Women's Soccer 2006 Season Preview
8/11/2006 12:00:00 AM | Women's Soccer
SOUTH ORANGE, N.J.-- Coming off a
With the death of junior Mary Jennings in June, the 2006 squad has added inspiration and motivation for a successful season.
“With the memories that we have from Mary, her competitive spirit, we’re going to use that emotion and make it very positive to try and achieve the goals that we set out to do,” Kempf-Townsley said. “Our biggest strength is that the girls are so close, and when something like this happens, they get closer. I think that our closeness we’re only going to be able to carry that onto the field.”
The 2005 team had many accomplishments. Senior Jen Michewicz and graduated senior Mary Ronau were All-Academic District 2 First team selections, while senior Megan Fenton was a second team nomination. Three Pirates, graduated senior Oriana Nierojewski, and seniors Katie Herr and Meagan DeWan, were named to the BIG EAST Weekly Honor Roll once in 2005, and junior goalkeeper Amanda Becker was named BIG EAST Goalkeeper of the Week. The team was also honored with a Public Recognition Award for Academic Excellence by the NCAA.
With the many successes of the 2005 season, and the strengths of the squad in 2006, the team has a lot to look forward to.
“Our goal is to take one game at a time,” Kempf-Townsley said. “We want to make it to the BIG EAST tournament and hopefully the NCAA tournament. I think we have a great core of players. I think we showed a lot of promise last year and hopefully we can build on that and improve.”
The offense will look to capitalize on scoring opportunities in the 2006 season, as the front line returns with more experience and depth than previous years. Seniors DeWan and Herr return as the top point scorers from 2005. DeWan led the team with 12 points, scoring four goals and handing out four assists, and Herr was tied for second with 11 points, notching four goals and three assists. The team will also rely on senior Rita Massot, who was a top reserve for the Pirates in 2005 and led the team in game-winning goals with two. Junior Katherine De Tata will be a top offensive threat, as she came on strong the end of the 2005 season and started 16 of the 18 games in 2005. Although hampered by an injury in 2005, junior Alli Donofrio is a strong asset to the offense, as she tallied three assists in the first three games last season. Freshman Mackenzie Yoke should push for playing time as well.
“I think we’re going to be very effective, because on any given day any one of our forwards can score goals,” Kempf-Townsley said. “I think at this level it’s really hard to rely on one individual. Each one of them brings to the team different strengths that we can use to our advantage.”
Senior Beth Troutman and junior Ashley Reinecke are the veterans of the midfield. Troutman started 12 games while playing in all 18 in 2005 and can also play the forward position. Reinecke has started every game in her career and is a key component to the Pirates transition up the field.
“Ashley is a competitor and very consistent,” Kempf-Townsley said. “Beth is a spark and motivates the girls by the way she plays.”
Fellow junior Kristen Ponichtera is also a threat in the midfield, as she was a high scorer two seasons ago and enters the upcoming season recovered from an injury last season. Senior Aubrey Ellzey adds another strong option, and could also fill some holes at forward as well. Senior Amanda DiDonato, who redshirted her junior year, will continue to provide a vocal leadership to the Pirates, and add depth in the midfield. Sophomore Cassie Gioia gained experience in 2004 and will push for playing time along with freshmen Katie Andreski and Kaitlyn Rogers.
The defense should be the strength of this year’s squad. Senior co-captain Jen Michewicz leads the defense for the second straight season. Despite suffering an injury following her freshman year, she has fully recovered and has become the backbone of the Pirate defense. Michewicz will receive support from fellow seniors Megan Fenton and Katie Pfister. Fenton is a versatile player for the Pirates, having seen time at both midfield and defense in previous years. Pfister started all but one game in 2005 and recorded one assist. Junior Maeve O’Donnell earned a starting role in the 2005 season, and sophomore Anne Anders started over half the games in her first season as a Pirate. Freshmen Kirah Hiltz and Megan Mills will add depth to the defense and will compete for playing time.
“The back line has players that have had a lot of playing time, a lot of experience,” Kempf-Townsley said. “They have played with each other. They know each other, they can communicate with each other, they are comfortable.”
Junior goalkeeper Amanda Becker returns to the Pirates as the starting goalkeeper. She held opponents to just a 1.64 goals against average and was an All-BIG EAST Third Team selection in 2004. Becker will be supported by junior Erin St. Angelo, who has been a behind-the-scenes inspiration for the Pirates the last two seasons.
“We’re looking for Becker to come back strong,” Kempf-Townsley said. “St. Angelo also had a very strong spring, and she’s going to add a lot of competition to the position. They should push each other.”
With depth, leadership and experience on the Pirates side, the 2006 soccer season should be a successful one as the squad looks to make its way to the top of the BIG EAST.
“This is the year to accomplish those goals,” Kempf-Townsley said.
