Women's Soccer Preview Part 8: Cleveland State

Aug. 24, 2005

The growing process will continue for the Cleveland State women's soccer this team this fall as the Vikings return to the field for their second intercollegiate season.

CSU understandably struggled through its inaugural season as injuries and inexperience limited the Vikings throughout the year.

But unlike last year when CSU sported a roster that consisted of 14 freshmen and no players with any Division I playing experience, second year head coach Derrek Falor has foundation to build upon this year as seven starters and nine letterwinners return from a year ago.

Add to the mix a group of 13 newcomers and Cleveland State is poised to produce some success on the field.

The Vikings learned a lot from their inaugural season, but as Falor noted when the CSU players reported to campus for the start of preseason practice, 2004 is but a distant memory and all eyes are focused forward on the future.

"We are light years ahead of where we were last year at this time," Falor said at the start of camp. "Our returners worked hard in the off-season to get stronger and more assertive and that gives them confidence on the field.

"The biggest areas where we have improved are in both depth and experience. Our returners have now each gone through the rigors of a college season and not only do they know what to expect, they can share that with the new players.

"We weren't very deep last year which forced us to play our starters longer. This year, I feel like we can go 15 or 16 players deep and keep the 11 on the field fresher," Falor said.

One big change for the Vikings on the field this year will be the positions of the veterans as Falor has moved several returning starters to different spots on the field.

"We did a lot of experimenting over the course of last year to determine where each player would ultimately be most effective at this level and that resulted in moving some players to new positions this year," Falor said. "We approach ever year with that same eye on our roster so that we can find the position where each player can really maximize their potential."

After playing their home games off campus last season, the Vikings will benefit from the completion of renovations to Krenzler Field this year. The natural grass surface of the 20-year old facility was removed in favor of the state-of-the-art FieldTurf artificial surface and the support structure put in place for a removable air-supported dome to be added once the soccer season ended.

"I didn't think we suffered too much from playing our home games off campus last year simply because we had never played on campus before so we didn't know what we were missing out on," Falor said. "Getting back on campus this fall will be a big step for us because it is important to begin building a home field advantage.

"Now that the Krenzler renovations are complete, we have one of the finest facilities in the country at our disposal to train on year round," Falor added. "That might be the biggest addition we have made."

The following is a position-by-position look at the Vikings this year:

Goalkeeper
The sophomore goalkeeper tandem of Allie Zajaros and Ashley Kidwell, who combined to play every second in the nets last year and lead the Horizon League in saves, both return this year but neither is expected to see much time in goal.

Zajaros has moved to defender after undergoing off-season shoulder surgery while Kidwell will sit out the season to concentrate on her academic performance. That leaves freshmen Erin Withrow and Melisa Mazanec vying for playing time with Withrow clearly in the lead for the starting spot.

Withrow was a three-time all-league choice in ay Glen Este High School in Cincinnati while Mazanec, a native of Parma, Ohio, was a two-time all-league pick at Valley Forge High.

"Erin is calm and composed and very clean with her collection of the ball," Falor said. "She makes good tactical choices and reads the game well. We are confident that she is ready to succeed in a starting role."

Defense
The return of two starters, the relocation of a third starter and the addition of four newcomers has helped to considerably strengthen the Viking defense.

Sophomores Maggie Pugliese and Shayna Back, who combined to start 33 of the 34 matches they played in last fall, return to the lineup this fall. They are expected to be joined by goalie-turned-defender Allie Zajaros and freshman Natalie Wilson in the starting lineup.

The experience of Pugliese and Back is even more critical considering the duo will provide the speed along the backline. Back is the quickest of the Viking defenders while Falor rates Pugliese as the team's top one-on-one defender.

"The return of Shayna and Maggie gives us a pair of experienced defenders that we can rely on," Falor said. "They were our best defenders last year and the gains that each made during the off-season will only make them stronger players this fall."

Even though she saw some duty on defense last year, Zajaros received the majority of her playing time in goal, starting eight matches in the net while playing on defense in five other matches. She is slated to team with Back to start as the two central defenders.

"Allie is an outstanding goalkeeper, but the impact that she is capable of having on defense is so great that we would most likely still be playing her there even if her shoulder was completely healed," Falor said. "She is big, physical and a very good organizer." Wilson will round out the back four as the left defender. She is quite technical, highly fit, and solid at building out of the back.

Depth was such a problem on defense last year that the Vikings entered the regular season without a capable backup. This year, Falor can turn to the trio of sophomore Andrea Loejos, a transfer from Akron who practiced with the Vikings during spring semester, and freshmen Missy Boehm and Callie Carrera for playing time off the bench.

"Our improved depth on defense will give us flexibility for some different playing combinations this year," Falor said. "Because we won't be forced to play four players for 90 minutes, we can keep our defenders fresh which can only make our defense better over the course of the season."

Midfield
The Vikings may be strongest in the midfield as sophomores Heather Clapacs and Amber Rasmussen return and will be joined by freshman Lisa Conway in the starting lineup.

Clapacs earned second team All-Horizon League and honorable mention All-Ohio honors last year after starting all 20 matches at midfield. She led the team with 43 shots, 20 of which were on goal, scoring one goal.

Rasmussen, a member of the Horizon League All-Newcomer team a year ago, played in and started 19 games last season but saw the majority of her playing time at forward. She had a hand in all four Viking goals last year, scoring one goal with three assists.

"The key to improving our offensive output this season lies in the midfield," Falor said. "In order to create more of an offensive impact in each match, we need to be able to win and control possession in the midfield. Heather and Amber were our best two playmakers last year and combined with the addition of Lisa Conway should give us three players capable of providing much creativity and solidity to our offense.

"By moving Amber from forward to midfield, we can use her decision-making skills to create more scoring opportunities and maintain greater strings of possession over the opponent for 90 minutes," Falor added.

The depth of the Vikings is obvious in the midfield as well, as sophomore Samantha Casey and freshmen Michelle Sanker and Nicole Borecki are slated to see time there as well. Casey started 19 of the 20 matches she played in last year, ranking fourth on the team with eight shots and tallying one assist.

"The midfield is another area where our improved depth will make us a better team," Falor said. "It will be beneficial to work several of our reserves into the rotation.

Forward
The least experienced area on the field this year will be up front where just one starter and two letterwinners return. Experience isn't everything however as five new players at forward will help to strengthen the position.

The lone returning starter up front is sophomore Jennifer Wieand, who is expected to be joined in the lineup by sophomore Melissa Wood, redshirt freshman Abbie Kakias, true freshmen Ashley Walchack, Angela Kormos and Jillian Lukasko, and sophomore Ashley Spahn.

Wieand clearly is the most-experienced of the Viking forwards. She started all 20 matches last year, leading the two with two goals and ranking second with 20 shots.

"Jennifer was one of our best offensive performers last year and she built upon that effort through some very hard work during the off-season," Falor said.

The Vikings will benefit this year from the return of Kakias to the field. Kakias, who Falor believed was one of the most outstanding members of the first recruiting class, missed all of last season after suffering a torn anterior cruciate ligament in her knee during the summer of 2004. She was slated to start at defender last year but is much more suited to playing an attacking role.

"Abbie targets strongly and should be one of our main goal-scoring threats this year," Falor said. "She has an excellent understanding of the game and the knack for making big plays. Sitting out all of last season following knee surgery has only served to motivate her to work harder and come back ready to make an impact right form the first game."

Wood, who played in 19 games and started four times as a freshman, is the only other letterwinner returning and should see playing time off the bench.

Standing out among the newcomers are the Ashleys -- Walchack and Spahn -- each of whom should see considerable action in the lineup.

"Ashley Walchack is a special player who will be a regular in the starting lineup for the next four years," Falor said. "She is very creative on the ball, is a quality finisher, has fantastic foot-skills and sparks every build-up with her boundless energy."

Ashley Spahn will add high quality depth as one of the wing forwards. She is the final new addition to the Viking's front three, coming in as a sophomore who transferred in from Tiffin University. Spahn played wing midfield for Tiffin in 2004 scoring one goal and handing out eight assists her during freshman year. "I expect Ashley Spahn to give us a boost in speed up front as well as working hard to get wide and serve in crosses."

Schedule
The Vikings open the 2005 season with their first four matches away from home, sandwiching matches against Mid-American Conference opponents Kent State (Aug. 28), Ohio (Sept. 4) and Akron (Sept. 9) around a Sept. 2 match at St. Francis. CSU finally returns home -- and plays its first match on Krenzler Field -- when it plays eight home contests in 11 matches starting with a Sept. 11 contest against Valparaiso.

The Vikings open the seven-match Horizon League slate at defending champion UW-Milwaukee on Sept. 30 before returning home for consecutive league contests against UW-Green Bay (Oct. 2), Detroit (Oct. 7) and Butler (Oct.9).

Following a home non-conference match vs. Southern Utah (Oct. 14), Cleveland State closes the regular season with three straight road league matches and the 2005 Horizon League Championship, which opens play on Nov. 3 at UW-Green Bay.

"This is a good, competitive schedule for us," Falor said. "We play several non-conference opponents early in the season who will push us to get better each game and prepare us well for Horizon League play."

Story Provided by Brian McCann, Cleveland State Sports Information