TicketsWomen's Soccer Opens Schedule Friday
Bearcats to compete in Boilermaker Challenge Cup
Contact: Shawn Sell
8/26/2004
Senior co-captain Amy Mink |
The University of Cincinnati women?s soccer team kicks off the 2004 season on Friday (Aug. 27), with the opening match of the Boilermaker Challenge Cup in West Lafayette, Ind. The Bearcats will face New Mexico in the opening contest, beginning at 12 p.m. CT. UC will also battle host Purdue, with that clash scheduled for a 2 p.m. CT start on Saturday.
ABOUT THE TOURNAMENT: The 2004 Boilermaker Challenge Cup will be held over three days at Purdue?s Varsity Soccer Complex. The tournament opens with Cincinnati and New Mexico playing on Friday, with UC taking on Purdue a day later. The event wraps up on Sunday, with the Boilermakers hosting New Mexico. At the conclusion of the tournament, team trophies will be awarded and the 11-person all-tournament team will be announced.
ABOUT THE FIELD: The Bearcats are coming off a rebuilding campaign in 2003 that saw them finish with a disappointing 5-13-1 mark, after being tabbed to win Conference USA in a preseason poll of league coaches. UC mentor Meridy Glenn welcomes back six starters among 13 letterwinners from that team, including C-USA All-Freshman Team member Becky Imhoff.
UC?s opening round opponent, New Mexico went 3-12-4 overall and 1-4-1 in the Mountain West Conference last season. The Lobos should benefit from the return of 23 letterwinners, including last season?s top scorer, sophomore forward Kristine Sweat. Sweat paced the Lobos with three goals, while tying for team-high honors with one assist.
Purdue enjoyed a 14-6-3 campaign in 2003 that saw the Boilermakers advance all the way to the Sweet 16 of the NCAA Tournament. Coach Rob Klatte must replace six full-time starters from that team, but does have 16 letterwinners back, including senior forward Lauren Sesselmann, who tallied 10 goals and 10 assists last season. The Boilermakers warmed up for the regular season, playing C-USA member DePaul to a 2-2 tie in the preseason.
WHO WILL SCORE?: With the graduation loss of Tasha Wagner, one of the Bearcats most pressing issues in 2004 will be figuring out who will carry the scoring load. During the 2003 season, Wagner accounted for 44% (7 of 16) of UC?s goals and 45% (5 of 11) of the assists. The two most likely candidates among the veterans to fill the void are senior midfielders Amy Mink and Lisa Stephens. Mink, who missed all of last season with an injury, has 10 goals and seven assists during her career, while Stephens has added five and six, respectively. During the preseason, Scotland native Ana Farmer also showed a great deal of scoring ability during a trip to Europe.
OPENING GETTLER: After playing the first three matches of their schedule on the road, the Bearcats will return home to the newly renovated Gettler Stadium for a three-match homestand. UC will play its first contest in the facility on Sunday, Sept. 5 when Dayton comes to town for a 1 p.m. contest.
C-USA POLL: The Bearcats have been picked to finish seventh in a preseason poll of Conference USA?s coaches. UAB, the 2003 regular season champions, has been selected to repeat, followed by Saint Louis, DePaul and Marquette.
Preseason Conference USA
Women?s Soccer Poll
1. UAB
2. Saint Louis
3. DePaul
4. Marquette
5. Charlotte
6. TCU
7. Cincinnati
8. Memphis
9. East Carolina
10. USF
11. Tulane
12. Houston
13. Louisville
14. Southern Miss