Soccer, Sports, Women's Sports

Eileen Maes making most of transfer to Long Beach State

Eileen Maes scored her first goal as a 49er in late August, when she headed a Jordan Nelson free kick into the back of the net and led Long Beach State to victory over Baylor.

It was just three games into the season, and Maes was already delivering the clutch scores she is now known for.

Maes is a junior forward in the middle of her first season at LBSU (11-5, 4-2 Big West Conference). Her eight goals lead the team and have established her as an essential piece of the 49er offense.

Prior to transferring to The Beach, Maes spent two years in Pullman, Wash., where she was a regular starter for Washington State.

“Pullman, Washington is in the middle of nowhere,” Maes said. Sitting near Washington’s eastern border, Pullman can be found just off Route 125, which promises none of the scenery of the Pacific Coast Highway and has none of the notability of Route 66.

In short, WSU is the only reason Pullman has ever been relevant to anything.

Maes found success during her time at WSU, but nine goals in two years were not enough to get her to stay in an uncomfortable environment.

“I didn’t get along with my teammates very well; there was no chemistry,” she said. “Once my coaches left and all of the staff just wasn’t there, I just thought it wasn’t going to be the place for me anymore.”

And so the transfer process began.

Goals two, three and four all came during the same weekend. Maes was the only 49er to score during a 3-2 overtime loss to Texas Tech, a game that got away from The Beach in the final minutes. Two days later, Maes scored the go-ahead goal in a 2-0 win over Army.

At that point in the season, Maes had scored enough goals to tie her for the team lead with senior forward Nadia Link, who tied the single-season school record for goals in 2011 with 16.

“She’s a very competitive person, which helps a lot,” Link said. “It’s great; she’s always striving to do her best, always. You never see her slacking off.”

That doesn’t mean that Maes is obsessed with statistics or even remotely concerned with them. As long as the team wins, she’s happy.

“Stats are good, but I don’t really play for stats – I play for the team,” she said. “I knew I would have an impact, but I guess I’m doing better than I expected.”

Maes’ expectations were understandably cloudy following her transfer from WSU. Once head coach Matt Potter left the Cougars, Maes started to file transfer paperwork and get her name out to various schools. LBSU head coach Mauricio Ingrassia was the first she heard back from.

“Mauricio was my first [call] and my first visit,” Maes said. “When I got here, it felt pretty good.”

It was a perfect fit for Maes and an unexpected gift for Ingrassia and the rest of the LBSU coaching staff.

“It was really random,” Ingrassia said. “I was in Vegas recruiting, and her old coach came up to me and said, ‘Hey, [Maes] is available,’ and I had no idea who she was. We did a little research, and we managed to get permission to speak, and then we flew her down here. We were competing with some other big schools, and it was just a matter of closing the deal.”

The deal may have been closed sooner than Ingrassia thought, as Maes had wanted to go to school in southern California all along. She said Long Beach felt like home, and that was a feeling she had never gotten while in Washington. It wasn’t long before she was suiting up for practices at George Allen Field.

George Allen Field was the site of goals five and six. Maes helped the 49ers extend their home game winning streak to 19 with a 61st-minute goal against UC Santa Barbara that tied the game at one. Renee Mendiola’s goal two minutes later put LBSU ahead for good.

Maes came through in the clutch again in the next game, as her score in the 89th minute against Cal Poly sent the ‘Niners and Mustangs into overtime. It wasn’t enough to earn a win though, as Cal Poly later completed the upset with a goal in double overtime.

LBSU found itself in need of wins quickly, as the loss knocked it to fifth in the Big West Conference standings. Once again, the ‘Niners found themselves relying on Maes to get whatever offense was needed to win.

Goal seven was the only score of the game in a 1-0 victory on the road at UC Davis. Maes’ eight and most recent goal opened the LBSU scoring in the 31st minute two days later at Pacific. It ended up being the deciding goal of a 2-0 win for The Beach that got the team to a relevant third in the Big West standings.

The 49ers now have three games remaining. They are in the thick of the race for the Big West title, and their play during the next three games will decide whether or not they advance to the postseason.

“I feel like anything less wouldn’t be right in my sense,” Maes said “It’s not a surprise to me, but it’s always a good feeling just to know that we’re in the race.”

LBSU has suffered a few disappointing losses over the year, but without Maes, there would be more than just a few. Of her team-leading eight goals, four have been game-winners. Three more have been game-tying.

“I knew that she would be a quality addition in terms of mentality and in terms of experience,” Ingrassia said. “I knew that part would be important, but as I get to know her, I see that she’s obviously a very clutch player and has a tendency to score big goals.”

Needless to say, Ingrassia is happy that Maes is a 49er. So is everybody else.
 

One Comment

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