2003 WIAC Women's Soccer Preview

2003 WIAC Women's Soccer Preview

Madison, Wis.--University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point, which has captured six consecutive conference championships, is favored to win the 2003 Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (WIAC) women's soccer title, according to the league's sports information directors.

The Pointers received seven of nine first-place votes in the league poll and have posted 15 consecutive winning seasons, which is the sixth longest current streak in NCAA Division III. UW-Stevens Point owns a 52-4-2 record in its last 58 matches and a 37-1-2 mark in the last 40 regular season contests.

UW-Eau Claire received the remaining two first-place votes in the conference poll and is picked to finish second, while UW-Oshkosh is pegged third in nine-team league derby.

Following is brief preview of each WIAC women's soccer team, listed in alphabetical order.

UW-Eau Claire (17-4-1, 6-1-1 WIAC)

With three returning All-WIAC selections, a solid defense which posted nine shutouts and an offense that led the league with 82 goals and a 3.73 goals per game average in 2002, UW-Eau Claire looks poised for another solid season.

Despite losing Jullia Powell, an All-Central Region Second Team performer from last season, the Blugolds look strong on offense as they lost just two seniors from a year ago. Heading the list of key offensive returnees is junior forward Kris Unterweger, who finished the 2002 season second on the club with 30 points, including 12 goals. Also returning is junior midfielder Kiley Zellner, who earned All-WIAC honors after totaling 11 goals a year ago.

Adding depth to the scoring front are sophomore Marcia Foltz and senior Kacie Fry. Foltz totaled five goals and five assists in 2002, while Fry chipped in three goals and five assists.

The Blugolds return one of the strongest defenses in the league led by senior Maleia Damato, who earned All-Central Region First Team accolades a year ago. Also returning to the Blugold defense is senior Becky Smith, an All-WIAC performer last year, and senior Erin Ziech. Both Damato and Smith anchored a defensive unit which was particularly stingy last September when it posted five consecutive shutouts. Damato scored three goals, while Smith added four assists from the defensive third in 2002.

The Blugolds open the season on August 30 when they travel to Rochester, New York to face two-time defending NCAA Division III national champion Ohio Wesleyan. The Battling Bishops will bring a 45-match winning streak into the 2003 campaign.

UW-La Crosse (6-12, 3-5)

UW-La Crosse head coach Sara Burton returns 12 letterwinners and seven starters for her 10th season in charge of the Eagles.

Leading the returnees is senior defender Amanda Pickett, a two-time All-WIAC selection, who is the third defensive player in school history to earn all-league honors in multiple seasons. Pickett started all 18 matches last year, helping the Eagles finish with 1.76 goals against average.

Joining Pickett at defender are junior Jayna Stransky and senior Jamie Verhelst. Stransky recorded six points and tied for second on the team with four assists in 2002. Sophomores Khyl Sircy and Sarah Swoboda will also see time at defender. Swoboda, who recorded six points last season, could also play at midfield.

Junior midfielder Julie Taylor returns after leading the Eagles in goals (8) and points (20) last season. She also recorded four assists. Taylor, an All-WIAC selection as a freshman, has scored 14 goals in her two-year career. Senior Meghan Flahive returns after leading the team with five assists last season. Juniors Sara Schroedel and Shannon Patterson will both see time at midfield, along with sophomore Ashley Marshall and freshman Ashley Kumlien.

At forward, junior Cynthia Fudzinski is back after finishing second in goals (7) and points (15) last season. Juniors Jenny Gellerman and Leah LeFebvre will also play at forward. Gellerman finished third on the club in scoring last season with 12 points, tying for second in assists (4) and third in goals (4). LeFebvre scored two goals and tallied five points in 2002.

The Eagles will look to fill the void in goalkeeper with the graduation of four-year starter Jessica Gammey. Junior Angela Koehn played in three matches in 2002, allowing no goals in 49 minutes of action. Sophomore Stephanie Harbaugh participated in five matches, finishing with an 0.88 goals against average.

UW-Oshkosh (10-10-1, 4-3-1)

With 10 players who started at least 10 of last year's 21 matches returning, an experienced UW-Oshkosh team has its sights set at finishing in the upper-division of the WIAC for a fourth consecutive season.

In all, fifth-year head coach Scott Haywood (45-27-3 record) welcomes back 14 letterwinners from last year's squad, which ended the season by winning eight of its last 11 matches.

The 2003 Titans will look toward senior defender Lindsay Rau to provide leadership to the group of returning veterans and corps of talented newcomers. Rau, who has started 45 matches for UW-Oshkosh the past three seasons, received All-Central Region Second Team accolades a year ago. Rau was extremely instrumental in helping the 2002 team record nine shutouts and compile an 1.24 goals against average.

Other veterans back are junior midfielder Karin Reinke (10 starts), sophomore defender Amanda Delk (1 start), senior midfielder Erin Katzenberg (19 starts), senior midfielder Amy Robel (20 starts), sophomore midfielder Nicole Kunick (12 starts), senior defender Sandie Brink (17 starts), junior forward Kristi Olejnik (11 starts), sophomore defender Stracy Stroud (11 starts), sophomore defender Kristen Malstrom (14 starts), sophomore forward Amy U'Ren (1 start), sophomore goalkeeper Christine Barutha (5 starts), sophomore goalkeeper Kristin Grandberry (2 starts) and junior goalkeeper Sara Tomjanovich (12 starts).

Kunick and Reinke return as the Titans' top offensive threats after counting four goals a year ago. In goal, Tomjanovich leads the returning trio after registering an 1.29 goals against average last season.

UW-Platteville (2-16, 1-7)

UW-Platteville will look to go in a new direction under first-year head coach Chris Bianchi, who comes from Pittsford, N.Y. He has experience playing at the NCAA Division III level while at St. John Fisher (N.Y.).

Bianchi's first task in building the Pioneer program is to add players. He anticipates 30 players coming in for preseason practices, including several key returners. Jessi Jones, the first player in school history to earn All-WIAC First Team honors, is back for her junior season. The two-time all-league player tallied five goals and three assists a year ago.

Seniors Becca Humphrey and Rachel Melville bring experience and leadership to the club. A chief concern is replacing four-year starting goalkeeper Amy Shuman, with sophomore Tasia Richter being a prime candidate to get the starting nod this season.

UW-River Falls (13-5-2, 4-3-1)

UW-River Falls accumulated the most wins in program history last year and will try to repeat that success under second-year head coach Sean McKuras, who has 11 letterwinners to build around in 2003.

Among the nine letterwinners lost from last year's club is forward Amy Gilfillan, who established new league single-season records with 36 goals and 76 points to earn All-WIAC honors. Defender Libbi King, another All-WIAC performer from a year ago, is also gone from the 2002 squad.

Leading the returnees is senior goalkeeper Apryl Jennrich, who earned All-WIAC accolades after finishing with an 11-5-2 record and an 1.42 goals against average last season.

Returning at midfield are senior Jenn De Martino, junior Emily Rodgers and sophomore Gina Hawkins. De Martino posted three goals last year, while Rodgers finished third on the team in scoring with four goals and 10 assists for 18 points. Hawkins added one goal and four points to the Falcon attack.

UW-Stevens Point (18-1-2, 8-0)

Expectations are always high for the UW-Stevens Point women's soccer team and that's nothing different for the Pointers in 2003. With two returning All-Central Region First Team forwards and a solid defense back in place, there's reason to expect the Pointers to contend for another WIAC title this season.

UW-Stevens Point has won 10 of the 11 all-time WIAC titles, including six straight crowns. The Pointers are 79-0-2 all-time in WIAC regular season matches and have won a NCAA all-divisions record 66 straight conference matches.

Seniors Jenny Bruce and Kelly Fink are both among the top 10 all-time scorers in WIAC history as Bruce has 113 career points and Fink, an All-America Third Team choice last year with 59 points, enters her final season with 108 career points. Also back to help the offense is senior midfielder Andrea Oswald, who has 66 points over the past three years.

UW-Stevens Point's defense led the WIAC last year allowing just 16 goals in 21 matches. Junior Tara Schmitt is a returning All-WIAC performer and is joined by three other returning starters in juniors Mollie Kreibich and Melissa Becker and sophomore Katie O'Leary.

UW-Stout (7-5-5, 2-2-4)

Underclassmen will have to take on the scoring roles for the Blue Devils, who lost all-time leading scorer Nellie Sivertsen to graduation. But the youngsters should be up to the task.

Sophomore forward Kelly Stolarczyk took much of the scoring pressure off Sivertsen last year, punching through 10 goals and adding three assists. Sophomore Heidi Schultz added three goals and delivered five assists. Junior midfielders Carrie Schrank and Krista Hight were the team's assists leaders, with Schrank passing off eight and Hight six. Schank also added two goals of her own.

Junior goalkeeper Melissa Ballweg started the final 16 matches of the season and posted a goals against average of 1.17. She recorded 97 saves a year ago and was the benefactor of a strong defense that allowed a school record 20 goals. Seniors Diane Ehlen, Sarah Geiger and Desiree Nardini return to the defensive backfield. Nardini is back after a year off due to injury, while Ehlen missed nine contests due to injury in 2002.

Matches will again be played on campus as soccer continues to make improvements on Nelson Field, the first women's-soccer-only lighted stadium in Wisconsin.

UW-Superior (1-19, 0-8)

Head coach Chris Perez enters his third season at UW-Superior where he has made competitive strides and hopes to continue the trend this year.

Perez will look to senior midfielder Gina King to lead his young squad after she was named the team's Most Valuable Player each of the last two seasons. He will also look to junior midfielder Erin Pride and junior defender Jesse Pride to help King provide scoring punch and leadership.

The Yellowjackets welcome four freshmen to the squad this year in Valerie Golden, Crystal Hamski, Hanna Morzenti and Rachel Sawyer.

Perez looks forward to a favorable non-conference schedule that opens with Presentation College (S.D.) on August 30.

UW-Whitewater (10-8-2, 4-3-1)

The Warhawks have recorded three consecutive double-digit winning seasons under fourth-year head coach Greg Henschel and look to continue the trend with just two seniors gone from last year's club.

If the coaching maxim that winning teams are built on defense holds, then UW-Whitewater has the foundation. All three goalkeepers from last year's squad are back (senior Julie Kriedemann, 1.23 goals against average in 8 matches; junior Jamie Carollo, 1.47 in 13; sophomore Leah Chehade 0.00 in 2). The defense, which combined for six shutouts, returns junior Lauren Cervero and sophomores Ecatorina Clementi, Jamie McLaughlin and Ashley Tranchita.

The midfield can count on a versatile group of experienced players, including Staci Gustafson enters her senior year second in career assists and fourth in goals in the Warhawk record book. Seniors Christin Acklam and Anne Larimer, juniors Katie Feyrer, Allison Starch and Sara Walkington and sophomores Melissa Dirnbauer and Ashley Willich each played in at least 10 contests in 2002.

Gustafson won't have to carry all the offensive load, with 2002 leading scorer senior Dani Daggett (16 goals, 36 points) back, along with sophomores Jacie Hein (20 starts, 16 points) and Stephanie Gaal (6 goals in 11 games). Daggett earned All-WIAC honors last season.

2003 Preseason Predictions (Voted on by WIAC Sports Information Directors)

1. Stevens Point (7)
2. Eau Claire (2)
3. Oshkosh
4. Whitewater
5. River Falls
6. La Crosse
7. Stout
8. Platteville
9. Superior

( )--First-place votes

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