Committed
Ocean City senior Naomi Nnewihe began her soccer career on defense, but it didn’t take that long for her to discover how much she enjoyed putting the ball in the back of the net.
She has been playing soccer most of her life, having started the sport at the age of four while playing on a co-ed team.
“I started out as a defender, a center back,” she said.
So what caused the change to offense?
“I was really fast, so they put me on offense, and I would score goals because I was fast and I would go back on defense,” she said after playing in the South Jersey Soccer Coaches Senior All-Star Game. “Eventually I liked scoring goals, so I stayed on offense.”
Good decision, as she is still very fast and extremely skilled with the ball. Players at her former position on defense certainly don’t relish trying to stop her on offense.
And during her career at Ocean City, she was truly an offensive force, scoring double-figures in goals all four years.
She scored 10 as a freshman, 16 her sophomore year, 28 as a junior and 32 this past season, giving her 86 for her career. Nnewihe wasn’t just a scorer, but a facilitator as well, with 37 career assists, including a career-high 13 this past season.
She was the driving force for an Ocean City team that won the Cape Atlantic League tournament championship.
Nnewihe scored what turned into the game-winning goal in a 3-1 victory over host Egg Harbor Township, in the Cape Atlantic League Tournament championship.
Ocean City would later advance to the South Jersey Group 3 final before ending its season with a 2-0 loss to unbeaten Shawnee, the eventual Group 3 state champion.
Nnewihe said it was truly a fruitful experience competing for Ocean City.
“I loved playing high school soccer, representing my school,” she said. “It was really a fun experience and I’m glad I got that experience, it taught me a lot.”
Nnewihe will continue her soccer career and education at Brown University. Brown is coming off a 7-5-5 season. The Bears advanced to the Ivy League championship game before losing 2-0 to Princeton. Brown had won the Ivy League title in each of the four previous seasons.
“I love coach Kia (McNeill),” Nnewihe said. “I love how they play, and the academics are great.”
Going to an Ivy League school is something that is special to Nnewihe.
“They have my major (mechnaical engineering) and their whole curriculum is how I want to study,” she said.
Not surprisingly, Brown is looking at Nnewihe to play up top.
The coaching staff obviously saw how much pressure she put on opposing defenses. Nnewihe has been doing that since she was little and there is every reason to think that it will continue as she prepares to compete on the next level.
Photo: Ocean City’s Naomi Nnewihe / Marc Narducci
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Author: Marc Narducci
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