2006 Syracuse Women's Soccer Season Preview
8/4/2006 12:50:52 PM | Women's Soccer
2006 Women's Soccer Media Guide Online
SYRACUSE, N.Y.-- Syracuse returns 17 players, including eight starters, from last season’s squad that landed it in the postseason for the first time since 2001 and in the BIG EAST Tournament for the first time since 2000. SU head coach Patrick Farmer begins his third season at the helm of the SU program and looks for his young but experienced squad to build on the momentum it created last season.
How young and how experienced? Farmer’s team in 2006 will include 10 sophomores who combined for 112 starts, six goals and 10 assists in their freshmen seasons.
"It was good to see the way they (freshmen) stepped up and performed late in the season last year -- nearly beating a top-ranked team in Marquette and then beating South Florida to earn a spot in the (BIG EAST) tournament," Farmer said. "It’s good to have that experience of playing those win-or-go-home games. Now we can use that experience and aim even higher this season."
Syracuse used the victory against South Florida, the program’s 100th win in its 10-year history, in its final game of the regular season in 2005 to earn a BIG EAST Tournament berth. Farmer said reaching the century mark was something the team felt proud to be a part of Orange history.
"After we beat South Florida we were huddled up and everyone was excited because we were headed to the BIG EAST Tournament and we didn’t want to taunt that in front of the other team. The girls pointed out that it was the 100th win in school history, so we celebrated that," Farmer said. "The South Florida win was significant in that it was the 100th victory, which the girls thought was special to be a part of and it also put us back in the postseason. I think that was a very big win for our program."
Defense was the name of the game for the Orange in 2005, recording four shutouts and holding its counterparts to one goal or less 12 times. Goal scoring on the other hand was at a premium with the Orange scoring a total of 16 goals, something Farmer believes will be greatly improved upon this season.
"We’ve moved some people around and have some strong players coming in with goal-scoring capabilities," Farmer said. "Amanda (Arcuri) has been moved to the center where she will be able to score a lot of goals for us and Molly (McManus) is another player who is coming back healthy and will be a great goal scorer for us. We’ll be better creating goal-scoring sitations and be a little faster than last year."
The Orange has just two seniors on its roster this season in McManus, a senior captain, and senior Maggie Falkenreck, both of whom missed time last season due to leg injuries. McManus returns as the team’s leading goal scorer for the second consecutive year after finding the back of the net three times in 17 games played in 2005.
Forwards
McManus headlines SU’s returning offensive attack and will be joined by Amanda Arcuri, a sophomore, who scored one goal and had a team-best four assists last season, while starting in all 20 games.
"Molly will play as a front runner on the left side and provides good service and balls into the box for other people to score from," Farmer said. "Amanda will play as a central forward and I think she did very well there this past spring. I look to see more penetrating runs from her and more opportunities to score up the middle."
Also returning to the Orange offensive attack this season are Falkenreck and junior Lauren Jentzen. Falkenreck played nine games in an injury-shortened season last year, while Jentzen is coming off a season where she provided a spark off the bench, scoring two goals and assisting on another.
"Maggie will be a target forward and is probably the strongest shooter on the team," Farmer said. "Lauren is a small, quick, feisty forward and does better on the flank where she can get at people one-on-one."
Looking to throw their names into the offensive mix for the Orange is a pair of talented freshmen in Chelsea Berry and Tessa MacDougall. Berry brings a tremendous amount of speed to the field as she won six state championships in track at Lowville Academy in Lowville, N.Y. She proved in high school that her speed can translate to the soccer pitch as she scored 95 goals in her scholastic career. MacDougall, who hails from Surrey, Canada, enjoyed success while playing striker on the 2005 Canada Games Gold Medal team.
"Chelsea is a flank attacker who is very fast and is a good crosser and scorer of the ball," Farmer said. "Tessa is a good technical player with a goal-scoring mentality. She’s a shooter but also works hard penetrating without the ball."
Midfielders
Junior Jen Taormina and sophomore Samantha Hawn will lead the SU midfield this season. Taormina scored one goal, while starting all 20 games in 2005 and took a great deal of the Orange’s corner kick opportunities. Hawn played all 20 games last season and scored one goal and assisted on two others.
"Sam was the best player for us in the spring and worked hard on her possession and running with the ball," Farmer said. "Jen is a good distributer and gets some shots. Her primary quality is good vision and being able to connect the dots in the midfield."
Another player expected to have a strong impact in the middle is redshirt freshman Sara Grimsgaard. Grimsgaard was a two-time All-Shore selection while playing for Red Bank Catholic High School in Eatontown, N.Y. Sophomore Kaitlin LaMothe will also vie for playing time in the midfield after playing in 19 games her rookie season, scoring one goal.
"People didn’t have the opportunity to see Sara last year, but she’s a strong player who is very possessive of the ball and is a great target on free kicks and corners," Farmer said. "Kaitlin will play some in the midfield and some as a forward and is very fast."
There are three newcomers to the midfield this season as freshman Danielle Jordan and sophomores Emily Bush and Amy Ware all provide solid depth at the position. Junior Darcy Hamill, who transfered to SU from Fordham, will look for time in the midfield as well.
Jordan was a two-time All-State selection playing at Laffayette (La.) High School. Ware joined the Orange last spring and was a 2004 All-Shore selection while playing for Marcellus High School in Syracuse, N.Y.
"Danielle is an attacking midfielder who is a good passer of the ball and good dribbler," Farmer said.
Defenders
The SU defense was the most inexperienced of all areas in 2005, however it proved to be the strongest. Standout sophomores Sarah VanSickle, Lauren Cappelli, Karrah Benson and Jill Conaboy are all looking to return to their starting roles in the SU defense.
VanSickle was named the team’s Rookie of the Year and Most Outstanding Defender after scoring one goal and assisting on another last season. Cappelli, like VanSickle, was one of four SU players to start in all 20 games last season, scoring one goal. She finished second on the team in assists with three.
"Sarah has great intensity and attacking presence and gets herself forward a lot during the game," Farmer said. "Lauren will play on the left and is a really good attacking force and an educated left-footed player who is a great server on free kicks."
Benson missed the team’s first three games last season, but returned to start all 17 games she played in, registering one goal in that time. Conaboy was named the team’s Most Improved Player in 2005 after making 15 starts as a key member of the SU defense.
"I think Karrah played every minute after she got healthy early on last year. She is good in the air as a defender and is a good organizer for the defense," Farmer said. "Jill played a lot of games centrally last year and was very steady and a good ball winner there."
Junior Crystal Thune, sophomore Kristen Hamill and redshirt freshman Katie Peck will provide the Orange with depth at the central position. Thune played in 13 games last season before suffering a season-ending injury, while Hamill saw action in four games.
"Kristen was probably the most improved player for us in the spring. She is a good physical presence and is good in the air," Farmer said. "Crystal did well in the midfield last year so we may look at moving her up there, but she can play in back as well. Katie is the fastest of the group and is very steady and a great passer of the ball."
Freshman Elizabeth Healey is the only rookie on the defensive end. Healey was a fifth-team all-state selection as a member of the Ithaca (N.Y.) High School team. "Elizabeth is a good tight defender who plays on the flank and will have a shot to play centrally as she is very fast. She’s probably the best one-on-one defender out of the group."
Goalkeepers
The Orange has three goalkeepers on its roster this season who have combined for two starts. Junior Candice Hofmann started in two games last season, including an impressive shutout at Colgate in her first career start. The shutout made her the second keeper in school history to earn a shutout in her first career start. Along with Hofmann, the Orange welcomes two very talented freshmen goalkeepers in Eliza Bennett-Hattan and Sami Hirsh.
Both freshmen were Super Y League National ODP Camp selections. Bennett-Hattan was named to the Washington Post All-MET Second Team in 2005, while playing for Robinson High School in Burke, Va. Hirsh was a two-time first-team Colonial Hills Conference selection at Montclair Kimberly Academy in West Orange, N.J.
"Candice got some good experience last year playing in a couple games and was in goal all spring for us," Farmer said. "Eliza is a big physical presence who is pretty technical and has good range on her free kicks and punts. Sami is very good technically and with her feet. She is probably the best technical keeper of the three."
Schedule
The Orange will play its first six games on the road in 2006 starting with its season-opener at Virginia, the 2005 year-end eighth-ranked team in the country, on Aug. 23. SU’s home opener will be its BIG EAST opener as well when St. John’s visits the SU Soccer Stadium on Sept. 15. In all, Syracuse will play 11 of its 18 games on the road in 2006.
"We have a tough schedule this year, especially in the non-conference portion of it," Farmer said. "We start off with Virginia and several other very strong teams so we are going to have to be ready to play right away."
Opposite from 2005, the Orange will play its final four games of the season at home as it hosts Rutgers (Oct. 13), Seton Hall (Oct. 15), Marquette (Oct. 20) and South Florida (Oct. 22).
The Orange will report for preseason training on Wednesday, Aug. 9.
