
Six Australian goalkeepers will take to the pitch in NCAA Division I this season, including last season’s ‘Big 3’ of Libby Davy, Aimee Benton, and Chantelle Symes. Meanwhile, Shivani Battaglia moves to new surrounds at Fresno State, whilst a pair of freshmen with A-League Women’s experience in Lilly Bailey and Grace Wilson round out an exciting cohort.
Lilly Bailey (Freshman, Morehead State, Perth)
A Junior Matildas representative, Lilly Bailey joins Natasha Tanner at Morehead State, with the duo forming the potential beginnings an unlikely pipeline from Perth to the Appalachian Mountains of Kentucky. An integral member of the NTC side that finished fourth in NPL Western Australia and also secured the State Cup, Bailey spent the most recent A-League Women’s season on the books of Perth Glory, making two appearances on the team sheet as the backup to Morgan Aquino.
Bailey now joins a Morehead State team with no incumbent between the sticks after 2023 starter Erin Gibbs transferred to Utah. Graduate student Reegan Garrity has experience at her previous program, Kentucky Wesleyan, but there will no doubt be a fierce battle for the starting spot. As evidenced by Libby Davy and Aimee Benton at Pacific and Grambling State in 2023, there is certainly playing time to be won by freshmen, particularly one with pedigree such as Bailey’s.
If Bailey does secure the starting berth, the gap left by Gibbs is by no means a small one, as evidenced by her transfer to a power conference side in Utah. Despite scoring just 1.15 goals per game, Morehead State finished with a 9-6-5 record and an Ohio Valley Conference championship courtesy of nine clean sheets and a save percentage ranking that vastly outstripped both the goals scored and conceded numbers for the Eagles in 2023. They are by no means small shoes to fill, but Bailey didn’t earn a Junior Matildas call-up by accident.
Shivani Battaglia (Junior, Fresno State, Perth)
A star at junior college level in 2022, Shivani Battaglia was limited to just two appearances in her first season of NCAA Division I soccer at Central Michigan in 2023. The Western Australian now looks to write another chapter after transferring to Fresno State, where she will be one of three goalkeepers on the roster but the only one with any NCAA Division I playing experience as she joins local freshman Kennedy Arntzen and fellow former junior college star Ashton Conley in the battle for playing time between the sticks.
Fresno State may have finished 5-9-6 in 2023, but with six draws and four one-goal defeats, even slight improvements at either end of the pitch could significantly improve their record in 2024. With the aforementioned turnover in the goalkeeping ranks, Battaglia could yet serve as a major part of continuing the Bulldogs’ upward trajectory, with the team having already made significant steps following their nadir of a 1-14-4 record in 2022.
Aimee Benton (Sophomore, Saint Francis, Adelaide)
Aimee Benton spent 2023 at Grambling State, sharing playing time between the sticks with local player Madison Covey-Taylor before transferring to Saint Francis for the 2024 campaign. Benton started three of her 16 appearances in 2023, making 19 saves in 537 minutes of playing time, helping the Tigers to a SWAC Championship. Of note were Benton’s five saves in a 2-2 draw with Tarleton State and another four in a 0-0 draw with Lamar in non-conference play as the Cardinals stamped their credentials against some highly-rated opponents before marching to the conference crown.
Benton now heads to a Saint Francis program that finds itself in a starkly different position after finishing 3-12-2 in 2023 and returning just one goalkeeper, who played only four games last season. The battle for the starting spot will no doubt be intense in Loretto, but Benton’s experience both in Australia and her extended playing time for a conference champion program in 2023 will stand her in good stead for 2024.
Libby Davy (Sophomore, Pacific, Adelaide)
2023 was a relatively good year for Australian goalkeepers in NCAA Division I, and Libby Davy played a large role in that after stepping straight in as a starter for Pacific. The South Australian earned the opening day start against UC San Diego, and converted that into 13 starts in 14 appearances to help the Tigers improve from seven wins in 2022 to a 9-9-1 record in 2023. Those performances included an eight-save outing in a 3-1 win over Oregon State, as well as a season-high ten saves against Saint Mary’s to keep Pacific in the contest before ultimately falling to a 2-0 defeat.
Whilst there is still room for Davy to improve, the sophomore has built some solid foundations at the college level and has three years to develop into one of the top goalkeepers in the West Coast Conference. Davy’s cause will also be helped if Pacific can reduce the number of shots conceded after the Tigers’ goalkeepers were peppered with strikes at times in 2023, with Davy facing 20 or more shots on four different occasions last season.
Chantelle Symes (Senior, Detroit Mercy, Sydney)
A star between the sticks for the fledgling Southern Illinois program in 2024, Chantelle Symes has upped stakes and made the move north to Detroit Mercy to continue her college career. After a solitary appearance in 2022, Symes made 13 appearances in 2023, starting in every game in which she featured to establish herself as a reliable starter for the Salukis. Despite a tough season in which her team collected just one win, Symes managed to post a 0.734 save percentage and a 1.35 goals against average.
The Endeavour Sports High School product now joins a Detroit Mercy team that should provide more attacking support after posting 1.68 goals per game in 2023, good enough for 90th in the nation as the Titans finished 7-9-3 as they continue to build under sixth season head coach Steve Shelton. Symes’ addition looks set to bolster the goalkeeping ranks significantly, with her 2023 numbers outstripping those of her new team despite Southern Illinois’ final record.
Grace Wilson (Freshman, Maine, Adelaide)
The second South Australian to join the high-flying Maine program in recent seasons, Grace Wilson joins the Black Bears having compiled an impressive CV during their junior career in Australia. A member of the Young Matildas side that finished third in the Under 20 Women’s Asian Cup, Wilson is now a chance to feature at the Under 20 Women’s World Cup after that result qualified the Australian team for the tournament. Wilson also featured for the Junior Matildas at the AFF Under 18 Championship in 2022, starting the final as Australia secured the title with a 2-0 win over Vietnam.
Having made their A-League Women’s debut for Adelaide United in 2024, Wilson now enters a goalkeeping battle in which the three players competing for a starting spot have a combined one collegiate appearance, and is perhaps the only real question mark for a Maine side looking to repeat as America East champions. Wilson’s pedigree at both A-League Women’s and national youth level certainly stand them in good stead, but only time will tell if and when they can secure the starting berth.
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