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US Air Force Academy

U.S. Air Force Academy
 2169 Field House Drive USAF Academy,, CO 808409500
Division 1 Colorado Southwest
Public Small National competitor
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Laura Busby

Laura Busby enters her second season as head coach in 2023 following a 7-7-4 finish in her debut season. Busby's seven wins are the most by a first-year head coach in program history.


Air Force finished eighth in the Mountain West, going unbeaten (3-0-2) in its final five matches. Freshman Caeli Sherman, after scoring a team-high four goals with one assist in 18 matches, was named to the Mountain West All-Newcomer Team. Sherman’s nine points led all Falcon players, starting 16 of 18 matches. Sherman also led her team in shots (41) and shots on goal (19). She provided the lone score in Air Force’s 1-0 win over Colorado College in the 2022 season finale, earning the Falcons the inaugural City for Champions Cup.


Busby turned to goalkeeper Sydney Davis, who managed a breakout junior season, leading the conference in save percentage (.863) and was third in goals against average (.800). In spite of starting just 13 matches, Davis became one of only 11 goalies in Falcons history to record at least five shutouts in a season. Having allowed just 10 goals to 63 saves, her 4.85 saves per game was second in the Mountain West. Davis recorded a 5-4-3 record in her first true starting action for the Falcons.


Nearly half of her 2022 roster earned accolades inside the classroom, as 13 cadet-athletes were named to the Academic All-Mountain West Team following the conclusion of the 2022 season.


Busby was named head coach of the Air Force women's soccer program, following an announcement from Director of Athletics Nathan Pine on Monday, February 21, 2022. Busby, who most previously spent two seasons as an assistant at LSU, is only the third head coach in the history of the program.


"We are pleased to announce Laura Busby as our next head coach of women's soccer and to welcome her and her husband Hubert back to Colorado Springs and into the Falcon Family," Pine said. "Her energy, passion and leadership will be instrumental in moving our program forward. She showed a great understanding of our mission of developing leaders of character for the Air Force and Space Force, I cannot wait to work with her toward that end."


Busby comes to the Academy with familiarity of the Front Range, having worked with current LSU head coach Sian Hudson as an assistant at the University of Colorado-Colorado Springs.


"I want to thank Nathan Pine and the rest of the senior athletic department staff for entrusting me with the future of the Air Force women's soccer team." Busby said. "I have been so impressed by the people I've met and the genuine support they have for the program as well as the Academy."


Busby succeeds former head coach Larry Friend, who retired after 13 seasons leading the Air Force dugout.


"It is an honor to serve as the next head women's soccer coach and my staff will work tirelessly to ensure we are providing the best experience possible for our cadet student-athletes," Busby said. "I would also like to thank coaches Sian Hudson and Nikki Izzo-Brown for their support and mentorship throughout my career. I am fortunate to have some amazing female role models in my life and I look forward to providing that same mentorship to the current and future Falcons in my new role as head coach."


An All-American forward at West Virginia, Busby's two seasons at LSU were spent with an offensive directive. Her duties included crafting offensive tactics while honing the skills of LSU's attackers. In her first season with LSU, Busby helped the Tigers increase their goal output by 10 from the year before she arrived.


"During our time coaching together, Laura has proven herself to be an outstanding coach and administrator," said LSU head coach Sian Hudson. "Her tactical awareness, individual player development and overall mentorship of the players she has worked with has been integral to the success of the programs we have led. Laura will be a great addition not only the AFA, but also the Mountain West Conference and I look forward to watching the Falcon program grow under her leadership."


Prior to her two seasons at LSU, Busby was the head coach at Jacksonville University. During her time in Jacksonville, Busby aided two Dolphins to the Atlantic Sun All-Freshmen teams. One of those freshmen, Olivia Abdallah, led Jacksonville in goals in 2019 with five on the season, becoming the first freshman to lead the program in scoring since 2014.


Busby's first coaching stint alongside Hudson was in 2017 at UCCS, as the pair helped to guide the Mountain Lions advancement to the NCAA semifinals with a closing record of 17-5-1 on the season. The 2017 UCCS coaching group was named the Regional Staff of the Year in the South Central Region as they helped a UCCS program that went 3-12-1 in 2016 prior to their arrival to the aforementioned 17-5-1 record in 2017, capturing the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference tournament title for the first time in program history that season as well.


Busby had her first collegiate coaching position only a year and half removed from her playing days at West Virginia (2001-04). In her final season in 2004 under head coach Nikki Izzo-Brown, Busby was named a NSCAA Third Team All-American after making 21 starts for the Mountaineers, scoring eight goals while recording nine assists.


"I have had the privilege of coaching and watching Laura for over 20 years in the soccer world," said Izzo-Brown, who just completed her 26th season as head coach at West Virginia. "She is a terrific coach and mentor to her student-athletes. There is no doubt that with Laura leading the way, the Air Force women's soccer program will compete for championships. They are lucky to have such an incredible human being leading the way."


Busby was an assistant coach at Purdue University for three seasons (2006-08) before moving to Bucknell University as an assistant coach from 2009-11. She was a member of the Purdue coaching staff that helped the Boilermakers to the Big Ten Tournament title in 2007.


A native of Pottstown, Pa., Busby graduated with her bachelor's in physical education from West Virginia University in 2004, then earned her master's in athletic coaching education from WVU in 2005. She earned four letters for the WVU women's soccer team from 2001-04 helping the Mountaineers to the NCAA Tournament in each of those years.


She was a two-time NSCAA Scholar All-American in 2003 and 2004, recording 31 career goals, 15 of which were game-winners. Busby also registered 23 career assists during her four-year career for a total of 85 points. After her collegiate playing days, Busby turned professional and played for Pitea IF in Sweden. She also played in several semi-pro leagues in the states with the Chesapeake Charge and Colorado Pride. She was named the 2013 Women's Pro Soccer League All-East Player of the Year as a member of the Charge.


Busby will be accompanied by her husband, Hubert Busby Jr., in Colorado Springs.

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Lindsey Balconi

Lindsey Balconi enters her second season on the Air Force staff in 2023 after an upstart campaign following her first venture on the Falcons staff. Balconi was instrumental in helping guide Air Force to a 7-7-4 season, including a 3-0-2 finish over the Falcons final five games.


Balconi played a role in the striking prowess of freshman Caeli Sherman, who scored a team-high four goals with one assist in 18 matches. Sherman was eventually named to the Mountain West All-Newcomer Team. Sherman’s nine points led all Falcon players, starting 16 of 18 matches. Sherman also led her team in shots (41) and shots on goal (19). She provided the lone score in Air Force’s 1-0 win over Colorado College in the 2022 season finale, earning the Falcons the inaugural City for Champions Cup.


Balconi worked to maintain the Falcons success in the classroom, as 13 cadet-athletes were named to the Academic All-Mountain West Team following the conclusion of the 2022 season.


On March 23, 2022, head women's soccer coach Laura Busby made the first addition to her inaugural Air Force coaching staff when Balconi joined the Falcons as an assistant coach.


Balconi returns to Colorado Springs after working alongside Busby at LSU.


"Lindsey is an extremely hard working and passionate coach that I've had the privilege of working with for the past two years," said Busby. "Her relentless pursuit for excellence in all she does will benefit our cadet student-athletes on and off the field. She will lead our efforts in identifying and recruiting top talent across the country and will work primarily with our midfield block. I am grateful that Lindsey has chosen to join our staff and I'm certain she will play a pivotal role in helping to build a championship culture."


Lindsey Balconi joined the LSU soccer staff in March of 2020 after serving two years on head coach Sian Hudson's staff at the University of Colorado at Colorado Springs.


Balconi worked closely with LSU's backline during her two years in Baton Rouge, where her impact was felt greatly. A season ago, the Tigers defense contributed to eight clean sheets in 20 games, the second-best average in the SEC. LSU held opponents to a 1.23 goals against average in 2021.


The Tigers allowed only 20 goals in 19 matches played in 2020. The Tigers had six shutouts during the 2020-21 season, including five in their last eight games played. Maya Gordon was named to the All-SEC Second Team under the instruction of Balconi; Gordon showed a prowess for goal saving tackles while also being a consistent marker of the opposition inside the box on crosses.


During her time at UCCS from 2018-19, Balconi served as the assistant coach while also handling the team's strength and conditioning program. Her two seasons as assistant coach saw the Mountain Lions accumulate a record of 35-5-3 and earn bids to the NCAA Tournament in both seasons. UCCS earned the No. 1 ranking in the NCAA Division II polls for the first time in program history in 2019 and stayed there for seven-straight weeks while also claiming the program's first Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference regular season title.


Balconi served in a number of ways while at UCCS with tasks that included but were not limited to preparing training sessions, going over pre and post-game scout video reviews of opposing teams, and developing set pieces. Off the pitch, she recruited efficiently, served as the team's director of ops managing travel and hotel bookings, handled all equipment orders, and also helped update the program's social media pages.


Right after graduating from Cincinnati in 2009, Balconi co-founded and co-owned Balconi Top Training, an elite pro performance center that was based in Cincinnati, Ohio. It trained more than 500 athletes annually in a 9,000 square-foot facility.


Balconi designed and implemented personalized programs for women's soccer players at the U.S. National level and worked with more than 500 players annually. She also coordinated training programs for top Midwest clubs and local high school soccer teams. She was the financial and administrator officer for the company assisting in client relations, finances, technical support, sales, marketing, and advertising.


A standout Division I student-athlete from the University of Cincinnati, Balconi competed for the Bearcats from 2005-08, earning Big East Academic All-Star accolades all four years. A four-year starter, Balconi was chosen to be the team captain during her senior campaign in 2008.


Balconi was a prolific goal scorer on the high school level in Texas as she scored 46 goals and registered 30 assists en route to being named the Texas High School Gatorade Player of the year in 2003. Following her playing days at the University of Cincinnati, Balconi was offered a contract in 2009 to play professionally for the Buffalo Flash women's soccer club.


On the coaching level, Balconi holds a U.S Soccer B coaching license as well as a United Soccer Coaches Advanced National Diploma. Most recently, Balconi earned a United Soccer Coaches Coach Credentialing certificate.


Balconi graduated from the University of Cincinnati in 2009 with a degree in political science. She is married to Reneé Balconi and they have one son.

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Kaylyn Farrell

The 2023 campaign will mark assistant coach Kaylyn Farrell's second season as a member of the Air Force coaching staff. Farrell's primary duties include assisting the Falcons goalkeepers, an area where Air Force found mighty success in her debut season.


Farrell's tutelage aided goalkeeper Sydney Davis, who managed a breakout junior season in 2022. Davis led the Mountain West in save percentage (.863) and was third in goals against average (.800). In spite of starting just 13 matches, Davis became one of only 11 goalies in Falcons history to record at least five shutouts in a season. Having allowed just 10 goals to 63 saves, her 4.85 saves per game was second in the Mountain West. Davis recorded a 5-4-3 record in her first true starting action for the Falcons.


Having played a role in the Falcons success in the classroom, Farrell's dedication helped see 13 cadet-athletes named to the Academic All-Mountain West Team following the conclusion of the 2022 season.


On April 5, 2022, head coach Laura Busby announced the addition of Kaylyn Farrell to the Air Force women's soccer staff.


"Kaylyn and I met while we were teammates on the Colorado Pride W-League Team in 2015," said Busby. "She was a phenomenal player and is an even better person. She is one of the few goalkeepers I know who is just as good with her feet as she is with her hands. I have no doubt that our young keepers will be learning from one of the best."


Farrell joins the Air Force staff after serving as graduate assistant coach at the University of Colorado Colorado Springs. Farrell worked with the goalkeepers during the Mountain Lion’s 2019 campaign as they went 19-2-0 and entered NCAA DII tournament as the number one seed in the South-Central Region. During the 2019 season, UCCS claimed their program's first Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference regular season title.


Farrell helped develop goalkeeper Mollee Swift before going on to compete at Louisiana State University. Swift allowed only 10 goals during the Mountain Lion’s 2019 campaign, registering a 0.57 goals against average, third lowest in the region. Swift obtained United Soccer Coaches All-South-Central Region Third Team honors, was named to the NCAA Division II Conference Commissioner’s Association All-Region Second Team, and gathered second team Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference honors.


In addition to goalkeeper development, Farrell assisted with the strength and conditioning program at UCCS and executed numerous program logistics such as food and travel, lodging, digital media, summer camps, recruiting visits, and data analysis/tracking. Farrell also ran the Mountain Lion’s women’s soccer social media accounts.


During her collegiate career, Farrell (Smith) played three years at the Division I level, two years at Virginia Tech and one year at the University of Washington. At Virginia Tech, Farrell (Smith) started each NCAA Tournament match her freshman year as they reached the Sweet 16. She then started all 21 games during her sophomore campaign reaching the Round of 32 and remains second in school history in goals against average. Farrell (Smith) was named to the ACC Honor Roll both years. Farrell (Smith) also played one year at the Division II level at UCCS while earning a master’s degree and was named was named RMAC Goalkeeper of the Year and First Team All-South Central Region. Farrell has playing experience at the semi-professional level, having played for the Colorado Pride in the W-League, United Women’s Soccer League and the Women’s Premier Soccer League during their 2015, 2016, 2018, 2020, and 2021 campaigns.


Farrell holds a United Soccer Coaches Goalkeeping Level 3 Diploma. She has coached on the West Region ODP staff, Dynasty Goalkeeping Academy staff and at the club level for Pride Soccer Club and Real Salt Lake Soccer Club. Farrell has also worked for several years as a private goalkeeper coach for goalkeepers ages 6-18.


Farrell holds a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology and a Master of Arts in Counseling and Human Services. She is a National Certified Counselor and has worked as a clinical mental health therapist and school counselor. She and her husband Grant have two dogs, are Colorado natives and enjoy golfing.

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