TicketsAug. 9, 2010
By Jeff Geiser
GoBearcats.com
In her third season as the architect of the University of Cincinnati women's soccer program, head coach Michelle Salmonhas reason to believe the 2010 campaign will be the most successful yet.
"This 2010 team, since I've arrived, has been the best team that I've coached, period," Salmon declares. "They're dynamic; I'm talking attacking-wise. We are going to score some goals. I have never in my life coached a team this attacking and they're fun, they're athletic and they're quick."
The Millersville, Md. native's enthusiasm stems from her team's mental progression from hopeful-for-an-upset to expecting-victory.
"We've seen that transformation in the past three years," Salmon claims. "We've seen that confidence. In our first year it was, `Oh my gosh! We can compete!' To last year, every game was competitive. This year, there's a different swagger to this team. There are much different expectations for this team, much more driven. They'll tell you that just being competitive isn't enough."
Salmon led the Bearcats to a 10-7-3 overall record in 2008, her first season at UC, including a 5-3-3 mark in BIG EAST competition and an appearance in the quarterfinals of the conference tournament. The 10-win crusade was the school's most successful since 2002.
Last season, however was not nearly as feel-good. The Bearcats went 8-10-1, including 3-7-1 in BIG EAST play. Salmon points to the team's ledger in close matches as a major area of opportunity.
"We've got to get better in one-goal games. When you look at the seven losses in the BIG EAST last year, six were by one goal," states Salmon. "That's been a point of emphasis. We are extremely competitive in the BIG EAST and that's been the biggest change. Before I came here, we weren't as competitive in the BIG EAST. Now that everyone knows that we can compete, it's getting into those one-goal games and being accountable for being the player to step up and produce in that moment, not just rely on someone else."
Another source of confidence for Salmon is the fact that her three leading scorers from '09 - Emily Hebbeler, Kendall Loggins and Julie Morrissey- all return this year. That veteran leadership will help set the tone for this season, Salmon says.
"With those three specifically coming back, it's knowing how to step up in big moments and score big goals for our program in BIG EAST play. The beautiful thing is they've been playing together now for two straight years. So they understand each other, they know the system and they know how to play. That gives us a nice competitive advantage."
When Salmon joined UC in January '08 after two years as the head coach at Ball State, she was immediately behind the recruiting eight ball. But with 10 incoming freshmen for 2010 arriving in time for preseason practice, Salmon is finally catching up for lost time.
"This is really our first big recruiting class. Getting hired two years ago, I was hired late, in the middle of recruiting. It takes about a year to get caught up. Last year with the recruiting class, a lot of kids that committed to me at Ball State chose to follow me here to Cincinnati. This year was a chance for us to really get out there and make some headway in recruiting."
The incoming freshmen are going to give what Salmons believes is her deepest roster, from one to 26, that she's had in her coaching career. And it's with that depth that will enable her unleash the up-tempo style of soccer she prefers.
"If you like attacking soccer, this is going to be a great brand of soccer to watch. You should get and out watch because very rarely will you see a team that's willing to open it up. Much like a spread offense in football, this is how we play at Cincinnati."