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Soccer Lands Talented Signee, Kelci Bowers

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Soccer Lands Talented Signee, Kelci Bowers

Baton Rouge, La. – The LSU soccer program has landed a quality addition to their backline with the signing of defender Kelci Bowers, head coach Sian Hudson announced on Tuesday.

Bowers will come to LSU and be a mainstay in the lineup for years to come. She brings a wealth of experience having earned caps with the youth national squad for England, Chelsea Women’s Football Club, and the Southampton Football Club.

“Kelci is a massive addition for our team and we are thrilled that she has chosen LSU the place to call home for the next four years to grow as a player and person,” Hudson said. “She has competed at the top youth level in European soccer with appearances for Chelsea and England youth national teams. She has all the qualities to be a top, top player in the collegiate game here in the States.

“Her ability in possession to control the tempo of the game and build attacks is why she will excel with our style of play. She has the physical attributes and defensively qualities to compete against the best attacking players in the SEC and NCAA. On top of all that, Kelci has the drive and competitive spirit to be successful, and she’s a great teammate. LSU fans will love watching her stifle attackers and control play for us during her time at LSU.”

A native of Fareham, England, Bowers been called up to every fixture and training camp for the England under-18 squad this season. A member of the England National Youth Program since she was 14, Bowers has travelled with England youth teams to events in Belgium and Portugal including the Algarve Cup at the age of 17 where England faced off against the Netherlands and Norway; she was also called up to the England U17 squad for the UEFA Development Tournament.

With Chelsea FC, Bowers was a member of the squad that won the 2021-22 FA Women’s Super League U21 Southern Division title with a record of 15-4-2. Chelsea finished as the runner-up overall in the Barclays FA Women’s U21 Super League for the 2021-22 season as well. Bowers scored the game winner in the 94th minute of Chelsea’s win over the UK Armed Forces squad on Remembrance Day 2021 at Kingsmeadow. She’s also been involved with and has trained against Chelsea Women’s top squad this season.

Prior to landing at Chelsea, Bowers starred as a very successful central defender at Southampton Football Club. While at Southampton, Bowers helped the club to the under-16 Women’s Super League Southern Division championship before the finals of the U16 FA Youth Cup finals were cancelled due to Covid-19 in 2020.