Three LSU players have emerged as leaders in the South Eastern Conference because of their performance this season.
Mollee Swift, Mollie Baker and Ava Galligan were impressive for LSU in its regular season. These three players land in the top 10 for multiple SEC rankings, such as shots, assists and saves.
Here’s a snapshot of these players and their accomplishments.
Mollee Swift
At goalkeeper, Swift started her collegiate career in 2019 playing for head coach Sian Hudson at the University of Colorado at Colorado Springs. She made the move with Hudson to Baton Rouge and is now a fifth-year senior.
In her final season, Swift has broken the LSU record for most career saves in program history with 290.
Among her fellow SEC goalies, she is second in saves for the 2023 season, recording 61 in total and 3.35 per game. Swift is ninth in the SEC in save percentage at 68.7% and eighth in shutouts.
She had 14 total saves against Tennessee and Auburn. Swift said maintaining concentration is key when defending the goal.
“It’s all about staying focused and staying committed to my tasks,” she said. “I’m the person in charge of keeping the ball out of the net, so whatever I can do to prevent that is really important to me.”
Off the field, Swift actively participates in volunteering for the Baton Rouge community. For the third year in a row, she was named to the SEC Community Service Team with 13 other players.
It’s naturally discouraging for a goalkeeper when an opponent scores. When Swift allowed goals this season, she said focusing on what’s next is more important than feeling defeated.
“Really stepping back and finding that perspective is important, and I have to make sure I’m locked in,” Swift said. “Each game is new and every game is different, and I have to keep that mindset clear and open and just know I can do it each time.”
Mollie Baker
Baker leads the team with 55 shots and is fourth in that SEC category. She also leads the SEC in most shots in one game, tallying 11 against Northwestern State.
Baker dominates at creating offensive opportunities and getting in good positions to take shots. She’s a versatile forward, who’s positioned in the center midfield, and uses her speed to beat out many defenders.
“I think Sian really encourages me to get forward even at the sixth position,” Baker said. “Honestly it’s something that I love to do, so I just try to take shots as often as possible. If there is an opportunity, I’m going to take it.”
Baker transferred to LSU after playing two seasons for North Carolina. With the significant increase in playing time, she has become an essential part of the team.
Against SEC opponents who are physical and defensive-heavy, Baker said it can be difficult to get open, especially when a team drops many players to the back line and plays man-to-man coverage.
“As soon as you can cut your first player, beat your first player, the game kind of opens up for you after that,” Baker said. “First touch, first decision is really the most important thing, and then you can get past that first girl and see everything else.”
Baker constantly plays the whole field and takes chances at the goal.
“Shooting is really fun and if I can put something on frame, I know I have people that are either going to follow in if I can get it on target, or I can finish it myself.”
Ava Galligan
In her freshman season, Galligan has been a breakout forward/midfielder. She is tied for fifth in the SEC with five assists and has three goals in her first year.
In conference games, Galligan is tied for sixth in shots with 23. She also had six shots against Arkansas.
Playing with older teammates who’ve been supportive in her first year motivates Galligan on the field, she said.
“Obviously the transition from club to college is very different,” Galligan said. “I know a lot of other freshmen probably didn’t have the same support that I did from everybody on the team, and they’ve just helped me get comfortable with everything so much faster than I thought I would.”
Galligan will have many matches left playing for the Tigers, so she plans to build further trust in herself during the offseason.
“I hope to take more shots and be a little more confident in myself, but again with the group of girls I get to play with, they just help me so much,” Galligan said. “I never thought I would get as many goals and assists that I did get, so I owe that to them.”
