Makenzie Page is a junior soccer player at Radford High School who has announced plans to continue her career at Radford University.
By Marty Gordon
NRVsports@ourvalley.org
Makenzie Page is only a junior at Radford High School, but she already knows where she plans to play soccer at the next level. Sunday, she announced her verbal commitment to nearby Radford University.
Page, who was second-team all-state Class 2 this past year and was named to the all-county/all-city team, is looking to major in business and considers RU one of the best schools for that. She was all-conference and first team all-region last year. She scored 19 goals as a junior and 28 the year before.
“Radford has a very competitive soccer team, and I believe I can make an impact. Radford is home, so it’s a win-win,” Page said.
Ben Sohrabi is in his 24th season as the head coach of the Radford University women’s soccer program. Coach Sohrabi has proven to be the most successful coach in the history of the Big South. He ranks first in league history in overall wins, overall winning percentage (min. 10 games), conference wins, winning percentage, tournament victories, tournament championships and NCAA Tournament appearances. He is second in league tenure and third in Big South Tournament percentage (min. 10 games).
His personal accolades include 2002, 2011, 2013 and 2018 Big South Coach of the Year honors and a pair of VaSID Coach of the Year nods (1997, 2008).
Sohrabi has led the Radford program since 1996 and is the only coach in RU women’s soccer history to post 100 or more wins and 10 seasons of 10 or more victories, including four of 15 or more. Among current Radford head coaches in all sports, Sohrabi has the most Big-South tournament titles. Of the program’s 107 Big South wins since 1993, the most among conference schools all-time, 97 have come on Sohrabi’s watch.
This past year, the Lady Highs finished 16-6.
Page’s goal as a senior this high-school season is to win the state title. “We have come so close, so many times, I just want to help make it a reality,” she said.
“I want to continue to progress as a player and work hard on improving my technical and tactical skills. This will be important for me so I can be ready for preseason at RU, when that time comes. I want to get stronger with using my left foot and my accuracy on long balls,” Page said.
She played basketball at Radford High this past winter and plays travel soccer for VBR Star in Roanoke year-round. She will play in the VBR Pro League this summer.
