Women’s soccer team turning the page

By: Ian Van Anden
Sports Editor

The women’s soccer team has opened up the season strong. After adding 14 new athletes this summer, the Scots have re-geared for the 2006 season. Wednesday, Sept. 13, the ladies took on MacMurray College. They took the pitch looking for their third straight win.

In their match on Saturday, Sept. 9, the Scots faced Illinois College. They lit up the scoreboard in the first half, scoring four goals. Amanda Niera got the scoring off to a hot start with her goal in the 11th minute. Her efforts were quickly followed by a goal from the foot of Sarah Kisner in the 26th minute.

Three minutes later, senior captain Audrey Bellefeuille scored her first goal of the season. The first half scoring spree ended with a goal from Christa Davidson in the 43rd minute.

With the game well in hand, the Scots added another goal in the second half. Kristen Mertel ended the scoring for the game with her goal in the 66th minute.

The last time the Scots scored five goals was in their game on Oct. 23, which was 5-1 when they defeated Lawrence University.

In earlier action this year, the Scots won their first game of the season by beating the University of Dubuque 4-3. On Thursday, Sept. 7, the Scots were able to fend off a Dubuque comeback in the second half. After posting a three-goal lead, the Scots saw the game slip away as Dubuque scored three straight goals.

However, thanks to the efforts of Niera and Mertel, amongst others, the Scots were able to score the game-winning goal with only mere minutes remaining. Niera was able to find the back of the net with five minutes remaining on the clock.

In their season opener against Aurora University on Friday, Sept. 1, the Scots tied 1-1. Perhaps the biggest surprise of the game was the play of the Scots’ defense and their new goalie. Junior transfer Vanessa Kentfield had 12 saves for the Scots, allowing only one shot to reach the back of the net.

Freshman Christa Davidson had two shots on goal, one of which found the twine. In the 80th minute, Davidson blasted a shot by the Aurora keeper to tie the game with only 10 minutes remaining.

The team’s head coach, Barry McNamara, is excited about the team’s potential for this year. Despite the loss of two mainstays in Abby and Amy Horneck, McNamara sees a lot of potential in the women on the field this year.

“It is hard to lose a 20-goal scorer, but we have some girls that can score,” said McNamara. The coach believes the team is “very balanced in all four areas on the field. Friday, our defense really stepped up, along with our goalie. We know we can score. If we can keep the other team under two goals, we should be good.”

This year’s captains will be two seniors, Kristin Mertel and Audry Bellefeuille. According to McNamara, junior defenseman Laura VandeMoortel is doing a good job stepping up and helping direct the defense.

The team has set goals to make it to the conference finals and then let the chips fall where they may. Four years ago, the Scots began their rebuilding process after finishing winless.

The recruiting class four years ago is what brought in the Horneck sisters, McNamara says. Now the Scots have to start rebuilding again. This time, they will be starting over at a much higher level, he added.

This year’s team has its sights set on the only two conference teams that beat them last year: Grinnell and Carroll. By tying Aurora in their first game, the Scots have already shown they have improved. In last year’s game against Aurora, the Scots lost 4-0.

The Grinnell game, according to McNamara, “will be very telling of our season. We face them in the middle of the season, on Sept. 23. That game should be a good measuring stick.”

Coach McNamara is just hoping the team gets healthy. Over half of the team has suffered from some kind of ailment early in the season. “If our whole team is healthy, we can be very strong and balanced,” McNamara commented.

As for the outcomes for the rest of the year’s games, McNamara knows, “If we just throw our cleats on the field, we aren’t going to win.”

On Saturday, Sept. 16, the women will face MacMurray College in their fourth game of the season. On the following Wednesday, Sept. 20, the Scots will face Central College.