland Ambassadors L 1-5 Powers
June 16, 2019 Westerville, Ohio Motor City FC D 1-1 Madison Costner
June 22, 2019 Bexley, Ohio Dayton Dutch Lions D 1-1 Milesky
June 30, 2019 Westerville, Ohio AAFC Lumberjills W 3-0 Gogolin, Costner (2)
July 2, 2019 Cleveland, Ohio Cleveland Ambassadors L 2-1 Gillian Losey
July 6, 2019 Cincinnati, Ohio Cincinnati Sirens FC L 3-1 Losey
2018 Results
Date City Opponent Result Eagles Goal Scorer(s)
April 7, 2018* Delaware, Ohio Ohio Wesleyan University 9-0 Lisa Nouanesengsy (2), Ellie Gavin (2), Eryn Weber, Larissa Najjar,

Dani Gunderson, Rachel MacLeod, Micaela Powers

April 22, 2018* Columbus, Ohio Ohio Dominican University 2-1 MacLeod, Amber Kern
May 12, 2018 Westerville, OH AAFC Lumberjills 2-0[7] Rian Reid, Nouanesengsy
May 19, 2017 Cincinnati, OH Cincinnati Sirens FC 5-0[8]
May 27, 2018 Cleveland, OH Cleveland Ambassadors 3-3[9] Powers, Kern, Erin Brockway
June 3, 2018 Westerville, OH Motor City FC 0-1[10]
June 10, 2018 Indianapolis, IN FC Pride 2-2[11] Kern, Powers
June 16, 2018 Westerville, OH Empire United 4-0[12] DeNiro, Gavin, Ashley Gogolin, Najjar
June 30, 2018 Westerville, OH Indy Saints FC 3-0[13] Kern, Lila Remache, Nouanesengsy
July 8, 2018 Pittsburgh, PA Steel City FC 2-1 Samantha Damante, DeNiro
2017 Results
Date City Opponent Result CEFC Goal Scorer(s)
March 31, 2017* Westerville, Ohio Mount Vernon Nazarene University 0-0
April 20, 2017* Columbus, Ohio Ohio Dominican University 0-0
May 7, 2017* Westerville, OH Cleveland Ambassadors 1-1 Kelly DeNiro
May 20, 2017 Westerville, OH Dayton Dutch Lions 2-1 Kelly DeNiro, Larissa Najjar
May 27, 2017 Westerville, OH FC Pride 1-0 Lisa Nouanesengsy
June 4, 2017 Westerville, OH Fire & Ice SC 0-5
June 10, 2017 Dayton, OH Dayton Dutch Lions 1-2 Lisa Nouanesengsy
June 17, 2017* Westerville, OH Toledo Villa 1-3 Erin Brockway
June 24, 2017 Columbus, OH (MAPFRE Stadium) Cincinnati Sirens FC 4-2[14] Dani Gunderson (2), Corie Moore,

Erin Brockway

June 30, 2017 Belleville, IL Fire & Ice SC 0-2
July 7, 2017 Cincinnati, OH Cincinnati Sirens FC 1-1[15] Kelly DeNiro
July 8, 2017* Cleveland, OH Cleveland Ambassadors 0-3
July 14, 2017 Indianapolis, IN FC Pride 0-5

(star denotes a friendly match)

References

This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.