Lack of name recognition hasn’t been a problem for Stevenson’s Annie Egeland.
Her older sister Ellie Egeland, a freshman midfielder at Maryland, scored 28 goals during her Stevenson career and was an all-state selection last year.
“Sometimes, definitely as a freshman, all I was known as was ‘Ellie’s little sister,’” Annie Egeland said. “When I started to play, people started giving me respect. She definitely put my name out there.
“But I had to earn my own position and my own part of the spotlight instead of being in her shadow, so I had to keep working to get to her level.”
Egeland is definitely earning her share of the spotlight. The Michigan recruit has become one of the best defenders in the state and has also racked up four goals and two assists in her junior season to lead the Patriots (9-4-3, 5-1-1) to a second-place tie in the North Suburban Conference and a No. 4 seed in the Class 3A Fremd Sectional. Stevenson will play 13th-seeded Waukegan in the Glenbrook South Regional semifinals at 5 p.m. Tuesday.
“Annie tackles the ball really well and has really good patience and balance,” Stevenson coach Jay Bulev said. “She doesn’t dive in and covers well and recovers well. She is difficult to beat 1v1, and she wins headers and balls out of the air.”
The 5-foot-8 Egeland is also making an impression on opponents, including Saint Louis recruit Addison Stanciak, who is the career leader in goals and points scored for conference rival Warren.
“Annie’s tackling and understanding of the game are elite,” Stanciak said. “She is always anticipating the offense.”
Egeland, a third-year varsity starter who was named all-conference last season, hasn’t always been a defender. She used to be a forward.
“A coach moved me to outside back,” she said. “I liked defending. I never looked back.
“Obviously, what people always see on the score sheet is the goals and assists, but they never see how many tackles you make or how you save goals.”
Ellie Egeland said Annie made herself into an elite defender.
“Annie puts more time and effort into setting herself up for success from the moment she wakes up,” Ellie Egeland said. “She is able to understand the game at such a deep and complex level, where she can spot the right pass from a mile away and know exactly the right moment to enter a tackle.
“As an attacker, I have always been scared to go against her, knowing that she is likely going to win the ball. Her ability to win balls in the air and even score as a center back is something not many can do.”
Annie Egeland said the turning point in her career came in eighth grade, when she was moved to the B team in the Eclipse Select club program after playing for the A team the previous year. She said she worked tirelessly over the next several months to regain her former position.
“Sometimes that can bring you down, and a lot of people quit, but it pushed me harder, and I worked all of my eighth grade year,” Egeland said. “I didn’t rest because I didn’t want to let anybody outwork me.
“Without that experience, I would not be the player I am now.”
Bobby Narang is a freelance reporter.
