Women's Soccer Preview, Part 5: Wright State

Aug. 19, 2006

Competition sums up the Wright State women's soccer team heading into the 2006 season under second year head coach Pat Ferguson. The Raiders will look to compete for their second regular-season League championship and their fourth tournament championship while the incoming freshman class, ranked tops in the Horizon League by SoccerBuzz.com, will look to compete with a group of veterans for playing time at every position. Coach Ferguson brings a group of seven freshmen into the mix and will look to use a solid base of returnees to help the Raiders through a tough schedule and deep into the postseason.

Forwards

"The scoring will be our issue from the forward position," coach Ferguson said. "After losing our top scorers from last season we will look to replace the offensive void and I am confident that our returning players will step-up this season."

With the departure of graduated seniors Michelle Sarmiento and Kim Chianese, the Raiders will look to four young players to fill the void at the forward position. The two departed forwards combined for ten goals and six assists in 2005, but junior Jen Hansen and sophomores Amy Miller and Kristen Olsen bring a speedy attack to the front line. Hansen tallied three goals last season, making her the second leading goal scorer to return in '06, and Miller and Olsen each return after netting one goal apiece during their freshman campaign. Newcomer Ashley Vaughan will be thrown into the mix and challenge for playing time on the front line

Midfielders

"Our midfield will be the deepest part of our roster," head coach Pat Ferguson said. "This is our deepest unit and we have a strong group of returnees to help guide our younger players into this season."

Returning both of their All-League performers from last season the Raiders will have an experienced and quick attack during the 2006 slate. Jess Rooma, the Horizon League Newcomer of the Year and All-League First Team member, joins the midfield attack and pairs with Jodie Shoaf, a 2005 First Team selection, to give the young Raiders an experience duo for teams to worry about. Shoaf returns as the highest remaining scorer from 2005 and looks to eclipse her five goals from a season ago while Rooma looks to be an offensive threat in the midfield this season after tallying only one assist last season from her defensive position. Also returning in the midfield for WSU are Katie Comisar, Desirè Morris and Rose Nigro. Nigro and Comisar each tallied one goal in 2005, each of those goals being the decisive goal in a Raider victory, while Comisar added an assist to her resume during the '05 season. Morris gives the Raiders a lot of speed on the outside and is a scoring threat from the midfield. Last season Morris played in all 19 games, averaging a shot a game, and tallied two marks and added three helpers during her sophomore season.

The newcomers in the midfield include duos from California and Ohio and will look to compete for starting positions when the Raiders open their season. Megan Bush and Abby Mink each come to WSU from schools in the Lakota School District, but join the Green and Gold as high school rivals, with Mink coming from Lakota West and Bush from cross-town Lakota East. As for the two West Coast newcomers, Sara Meisner and Nicole Amador, they join the Raiders after solid prep careers that have prepared them for the challenge at Wright State.

Defenders

"The unit that will help carry us through the early part of the season will be our defense even though they lack the depth of our other units," coach Ferguson said. "This is probably our most skilled unit and has the potential to make a big impact this season."

Five returning players and one newcomer make up the Raiders defensive backfield for the 2006 season. Senior Carlin Lucente and juniors Cassie Jones and Megan Mattioda give the Green and Gold it's most experienced unit on the field in 2006. Stephanie Habner and Alicia Philips, the two sophomores of the group, each look to contribute to the squad in 2006 as they each did in '05 and freshman Lorrin Bertsch will look to make waves in the defensive backfield for WSU after a strong career at Lakota East High School. Lucente and Jones bring the most experience at the defensive position for the Raiders while Mattioda moves from the midfield to help out on the defensive side of the ball. Habner appeared in 18 games as a freshman last season, tallying a goal against Cleveland State, and Phillips looks to add to her limited playing time from last season.

Goalkeeper

The Raiders head into 2006 with a steady hand in the goal in two-time Second Team All-Horizon League keeper Steph Comisar. The senior will mind the net for the fourth straight season and looks to solidify her place a one of the top-keepers in League history. Comisar become the only Raider keeper in school history to post back-to-back seasons with a Goals Against Average of under 1.00 and could join an exclusive club in the Horizon League if she can do it for a third straight season. Comisar allowed 18 goals in 18 games as a freshman, 18 goals in 19 games as a sophomore and 19 goals in 19 games during her junior season for a career GAA of 1.01. Join Comisar in the net will be freshman Kristi Brendlinger who was a four-time all-conference selection while at Austintown Fitch High School.

The Schedule

The Raiders start the season with one of the toughest schedules in the Horizon League as they play their first five of their first six games away from home and battle a ranked opponent to open the season. The Raiders open their season at pre-season #21 Nebraska and then travel to take on in-state rival Ohio before battling a pair of foes from Kentucky. While in the Bluegrass State the Raiders will tangle with Louisville and Eastern Kentucky before coming home to take on Kent State at Alumni Field. The Raiders then take on Duquesne on the Road and Eastern Illinois, Bowling Green and IUPUI in home matches before opening the Horizon League slate on the Road at Loyola. The Raiders then take on UW-Green Bay and UW-Milwaukee at home and Butler in Indianapolis before taking on Big Ten power Ohio State in Columbus. After a visit to Cleveland State to square off with the Vikings the Raiders close out the season with IPFW, Youngstown State and Detroit on their home turf.

Story provided by WSU Office of Sports Information