Women's Soccer Weekly Release #2

Sept. 3, 2007

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Horizon League Player of the Week

Amy Miller, Wright State
Junior * Forward * Springfield, Ohio
Miller played a part in all five Raider goals last weekend, scoring four and setting up the fifth as Wright State won its own tournament, defeating Jacksonville State and Austin Peay. She netted the hat trick in a five-minute span Friday versus JSU, and set up the first Raider goal Sunday before closing the scoring with a header for her fourth tally of the season.

Other Top Performances for the Week Ending September 2

Jenny Southard, Butler
Jr. * F * Noblesville, Ind.
Southard netted the match-winning goal as Butler edged MAC favorite Ball State 2-1 on Sunday for the Bulldogs' first victory of the year. Southard's goal was Butler's second in a four-minute span to erase a 1-0 deficit.

Amanda Stinson, Green Bay
So. * D * Green Bay, Wis.
Stinson came off the bench to score the second goal of her collegiate career Sunday, hitting the net for the lone Phoenix strike in a 3-1 loss at Western Illinois. She started Green Bay's season-opener at Illinois State.

Alexia Murray, Loyola
Jr. * F * Dubuque, Iowa
Murray was named to the Boilermaker Challenge Cup All-Tournament Team, peppering opposing goalkeepers with six shots in two matches. She had four attempts against Kentucky on Sunday.

Jackie Thomas, Valparaiso
Jr. * D * Overland Park, Kan.
Thomas scored the match-winner for the Crusaders versus Murray State on Friday, hitting the net in the 16th minute. She also led the Valpo defense that limited MSU and Illinois State to a total of 17 shots in two matches.

Erin Kreuser, Milwaukee
So. * M-F * West Allis, Wis.
Kreuser was the Offensive MVP of the Milwaukee Cup, setting up both Panther goals in Sunday's 2-1 victory over Washington. Her efforts led the Panthers to the tourney title for the first time in eight years.

Jordan Gapczynski, Youngstown State
So. * F * Wexford, Pa.
Gapczynski led the Penguins with two shots, one on goal, in Friday's season-opening 2-0 loss to Pittsburgh. She topped the team charts with 29 shots and five goals scored as a freshman last fall.

News From Around the League

Panthers start season on right foot
Milwaukee won the Milwaukee Cup for the first time in eight tries, defeating Indiana State 3-0 on Friday and edging Washington 2-1 on Sunday. It was the Panthers' first in-season tourney crown since capturing the Central Michigan Invitational title in 2000.

Sophomore forward Erin Kreuser was named the tournament's Offensive MVP after setting up both Milwaukee goals against Washington and scoring one of the Panthers' three goals in Friday's opener.

Freshman defender Sarah Talbert also found the net against ISU, becoming only the second freshman in UWM's Division I history to score in the team's season-opener. The first was current sophomore Louis Vraney, who accomplished the feat last year.

Vraney scored against the Sycamores, as well. She led the team with six goals and 14 points last season.

Kreuser was one of four Milwaukee players named to the all-tournament squad, along with junior midfielder Sarah Teegarden, senior midfielder Amanda Winn and freshman midfielder Heather Roadhouse. Talbert and Roadhouse started both contests as they made their collegiate debuts over the weekend.

Junior goalkeeper Erin Kane logged her League-record 27th career shutout against Indiana State.

Raiders run to pair of victories
Wright State stands at 2-0-0 after defeating Jacksonville State (3-1 on Friday) and Austin Peay (2-0 on Sunday) to win the Wright State Classic. The Raiders are 2-0-0 for the first time since 1990.

WSU is now 4-0-2 in in-season tournaments under head coach Pat Ferguson. Friday's victory was the 100th of Ferguson's career; he is now 101-70-18 in ten seasons overall, including a 25-8-7 mark in two-plus years at the helm of the Raider program.

Junior forward Amy Miller netted a hat trick in Friday's contest and added a goal and an assist in Sunday's victory. She was the only League player with more than one goal in the opening weekend, with four goals now giving her 13 markers and six assists in her last 18 matches dating back to last season.

Four freshmen started both matches for Wright State, with goalkeeper Meghan Hackerson notching a shutout on Sunday and forward Amber Kasmer collecting an assist Friday and a goal Sunday. Midfielder Jen Agueci and defender Lori Anderson also opened both contests on the field for Wright State to complete that quartet.

The Raiders hit the road for three matches during a busy week, visiting Ohio State on Wednesday before a weekend against Mid-American Conference opposition. WSU travels to Kent State on Friday and Toledo on Sunday.

Bulldogs salvage split from road trip
Butler stands at 1-1-0 after a challenging opening weekend on the road. The Bulldogs dropped a 3-0 decision at Ohio State on Friday but rallied to defeat preseason Mid-American Conference favorite Ball State 2-1 on Sunday.

Junior midfielder Angie Muir and junior forward Jenny Southard scored 3:43 apart early in the second half to overcome a 1-0 deficit against BSU. Senior goalkeeper Annalise Larkin made that margin stand up, stopping five shots to earn the victory.

Muir continued her scoring prowess, adding to a stat line that includes six goals and five assists in each of her first two seasons. Southard posted four goals and three assists in 2006.

Three freshmen---defender Sarah Phelps, midfielder Courtney Lord and defender Cara Burchett---started Sunday's victory, with two other freshmen (forward Lauren Papierski and midfielder Erin Duffey) coming off the bench. A sixth freshman, midfielder Alex Shaffer, made her collegiate debut as a substitute in Friday's match.

Both of Butler's first two opponents were ranked in the top-15 of the Soccer Buzz Great Lakes Region poll, with Ohio State seventh and Ball State 13th. That trend continues this week as Butler visits Louisville---ranked fifth in the region---on Sunday in the Bulldogs' only match of the week.

Crusaders split at home

Valparaiso carries a 1-1-0 ledger into the week after defeating Murray State 2-0 on Friday and dropping a 2-1 decision to Illinois State on Sunday.

Valparaiso has now won three consecutive season-openers.

Junior defender Jackie Thomas netted the match-winner against Murray State, hitting the net in the 74th minute while also leading the Crusader defense which held the Racers and Illinois State to a total of 17 shots in the two matches.

Junior forward Lori Johnson scored the lone Crusader goal Sunday, the 12th of her career. Valparaiso owned a 6-2 advantage in corner kicks but could not overcome two first-half goals by the Redbirds.

Senior goalkeeper Erin Murray extended her own school record with her 15th career shutout against Murray State. Murray stopped two Racer shots for the victory.

Freshmen Lynnea Pappas and Kylie Revelle started in their collegiate debuts versus Murray State.

Valpo remains in the Hoosier State for two matches this weekend, hosting IPFW on Friday before visiting former Mid-Continent Conference/Summit League rival IUPUI on Sunday. The Crusaders do not cross the state line until Sept. 21.

Penguins drop opening contest

Youngstown State lost its season-opener, a 2-0 defeat at Pittsburgh on Friday. YSU was out-shot 12-4 but sophomore Caitlin Bodzioney made six saves to keep the Penguins close. Bodzioney ranked 14th in the nation with an average of 7.82 saves per match as a freshman last season.

Sophomore forward Jordan Gapczynski had two of the Penguins' shots, with sophomore midfielder Natalie Brady and freshman forward Lauren Brennan also firing shots toward the net. Brennan, freshman midfielder Tara Morey and freshman forward Sierra Lawson all made their collegiate debuts in the contest.

Gapczynski led the Penguins with five goals---the most by a YSU player since 2003---last season, taking a team-high 29 shots (more than twice as many as any Youngstown State teammate).

Youngstown State allowed an unassisted goal 5:49 into the contest, with the margin climbing to 2-0 on an own-goal just over five minutes into the second half. The Penguins held Pittsburgh scoreless over the final 34 minutes for the final outcome.

YSU travels to Jacksonville, Ala., for the Gamecock Soccer Classic this weekend. The Penguins meet host Jacksonville State on Friday prior to Sunday's matinee versus East Tennessee State.

Ramblers fall short to Bluegrass State foes
Loyola dropped a pair of one-goal decisions in the Purdue Boilermaker Challenge Cup over the weekend, falling to Louisville 2-1 on Friday and suffering a 1-0 defeat at the hands of Kentucky on Sunday.

The defending League champions out-shot two of the region's top teams by a 24-19 margin, but could only hit the net once. Louisville entered the weekend ranked fourth in the Soccer Buzz Great Lakes Region rankings, one spot ahead of Kentucky.

Freshman midfielder Ashley Funk netted the lone goal for the Ramblers, pulling Loyola to within 2-1 in the 77th minute against Louisville. Sophomore forward Cyhthia Morote-Ariza set up the marker, continuing to run through the Loyola record books. Morote-Ariza posted school single-season marks with nine goals and 27 points last fall, sharing the League lead with her nine assists.

Freshman midfielder Laura Trevillian started in her collegiate debut Friday, with fellow freshmen Leah Ponticello, Lauren Gerbick, Nikki Staton, and Cara Morawski coming off the bench. In total, the Ramblers started seven underclassmen in Sunday's contest versus Kentucky.

The Ramblers come home for two matches this week, hosting cross-town rival DePaul on Wednesday before a Saturday contest versus La Salle.

Vikings drop two at home
Cleveland State lost a pair of home matches over the weekend as part of the CSU Fall Classic. The Vikings were defeated 3-0 by St. Bonaventure on Friday and suffered a 2-1 defeat versus DePaul on Sunday.

Freshman goalkeeper Kelly Zinkiewich made 19 saves in her first collegiate action. Zinkiewich stopped ten shots in her Viking debut Friday and nine more against the Blue Demons.

Freshmen also figured in the Vikings' scoring, as forward Sylvia Olsby hit the net against DePaul and fellow freshman Chrissy Lazarevich gained the assist. Six freshmen made their debuts over the weekend, with three (Zinkiewich, defender Emily Arpidone and defender Nicole Howard) in the starting line-up.

Cleveland State also beneited from the return of junior forward Jennifer Wieand, who took a team-high five shots in the two matches. Wieand was the Vikings' career scoring leader after the 2005 season but missed all of last fall with a torn anterior cruciate ligament. Wieand and fellow juniors Natalie Wilson and Abbie Kakias drew all-tournament acclaim last weekend.

CSU plays five matches nine days to open the season, including three road dates this week. The Vikings are at IPFW on Tuesday, at Temple on Friday and at Delaware State on Sunday. CSU beat Delaware State 6-0 in the opener last fall for the first win in program history.

Phoenix lose twice on trip through Illinois
Green Bay slipped to 0-2-0 on the season after two losses in Illinois over the weekend. The Phoenix fell 2-0 at Illinois State on Friday before a 3-1 defeat at Western Illinois on Sunday.

Sophomore defender Amanda Stinson registered the lone Green Bay goal Sunday, hitting the net for the second time in her career. Senior forward Jennie Gorwitz logged an assist, the fifth of her four-year tenure at Green Bay. Gorwitz leads all active Phoenix players with 13 goals and 31 points, including eight goals and 18 points last season.

Senior goalkeeper Brooke Wikgren recorded 11 saves in the two matches, giving her 211 in her career. Wikgren currently ranks sixth in Phoenix history in that department, needing 14 more stops to move into fifth place on the all-time school charts.

Three freshmen started both matches for Green Bay over the weekend, as forward Laura Hayward, midfielder Amber O'Connor and defender Chelsea Lyons were on the field for the opening touch. A fourth freshman, midfielder Kari Busch, drew the opening nod at Western Illinois.

The Phoenix continue a season-opening road swing this weekend with stops at Northern Illinois on Friday and Northern Iowa on Sunday. Green Bay finally makes its Santaga Stadium debut Sept. 12 versus Marquette.

Titans prepare for 2007 debut
(Note; Detroit was idle last week)
Detroit overcame a slow (3-8-0) start, winning seven of its last nine matches in 2006. UDM's run included victories over Green Bay and Milwaukee in the League Championship, putting the Titans in the final match for the fourth consecutive year under coach Mike Lupenec.

This year's group takes on a different look, however, with the loss of two-time League Player of the Year Mary Parker, who led the League in goals (17) and points (40) last fall. She also had six assists, playing a role in 79 percent of the team's markers. Senior midfielder Megan Canty notched six assists in 2006, but no returner scored more than one goal last season.

UDM welcomes back two players who missed all of 2006 due to injury. Sophomore midfielder Lauren Moss netted four goals and four assists to gain Second-Team All-League recognition in 2005, with sophomore forward Emily Kiely adding two goals and three assists that year.

Junior goalkeeper Katie Fortenberry played all 1,901 minutes in goal last fall, recording seven shutouts and a 0.99 goals-against average. She could become UDM's all-time shutouts leader this fall by matching those numbers.

Detroit hosts instate rival Eastern Michigan on Friday before heading to Toledo to face the Rockets on Sunday.

Horizon League tries to continue success
For the first time ever, the Horizon League had two entrants in the NCAA Championship last fall as Milwaukee joined League titlist Loyola in the 64-team field. Milwaukee eliminated Michigan in penalty kicks---marking the third consecutive year a Horizon League team has ousted a Big Ten Conference foe---before falling at top seed Notre Dame, while Loyola dropped a 2-0 decision to third seed Florida in the opening round.

Milwaukee has won the last seven regular-season League titles, with only Penn State (nine consecutive years atop the Big Ten standings) boasting a longer run atop its circuit's leader board. The Panthers ranked fourth in the nation with a 0.44 goals-against average last fall, with Erin Kane (0.49) eighth individually.

The Panthers finished the year ranked 29th in the Soccer Buzz national poll, with a No. 4 status in the publication's Great Lakes Region canvass. Wright State and Loyola were tabbed 11th and 13th, respectively, in the region by Soccer Buzz.

Valparaiso could add to that list of accomplishments in 2007. The Crusaders won the Mid-Continent Conference Tournament in 2005 and that league's regular-season title last fall.

The League's nine teams posted a 6-9-0 ledger in the opening weekend, with Milwaukee and Wright State each claiming two victories.