New Trier soccer star Addy Randall has an unquenchable thirst to compete.
That has been true ever since she began playing sports as a young girl.
“I’ve always been super competitive,” Randall said. “I get it from my dad. He was a football player at Michigan, and that’s where I get that competitive side from.”
Randall’s father, Craig, was a backup quarterback on Michigan’s 1992 Rose Bowl team and later played three seasons at Tulane.
“I learned everything from him,” Randall said. “He’s my role model.”
Randall played as many sports as possible while she was growing up, but she said soccer was “just the one that stuck.”
Now New Trier’s opponents are stuck trying to guard Randall, a task that is becoming increasingly difficult with every passing year. After three varsity seasons, the junior midfielder has 68 goals and 60 assists, and she has helped the Trevians win two of the past three Class 3A state titles.
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“She is a special talent,” New Trier coach Jim Burnside said. “She is somebody who works. She is somebody who pushes herself. She pushes her teammates. She works for her teammates.
“She is everything and a little more. She is driven to attack, driven to defend and driven to just help her team win.”
The Trevians have won at an astonishing rate with Randall on the field. They have a 77-4-6 record during her career, including 27-1-1 this season, which they capped with a 2-1 win over previously unbeaten Naperville Central in the championship game at North Central College in Naperville on Saturday night.
Randall, a Northwestern recruit, scored the Trevians’ first goal against the Redhawks (22-1-1) and took the corner kick which resulted in junior midfielder Brooke Zabel’s game-winning goal with 9:45 left in the second half.
That came as no surprise to Randall or her teammates, of whom much is expected. The Trevians also expect much of themselves as they continue to add to a program legacy that includes eight state titles.
“There’s definitely high expectations playing at New Trier,” Randall said. “The legacy the girls before me have played for this program is insane, so I think it’s inspiring, and I think the pressure is on all of us.
“Being able to deal with it together has been really helpful, but there is definitely a huge expectation to win a lot of games when you have the New Trier jersey on.”
Randall has made an impact ever since she first donned the jersey as a freshman. She had 11 goals and eight assists that season, including two goals against St. Charles North in the state championship game, which New Trier won 4-3 on penalty kicks.
The Trevians were eliminated by Lane Tech in the sectional final last season but avenged that loss in the sectional semifinals this season.
Randall drew on memories of her performance in the 2024 state championship game, when starting goalkeeper Annie Fowler also was a freshman, as she prepared for Saturday.
“It was obviously so nerve-wracking being a freshman against mostly seniors, playing mostly with seniors, but it was a great experience,” she said. “Annie and I had that experience of playing in the state final, and it was really helpful for this year.”
The state finals are a familiar place for Randall, but she has evolved as a player and a person since her rookie year. She has become a veteran and one of the best players in the state.
“Freshman and sophomore years, I had great girls to look up to, great upperclassmen, and I still do this year,” Randall said. “I’m still learning so many new things, but I think as a junior you have the responsibility to teach the younger girls things that I’ve learned.
“Stepping into that role has been definitely different, but I’m grateful to do it. I have great upperclassmen who are willing to listen, and we have great leaders on this team who are helpful.”
Junior midfielder Dami Balogun said Randall is one of those leaders.
“She’s definitely stepped up more,” Balogun said. “She’s stepped into more of an encouraging role, picking everyone up with her, kind of pushing from behind.
“I definitely can see that difference from last season. She’s really positive. When I’m down on myself, she picks me up. We’re picking her up, too, obviously. We’re all being more encouraging and supportive of each other.”
Balogun, who scored a goal during New Trier’s 2-1 win over Edwardsville in the state semifinals, said Randall leads by example on the field, creating havoc for defenses who are torn between trying to stop her from shooting or making sure other players like Balogun are covered.
“She’s a great field leader, a great scorer,” Balogun said. “She’s really determined. Oftentimes when she gets the ball, she’s like, ‘I’m going to do something with the ball.’ That’s the kind of player I look up to her, who I aspire to be like.”
Randall led the Trevians in both goals and assists this season. She scored 32 goals and assisted on 24 others. No other teammate had more than 12 and 10, respectively.
“That’s what she does,” Burnside said. “She draws people to her, and then she takes it and can put it away or give it to somebody who is open. Her vision is great.”
Balogun loves to see it.
“It’s great when you have a teammate who can get you the ball,” Balogun said. “When you make a run, you know you can commit to that run because you expect her to get you the ball.
“And I think it’s great that she’s able to score, knowing that once she gets the ball, she’s looking to shoot, get a rebound. It definitely affects how I play as well as how we all play. So it’s been great playing with her.”
Defenses often double-teamed Randall this season, but she didn’t seem to mind having a tougher path to the goal.
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“I have great teammates around me to help me out with that,” she said. “I think a lot of it is just work ethic.”
Randall remains driven to find another gear.
“She just keeps getting better,” Burnside said. “She’s finding ways to score goals, to get assists, to defend, to control the game. What she does is continually strive to get better.”
Matt Le Cren is a freelance reporter.