If you told Covington senior Kloe Bradshaw five years ago she was going to play college soccer, she probably would not have believed you.
At that point in her life, she had never played organized soccer. But, as then Covington coach and current Dyersburg State coach Robert Luttrell has been known to do, he noticed a good athlete and convinced her to give the sport a try. Luttrell also coached Kirby Bradshaw, Kloe’s older sister, at CHS and Dyersburg State.
After an excellent high school career, Kloe decided to pursue soccer even further. On Monday afternoon she signed a soccer scholarship with DSCC.
“Honestly, it wasn’t my first option as a sport but I got talked into by Coach Luttrell,” Kloe said with a laugh. “When I started playing I loved it. When I was offered (the scholarship) I accepted because I thought maybe this was meant to be.”
Bradshaw is a good all-around player, but she’s best known for her strong and accurate left leg. She was Covington’s second-leading scorer last season and was second in the state with 20 assists, most of which came on crosses from her left wing position.
“Probably, in my opinion, (she has) the best left leg in the county,” Luttrell said. “She’s elite in that aspect. Good work ethic. Just super athletic and a wonderful teammate.”
When Luttrell moved on to coach at DSCC, Rusty Richardson took over as Covington’s coach. It was Bradshaw’s sophomore year. She missed that season with an injury but came back strong her final two years of high school soccer.
“I’m very proud of Kloe,” Richardson said. “We really missed her when she was injured. She’s going to be great at the next level.”
Said Bradshaw: “I was kind of iffy on playing college soccer. I thought maybe I’d just get on with my life, but I thought a couple more years would be fun.”
