University of Georgia Athletics
Quick Chat: Ellie Gilbert
September 21, 2022 | Soccer, The Frierson Files
By John Frierson
Staff Writer
Basketball was never Georgia soccer midfielder Ellie Gilbert's sport. She said she gave hoops a try in middle school and came away with the nickname "Butterfingers."
A sophomore from Atlanta, Gilbert is in her comfort zone on the soccer field, where she started nine games as a freshman last season and has started every game so far this fall. Heading into Thursday's SEC matchup with No. 8 South Carolina at the Turner Soccer Complex, Gilbert has notched a goal and an assist for the Bulldogs this season.
During a recent Quick Chat, Gilbert talked about her start in the sport, her favorite food, the best class she's taken at Georgia, and much more. Here's some of what she had to say:
Frierson: Who is the funniest person on the team?
Gilbert: There are a lot of them, but I think I'm going to have to go with Alexis (Parker). She always has the perfect thing to say and knows how to make everybody laugh. She has a comedic side to her, but I also think some of it is unintentional.
Frierson: If you could play any other position on the field, what would it be? Or is there one that you absolutely do not want to play?
Gilbert: Well, I know I don't want to play keeper. That is so impressive and I'm so grateful for them — I could never, ever do that [laughs], nor do I want to. I think one I would love to play is center forward. That would be really cool to go and score.
I'm more of a defensive midfielder, which I like, but I'd love to be able to play forward.
Frierson: What other sports did you play growing up?
Gilbert: I started playing soccer when I was 4, and that was really my main sport all the way through. I played with the same club, Tophat in Atlanta, and I just played soccer from then all the way through high school.
I tried basketball for a little while in middle school and my nickname was "Butterfingers." [Laughs] I stopped that one.
My mom actually played at the same club where I played, so it was definitely a family sport. My dad played soccer for a little while but he mostly played basketball, so that's why I tried basketball. For me, it was mostly just soccer throughout.
Frierson: Is "Butterfingers" part of why you have no interest in playing in goal?
Gilbert: It could be [laughs]. My hand-eye coordination is just nowhere near where my foot-eye — I don't know if that's a term — coordination is [laughs], so I'm just going to let (goalkeeper Liz Beardsley) do her thing in there. And I'll stay out of the goal.
Liz will just throw her body around and it's so impressive to me. It's something she has to do but it's also something she's willing to do, which I admire.
Frierson: What movie have you seen more than any other?
Gilbert: I've got to think about that one. It's probably because it's a Christmas movie, but "Elf" is a movie I could recite a lot. I think if you pushed play, I could probably say a lot of those lines.
Frierson: What's something you could eat every day and never get tired of it?
Gilbert: OK, I think most people on the team would probably know this one, but my answer is bagels. I have bagels all the time. I think it's just because it's easy and I like them, so I think it's bagels or pasta.
Frierson: What is your perfect bagel?
Gilbert: That's a good question. There is Ideal Bagel here and Athens Bagel Company, but that one's been under renovation for a while, so I mainly go to Ideal here. Wherever I go, whether it's there or maybe Einstein in Atlanta, I'll get the Nova Lox bagel. It has cream cheese, salmon, onions and capers. It's not everyone's favorite but I like it a lot.
Frierson: What is the best class you've taken so far at Georgia?
Gilbert: It's one that I just started, my Intro to Sports Management class. That's the first step toward my major — I'm majoring as of now in Sports Management. It's super interesting because it's very focused on what we're going to be doing after college, and how to get there.
There are some people that know exactly what they want to do. Even before the step foot in college, they know what their path is. For me, I have a lot of interests, and I've never really had one goal that I wanted to do, so it's really nice to have a class that gives you a bunch of ideas and inspiration for different ways you can use your degree.
(This Q&A was lightly edited for length and clarity.)
Staff Writer
Basketball was never Georgia soccer midfielder Ellie Gilbert's sport. She said she gave hoops a try in middle school and came away with the nickname "Butterfingers."
A sophomore from Atlanta, Gilbert is in her comfort zone on the soccer field, where she started nine games as a freshman last season and has started every game so far this fall. Heading into Thursday's SEC matchup with No. 8 South Carolina at the Turner Soccer Complex, Gilbert has notched a goal and an assist for the Bulldogs this season.
During a recent Quick Chat, Gilbert talked about her start in the sport, her favorite food, the best class she's taken at Georgia, and much more. Here's some of what she had to say:
Frierson: Who is the funniest person on the team?
Gilbert: There are a lot of them, but I think I'm going to have to go with Alexis (Parker). She always has the perfect thing to say and knows how to make everybody laugh. She has a comedic side to her, but I also think some of it is unintentional.
Frierson: If you could play any other position on the field, what would it be? Or is there one that you absolutely do not want to play?
Gilbert: Well, I know I don't want to play keeper. That is so impressive and I'm so grateful for them — I could never, ever do that [laughs], nor do I want to. I think one I would love to play is center forward. That would be really cool to go and score.
I'm more of a defensive midfielder, which I like, but I'd love to be able to play forward.
Frierson: What other sports did you play growing up?
Gilbert: I started playing soccer when I was 4, and that was really my main sport all the way through. I played with the same club, Tophat in Atlanta, and I just played soccer from then all the way through high school.
I tried basketball for a little while in middle school and my nickname was "Butterfingers." [Laughs] I stopped that one.
My mom actually played at the same club where I played, so it was definitely a family sport. My dad played soccer for a little while but he mostly played basketball, so that's why I tried basketball. For me, it was mostly just soccer throughout.
Frierson: Is "Butterfingers" part of why you have no interest in playing in goal?
Gilbert: It could be [laughs]. My hand-eye coordination is just nowhere near where my foot-eye — I don't know if that's a term — coordination is [laughs], so I'm just going to let (goalkeeper Liz Beardsley) do her thing in there. And I'll stay out of the goal.
Liz will just throw her body around and it's so impressive to me. It's something she has to do but it's also something she's willing to do, which I admire.
Frierson: What movie have you seen more than any other?
Gilbert: I've got to think about that one. It's probably because it's a Christmas movie, but "Elf" is a movie I could recite a lot. I think if you pushed play, I could probably say a lot of those lines.
Frierson: What's something you could eat every day and never get tired of it?
Gilbert: OK, I think most people on the team would probably know this one, but my answer is bagels. I have bagels all the time. I think it's just because it's easy and I like them, so I think it's bagels or pasta.
Frierson: What is your perfect bagel?
Gilbert: That's a good question. There is Ideal Bagel here and Athens Bagel Company, but that one's been under renovation for a while, so I mainly go to Ideal here. Wherever I go, whether it's there or maybe Einstein in Atlanta, I'll get the Nova Lox bagel. It has cream cheese, salmon, onions and capers. It's not everyone's favorite but I like it a lot.
Frierson: What is the best class you've taken so far at Georgia?
Gilbert: It's one that I just started, my Intro to Sports Management class. That's the first step toward my major — I'm majoring as of now in Sports Management. It's super interesting because it's very focused on what we're going to be doing after college, and how to get there.
There are some people that know exactly what they want to do. Even before the step foot in college, they know what their path is. For me, I have a lot of interests, and I've never really had one goal that I wanted to do, so it's really nice to have a class that gives you a bunch of ideas and inspiration for different ways you can use your degree.
(This Q&A was lightly edited for length and clarity.)
Assistant Sports Communications Director John Frierson is the staff writer for the UGA Athletic Association and curator of the ITA Men's Tennis Hall of Fame. You can find his work at: Frierson Files. He's also on Twitter: @FriersonFiles and @ITAHallofFame.
Players Mentioned
Goalkeeper
/ Soccer
Midfielder
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