Crookston, Minn.- The 2016 soccer preseason officially comes to an end today as the University of Minnesota Crookston women's soccer team takes the pitch tomorrow in a nonconference match in Moorhead, Minn. versus the Dragons of MSUM.
The UMC squad will complete the practice portion of their preseason today and after competing in a trio of scrimmages, head coach
Joe Alianiello noted that, "Preseason went fairly according to plan. We could have come in fitter but we are working on that end of our game, a little each day." The fitness will be tested late this week as the Golden Eagles will play at MSUM tomorrow then turn things around for another road game on Saturday when they head to Bemidji for a nonconference game against another NSIC team, Bemidji State University.
UMC wrapped up their 2015 season with an overall record of 7-10-1, 7-8 in the NSIC. For the second straight season the team finished one spot out of the postseason finale, the NSIC conference championship tournament. "We are hoping that our core of seniors help lead the way and model the type of behaviors and practice level it has taken to get the program where it is," added Alianiello. Under his first five years of leadership, the program has bettered its record in the win column each and every year. If the trend continues in his sixth season, UMC should work their way into the postseason.
The Golden Eagles did graduate their top two scorers from last year in
Courtney Armborst (West St. Paul, Minn.) and
Delaney McIntyre (Flin Flon, Manitoba) but they return one of the stingiest defensive units in the conference and a goalkeeper that has been among league leaders for the past two seasons. Senior Keeper,
Lexie Gauger (Green Bay, Wis./Criminal Justice) logged the bulk of the minutes in net for the last two years where she gave up 1.08 goals per game in 2015 and was between the pipes in all of the team's wins. Senior defender,
Samantha Deutsch (Lakeville, Minn./Accounting and Finance) will be a big part of Gauger's help in front of the net as the team leader is one of the NSIC's top defenders.
The Golden Eagles will feature an offensive attack that is a good mix of returning players and new talent. The midfield and forward positions will return a host of players that have a great deal of college experience and through a couple position changes there will be some familiar faces moving up into the midfield, including junior
Ellie Brettschneider (Lakeville, Minn./Sport and Recreation Management) who played as a defender most of last year. Four returners each picked up a couple scores last year and the balanced attack will be added to by some new players as
Hannah Riveland (So, Moorhead, Minn.),
Madison Korus (So, Lexington, Minn.),
Lindsey Daml (Fr, North Pole Alaska),
Abi Aswege (Fr, West Bend, Wisc.) and
Kayla Stangeland (Fr, Mitchell, S.D.) will all be looked upon to create some offence early on in the 2016 campaign.
"Our scrimmages were a bit of a mixed bag," said Alianiello. "It was good to see everyone play so we know where they fit into our plans this year. We were able to take a lot from the scrimmages and continue to enhance the strengths we have while working towards minimizing our weaknesses going into the season."
9/01 Preview
The game at Minnesota State Moorhead may be a nonconference game but both teams will look to set the tone early and start the season off with a W. MSUM struggled last year finishing at 1-12-4 overall, 1-12-2 in conference play. They have a new offensive minded coach in Christie Chappel and she returns her top scorer from 2015 in Jessica Dallman (Grand Forks, N.D.). The sophomore midfielder scored one goal and assisted on two others in her freshman season. With the MSUM team only managing seven goals last season, the UMC defensive play could be tough for the Dragons to handle in their season opener.
9/03 Preview
Saturday's nonconference match with Bemidji State University will feature a Beavers team with numerous key returners including their top three scorers in Sarah Stram (Elk Grove Village, Ill.), Rachael Norton (Mound View, Minn.) and Christine Szarek (Andover, Minn.). Stram is a senior forward who led all Beaver scorers last year with ten goals and six assists. BSU will also return their top keeper from 2015 in sophomore Anna Fobbe who backstopped the Beavers with a goals against average of .97 per game. BSU finished last year 11-7-1, 8-6-1 in the NSIC and picked up the #5 spot on the 2016 preseason poll.
For more information, visit the Golden Eagle Athletics website at www.goldeneaglesports.com.
Follow the Golden Eagles on Facebook at Golden Eagle Sports and on Twitter at @UMCAthletics.
The University of Minnesota Crookston is an NCAA Division II Institution and a member of the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference (NSIC). The Golden Eagle Equestrian team is a member of the Intercollegiate Horse Show Association (IHSA).
