2023 Northwestern women’s soccer player previews: Ingrid Falls

Continuing our way through player previews for the Northwestern women’s soccer team, we find ourselves taking a look at Ingrid Falls. The forward out of Lake Forest, Illinois is entering her fourth year with the team, and fresh off a career high in games played in 2022, she seems ready to attack the latest campaign.

Who she is

Senior; forward; 5-foot-7; from Lake Forest, Illinois; played on the No. 4 club team in the country in 2019, played with Bridget Mitchell and Nicole Doucette since U8 team.

Career Stats

30.4 minutes per game; four goals; one assist; nine points; 70.6% shots on goal.

2022-2023 review

Falls’ 2022 campaign was one headlined by career highs. She notched personal records in minutes, assists, shots and games played.

Falls boasted a near full-game appearance against SIUE in the NCAA Tournament, tallying 87 minutes and a goal in the process. The then-junior also fired off three shots in the same postseason game — tied for the most in a single match in her time at NU.

In 22 games, Falls averaged just under 28 minutes a contest. She used her time on the field to tally two goals and an assist, good for five points.

Often coming off the bench, Falls packed a punch when it mattered. Her sole assist on the year catalyzed the game-winning goal against Vanderbilt in the second leg of the NCAA Tourney.

Expectations

Heading into what could be her final season — depending on whether or not she opts in for a grad year — Falls has a stage set for success. Having not seen the field in her freshman year, the forward hasn’t had the chance to max out her potential like some of her teammates.

She’s seen her usage hover around 30 minutes per game in the last two seasons, and seniority coupled with another offseason of training leaves the door open for that figure to climb in 2023. Falls earned the starting badge in a total of nine games over the last two years, signaling that there’s plenty of belief in her potential among the team’s coaching staff.

Falls joined the team as a first-year in 2020, a member of a COVID-19-impacted recruiting class that now flexes an abundance of team staples. As she embarks on what could be her final season in Evanston, there’s no telling what Falls could do. She’s experienced limited playing time in the past but has demonstrated a knack for the ball when she’s near it.