Little Rock Soccer 2020: Meet the Forwards

LITTLE ROCK - Perhaps the biggest improvement for the Trojans will be the forwards, a group that has a wide range of skill by featuring both senior leadership and several talented young players. A unit that has the potential to be a dark horse in the conference this season, the squad is looking to hit the field and earn more goals in an effort to improve upon last season's unsatisfactory offensive campaign.

Senior forward Doro Greulich

Redshirt senior and captain Doro Greulich should be the cornerstone of the attack with a comeback season on the line. The Potsdam, Germany native sat out the past year due to injury despite earning Preseason All-Sun Belt distinctions. Greulich has accumulated Sun Belt postseason honors in every season she has played in thus far, including back-to-back First Team honors in 2017 and 2018, and her re-addition to the squad may be the most noticeable boost to the Trojan offense.

“My injury made me look at things from a different perspective,” said Greulich, showing a calm wisdom that contrasts with her ferocity on the field. “It has also helped me to realize that with the hard training and pressure we experience almost every day, we sometimes forget to just enjoy playing. I know now, especially during this unprecedented season, we cannot take anything for granted.”

Peyton Laughley is the other veteran of the group, appearing in a career-high 18 games for Little Rock last season along with her first career start. Now a senior, she looks to guide a large group of underclassmen to succeed this season and set them up to take the reins in the future.

“I expect the team to be more unified this year because we have more experience as a whole,” said Laughley. “My teammates and I have noticed that this group already feels more focused and cohesive in the short time we’ve been training together. Between the newcomers and returners, our team has a lot of versatility up top like speed, athleticism, strength and so on.”

Senior forward Peyton Laughley

“We have been more intentional on working on our team chemistry this year,” added Greulich. “The past few weeks with a longer preseason we were able to get to know each other better and grow as players and a team. I think we have a lot of talent on the team and I’m excited to get back on the field with them.”

The underclassmen returners consist of Bizzy Canada, Maddy Peake, and Mari Young, each of which collected playing time last year. Canada saw action in six games and looks to build upon her repertoire this season. Peake had 15 appearances and three starts as a freshman, gaining traction as the season progressed and collecting an assist in the home conference win over Appalachian State. Young showed flexibility throughout the season, starting in every game except one and also filling in for the back line on multiple occasions. She scored two goals in 2019 in addition to racking up the most minutes of any forward.

Incoming freshmen Karina De Paoli and Jessie Vaden will also be shooting for time on the field. Learn more about the two newcomers here.

In case you missed it, meet the back line here, meet the midfielders here, and mark your calendar for Little Rock's return to the field on Thursday, September 10 at Central Arkansas, with a 7:00 p.m. kickoff. Also be sure to show up to the first Little Rock Trojans home game of the season on Friday, September 18 at the Coleman Sports Complex, beginning at 7:00 p.m.

For the latest information on Little Rock Soccer, make sure to check out LRTrojans.com. You can also find the team on social media at @LittleRockSOC on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.

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