2001 Women's Soccer Outlook
Aug. 28, 2001
With only five upperclassmen: one senior and four juniors, on the 2001 roster, 49ers head coach Neil Roberts has a vision for the present and the future. But do not mention that the team is rebuilding. That is not the case in Roberts' eyes. He sees a team that can contend for the Conference USA crown, this season, and reach the NCAA Tournament for the second time in school history.
Leading the troops on the field will be lone senior, Dawn Geyer . In her first three seasons, her role with the team has progressively increased. As a freshman, she scored the game-winning, sudden-death PK over Marquette in the Conference USA Championship to launch the 49ers to the NCAA Tournament for the first time in school history. As a sophomore, she started every match for Charlotte and recorded a career-best six goals and 13 points. Last season, as a junior, she once again started every match and recorded a career-high seven assists from her midfield position. As Geyer enters her last season, she knows that she will be counted on for team leadership. She is well prepared for the challenge of leading the young 49ers on the field.
Joining Geyer in the upperclassmen roles will be juniors Mikel Casey , Jenn Howell , Jennie Leeder , and Shannon Roberto . Each of these players has played an integral part of the 49ers' success the last two seasons. All five have been regulars in the starting lineup both years, helping the Niners to back-to-back 8-2-1 records in league play and trips to the Conference USA semifinals.
The defensive success the last two seasons can be attributed, in large part, to a trio of upperclassmen. Casey and Howell were both all-C-USA choices last year, while Roberto was an all-freshman choice in 1999.
Casey, a middle defender, earned third-team Conference USA honors, last season. She helped anchor a defense that posted shutouts in nine of their 12 victories, including seven in 11 C-USA matches.
As the team's starting goalkeeper her first two seasons, second-team all-C-USA selection Howell had played nearly every minute in between the pipes and posted a career-high 77 saves until she tore her ACL last season, on October 13. Against Houston on September 24, she set a school-record for goalkeepers by registering two assists in one game.
Roberto is a former Conference USA and SoccerBuzz (SE Region) all-freshmen team member at defender. After coming on strong late in her freshman year, she picked up right where she left off and started every game at defender, last year. Roberto recorded a career-high three assists, including two in conference action as a sophomore.
Leeder, a midfielder, has battled various injuries in her first two seasons with Charlotte. Despite her injuries, she has been a productive player adding a career-high three goals, last season.
Joining the five upperclassmen will be a group of nine sophomores and 12 freshmen. Leading the sophomores will be preseason all-Conference USA choice Jill Hayes , a forward who was a member of the 2000 Conference USA all-freshmen squad. In her first year with the 49ers, Hayes tied for third on the team with four goals and 11 points. At one point in the season, she recorded at least one point in five consecutive games, including a three-game goal scoring streak. Joining Hayes up front will be Tiffany Ross . Ross registered two goals in her first season, including one on her first shot of the season in the season-opener versus Virginia Tech. Haley Devine also will be looked at to make an impact upfront after registering one assist in nine matches, last season.
In the midfield, Lindsay Duncan and Abbie Allison will look to solidify the position with Leeder. Duncan managed two goals and nine points in her first season in a 49er uniform. Allison returned from a red-shirt season in 1999 to play in 15 matches.
Defensively, the 49ers return a trio of sophomores. Kim Moore returns at sweeper for Roberts' young squad and will be supported by wing defenders Alex Ludtke and Haley Mitchum . Ludtke and Mitchum each saw increased defensive roles for the team, last season, and give Roberts a strong dose of depth in the defensive third.
Rounding out the sophomore class is Andrea Kollmorgen . Last season, she saw action in nine games at goalkeeper, including seven starts after Howell went down with injury. Kollmorgen picked up where Howell had left off by posting wins in her first three games and shutting out three opponents in her five victories. She finished with a GAA of 1.07 in just over 760 minutes played.
A group of 12 freshmen, Roberts' second recruiting class at Charlotte, will join the 49ers in 2001. A quartet from North Carolina will add to the front line for the 49ers. Leslie Canales , from Raleigh, enters the program after being a participant on the North Carolina ODP team since 1996 and a participant on the U-15 and U-17 regional teams. Joining Canales up front will be Tracie Jones , from Jacksonville, N.C. Jones is a former three-time all-conference selection for the Vikings of White Oak High. Also adding punch up front will be Nicole Miller , from Kernersville. Miller is a two-time member of the NCSCA all-state team after posting 64 goals in her high school career. Christy Johnson , also from Jacksonville, N.C., was Jacksonville High's Offensive Player of the Year and helped the Cardinals to the 2000 4A State semifinals.
In the midfield, redshirt freshman Candace Murphy will be joined by Kim Miles , Meaghan Cassagnol and Melissa Schoolcraft . Murphy missed the entire 2000 season after injuring her knee prior to the season. Miles is another signee from Raleigh, joining former club teammate Canales. She is a former all-state and two-time all-region selection at Leesville Road High School. Cassagnol was the captain on the 2000 high school national champion squad at Our Lady of Good Counsel High School in Wheaton, Maryland. Schoolcraft was an honorable mention all-state choice out of Asheboro High.
Defensively, Roberts signed two teammates, Jill Leeder and Megan Terlip , of the Houston Challenge Club team. Leeder is the younger sister of junior midfielder Jennie Leeder. Following in her sister's footsteps, Leeder also played one season at Klein High School before joining the Houston Challenge Club under coach Tommy Burke. The club won the 1999 Orange Bowl Tournament and was a national finalist at the 1999 Snickers Cup. Terlip was a member of the 5A state champions in 1999 at Kingwood (Tx.) High School, in addition to her role on the club team.
Two goalkeepers, Lauren Dansby and Ashley Webb , join the program looking to backup Howell and Kollmorgen. Dansby hails from Norman, Oklahoma, after leading the Timberwolves of Norman North High School to the 5A state final in 1999. She has also been a member of the state ODP program since 1993. Webb, a teammate of fellow frosh Johnson, was a three-year all-Region choice at 2000 state semifinalist Jacksonville High. Webb played in the N.C. East-West All-Star Game.
|
|
 |
