True freshman forward Stacy Bishop just shrugged her shoulders and showed a puzzled look when asked about her school-record, five-goal performance against Jackson State in a 12-0 mauling Sunday afternoon – her second collegiate game.
“I don’t know what to say about it,” Bishop said about breaking the record previously held by Mandy Heintz and Jackie Cooper. “It just happened. I didn’t even know [I had broken the record] until they announced it.”
Fellow starting forward, junior Artie Brown, notices that Bishop lets her game do the talking and does not show a lot of emotion on the field.
“She’s very low-key,” Brown said. “She doesn’t talk to you much. Every once in a while she’ll put out a little smile.”
Coach George Fotopoulos realizes the potential Bishop possesses, saying that he has not recruited a player at LSU with a higher talent ceiling than the 5-foot-10 Land O’Lakes, Fla. native.
He compared Bishop to some of women soccer’s best players in the Women’s United Soccer Association.
“There’s a lot of similarities between [former University of Florida star] Danielle Fotopoulos, [former UF star] Abby Wambach and [former Penn State star] Christie Welsh – those big forwards that you try to get to come to your program,” Fotopoulos said. “Stacy has that potential to be a great goal scorer. Will she ever be players like them? I don’t know, but she does have potential.”
The positive feelings she felt when she visited LSU helped her make a decision quite easily. She also enjoyed the coaching style of Fotopoulos, whom she said reminds her of her club coach.
“I thought the girls were
really down-to-earth,” Bishop said. “I just liked the way things were around here. I just felt like when I came here this was where I wanted to go. I felt it right away.”
With the departure of forward Mandy Heintz – who elected to give up her final year of eligibility to concentrate on her studies – and her team leading 23 goals she scored last year, the Tigers needed another scorer opposite Brown.
Bishop has seemed to fill the hole right away, notching six goals and two assists through the first three games, including a key assist with just over a minute remaining in the season-opening 2-1 win over Coastal Carolina.
While Fotopoulos said the coaches are still working on Bishop with her confidence and finishing ability, he hopes the combination of Bishop and Brown will be a formidable one.
Bishop, who scored 192 goals during her high school career, said she hopes to continue giving LSU another scoring threat up front.
“I feel like I needed to finish more chances,” Bishop said. “That’s what I was brought here to do.”
Added Brown: “She has size and she is a very skilled, technical player. She can do all of these moves and get past defenders. She makes stuff happen. I think we make a good team.”