Multisport athlete to play soccer for GSU

Sara Oland paced the floor and talked on her cell phone Monday like a potential draft pick talking to an agent.

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But one of Greenbrier's most accomplished athletes already knew where she stood as she prepared to sign a soccer scholarship with Georgia Southern University.

Oland played soccer, basketball and softball all four years of high school.

Soccer and basketball were her primary interests, she said, with softball running third. Because of her small stature, she figured her best shot was in soccer, so she played in three travel tournaments before the season.

She caught the eye of the Eagles coaching staff and the hoop dreams were put on hold.

"Soccer, it doesn't really matter about size," Oland said. "I got quickness over most people. Basketball was kind of cut short because of my height."

Oland averaged nearly 18 points a game on the basketball court. She was part of a softball program that won region titles all four years she played and a state championship in 2004. And the Wolfpack soccer team is off to an undefeated start in Region 3-AAAA.

"She's a multisport athlete who had the opportunity to play three different collegiate sports," Georgia Southern coach Ashley Hart said in a release on the team's Web site. "So we're excited to get her to come play soccer."

Greenbrier girls basketball coach and athletics director Garrett Black said Oland's success in three sports is a rarity in an age where the push is for an athlete to specialize in one sport.

"People have their opinions on it. I'm against it," Black said. "I think Sara's a prime example of what playing three sports can do for you."

Oland's senior season has hit a speed bump.

Before signing her scholarship Monday, Oland went to the doctor for an MRI on her left foot. The results were positive for a stress fracture, and Oland expects to miss at least the next two weeks.

She said the injury occurred at the beginning of March.