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The first person that came to mind after Kelsey Huff was told the 2020 season was over due to the COVID-19 pandemic was her sister and teammate, Kaeli. USC’s promising season was cut short, and so was the Huff sisters’ career together.

Kaeli and Kelsey Huff started and ended the 2020 season as two-thirds of the Trojans’ starting midfield line. Kelsey said her favorite part playing alongside her sister was being able to work off of each other. Dodge, pick-and-roll, feed or double-team — you name it — Kelsey and Kaeli wanted to do it, together.

The two thought they had 11 more games to do so, too. But halfway through the bus ride to Arizona State on March 13, coach Lindsey Munday stood up and announced that word had just come in. The ASU game was canceled, and hours later, the season would follow suit. 

“Walking into that meeting room was probably one of the hardest, if not the hardest thing as a coach that I've ever done,” Munday said. “It’s just gut-wrenching, especially for the seniors. You picture your last season and you want to cherish every moment. Then this happened so abruptly. It was really, really difficult.”

In the abbreviated six-game season, Kelsey Huff scored eight goals, adding two assists and seven caused turnovers as a junior. Kaeli Huff, a senior, had three goals and five assists. She now joins her cousin Ellie Masera at Stony Brook for the last year of her college career.

The sisters likely will face each other at some point this season.

“Kelsey had to do that in high school, play with Kaeli, then Kaeli graduated and went on to college,” Munday said. “This is a similar thing. Obviously playing with people you’re comfortable with, there’s an adjustment and you sort of have to work through that.”

Kelsey Huff will lead a brand new midfield line. A dual threat, she can score off the feed or one-on-one. Her speed also allows USC to get a leg up in the transition game.

“Step one is making sure that we’re playing great defense and making stops and then encouraging our middies to play at a fast pace and push that transition,” Munday said. “We were really hitting our stride with that when the season got canceled. That’s going to be a major focus for us.”

Aside from junior midfielder Katie Ramsay, who grabbed 18 draw controls last season, Munday said the incoming freshman class will bring fierce competition for the remaining starting spots. Whoever runs alongside Kelsey Huff doesn’t change the fact that the lone Huff sister will be involved in end-to-end play.

“It allows Kelsey to really step up,” Munday said. “Be the leader that she is and continue to grow as a great player.”

TOP RETURNERS

Kelsey Huff, M, Sr.

Key to transition, Huff can sprint the full 100 yards if necessary or find the open pass up field. She can read and run the field.

Izzy McMahon, A, Gr.

McMahon scored 11 goals on a team-high 30 shots and also corralled 13 draw controls during the shortened season.

Riley Hertford, G, Sr.

The Pac-12’s leading goalie in nearly every statistical category, Hertford’s 56.1 save percentage ranked second nationally.

KEY ADDITION

Maddie McDaniel, A, Gr.

JMU transfer adds much-needed depth in the center circle, a sore spot for USC last year. McDaniel is a proven talent at center, securing 28 draws in just six games last season.

ENEMY LINES

“Losing a player like Kerrigan Miller — who is a special player, competitor and person — would be hard for anyone to recover from. But the combination of losing her and Kaeli Huff will be especially hard for USC. Kaeli is an unsung hero and she will definitely be missed as a cutting option. But USC still has Izzy McMahon, who plays with passion and heart in addition to her speed and strength. USC still has Riley Hertford and Lizzy Wagner, Nat Byrne and Morgan Kuligowski in the defense, which has always been the rock of the USC team. They will definitely still be a top team in the West, but I expect that Stanford will have a strong team to challenge them.”

“Extremely well coached and will overcome any challenges they face, including missing the fall. Missing a few key players but returning great ones. Always tough defensively and great goaltending. Offensively, they are dynamic, can beat you from everywhere on the field in every way. And you never know what they will throw at you. Grown a lot over the last year-and-a-half with Lindsey [Munday] and Deemer [Class].”

NUMBERS GAME

187

Draw controls grabbed by Maddie McDaniel in 68 games for James Madison. The pace (3.6 per game) higher than any Trojan last season makes McDaniel’s a circle favorite entering 2021.