2001 University of Tulsa Women's Soccer Outlook
8/6/2001 12:00:00 AM | Women's Soccer
Aug. 6, 2001
Exactly one year ago, Tulsa Head Coach Damon Gore faced the reality of having to rebuild the Hurricane. TU was coming off an 8-10 record in 1999 and was picked to finish in seventh-place in the 2000 Western Athletic Conference preseason coaches poll. But instead of rebuilding, Gore skipped that step and reloaded the Hurricane with a quick scoring offense and a stingy defense. With a seasoned group of returning veterans and a recruiting class ranked eighth in the Central Region, Gore quickly turned a season of uncertainty into one of the best campaigns in the 15-year history of Tulsa women's soccer.
The Hurricane finished 13-6-1, recorded a 5-2 WAC mark and completed the season as the WAC regular season and tournament runner-up. With such a quick turnaround, Gore has transformed Tulsa into a legitimate conference power and raised the bar for this year's team.
"Coming off last year's 13-6-1 season, I expect us to be 10-15-percent better this year through the combination of our players maturing and the impact of a very solid recruiting class," Gore said. "If things go real well for us this season, we could be a lot better than 10-15-percent, but if we face a lot adversity we should still be improved over last year."
Tulsa begins its sixth season as a WAC member with 17 returning letterwinners, including eight starters. Gore adds to the mix eight newcomers, including two redshirt freshmen. This season's newcomers could possibly be the most athletic recruiting classes ever at Tulsa, with four of the six freshmen possessing the ability to start at a number of positions.
"We're a very athletic team. We're going to play a style of soccer that allows us to move the ball forward quickly and take advantage of our team speed and athleticism. Our intentions are to be a very disciplined team defensively and not give up any easy goals," Gore said.
The 2001 Hurricane features a solid group of six seniors who have combined to register 33 wins over the last three seasons. Led by three returning starters in Kara Heer, Melissa McCormick and Beth Taruscio as well as Melanie Beaulieu, Shannon Blatny and Corinne Bowman, Tulsa will have the comfort of proven leadership and veteran play from this year's senior class.
Forwards
Last season, Tulsa led the league in goals, assists, points and goals per game, and a big reason for that was the consistent play the Hurricane received from its forwards. Tulsa returns three forwards and welcomes two newcomers to the frontal attack. The forward spot should not only be the strength of the team in 2001, but might have the most depth as well.
Heading up the list is the senior duo of Beth Taruscio and Melissa McCormick along with juniors Julie Twellman and Marcie Ferguson.
Although Taruscio did not play a forward position last year, she returns to the spot where she led the team in scoring as a freshman and was named the WAC Mountain Division Freshman of the Year as well as earning all-WAC first team honors. Taruscio has been productive, while starting every game during her three seasons at Tulsa.
McCormick posted the best season of her career last year with eight goals and a school single-season record nine assists for 25 points. She not only led the league in assists, but in game-winning goals as well with five. McCormick was second on the team in both goals and points and she shattered the school's 14-year-old record for assists in a single season.
Twellman, a two-time all-WAC second team performer and 2000 Soccer Buzz all-Central Region third team selection, begins her junior season as one of Tulsa's greatest scorers. In two seasons, she has recorded 20 goals and 10 assists for 50 points. Her 20 goals ranks ninth among TU's all-time leaders, while her 50 points is just two points shy of TU's top-10 scoring list. Twellman has led the Hurricane in scoring the last two seasons and recorded 11 goals and five assists for 27 points in 2000.
A player who came into her own last season was Ferguson. She registered six goals and six assists, both career highs, last season and finished second on the team in assists. But perhaps her finest moment came at the WAC Tournament when she nailed the game-winning, double overtime goal against Fresno State to send Tulsa to its first-ever WAC title game.
Adding depth to the forward position is a pair of Canadian National Pool members-- Holly Lorman and Kim McNally.
"Julie and Melissa are each coming off great seasons, so we'll expect big things from them. Beth and Marcie are both good possibilities to compete for a starting spot, depending on our team strength. Beth is a senior captain and a utility player who will start at a variety of positions, but hopefully it will be as a forward. I expect Kim to find a spot on the field whether it is at forward or at the midfield position. Holly also can play as a forward or as a midfielder," Gore said.
Midfield
Tulsa's midfield spot will be young, but should possess enough depth to make it one of the most competitive positions on the team.
Holding down the center midfield positions will be senior Melanie Beaulieu and sophomore Emily Trost. Beaulieu missed a majority of the 2000 campaign with nagging injuries and played in just five games. However, during the previous two seasons she tallied five goals and two assists for 12 points while starting 37 straight games. Trost, who is also a team captain, started all 20 games as a freshman and posted five goals and two assists for 12 points in 2000.
Juniors Barbara Bohn and Liz Benoist return after playing well during the spring. Bohn played in eight games last year, while Benoist saw action in 16 contests and earned one start.
Sophomore redshirt Shelly Lehmkuhle and sophomore Staci Morgan will also look to secure a starting position in the midfield. Lehmkuhle returns to the Hurricane lineup after a one-year absence from soccer due of injuries sustained in an automobile accident. Morgan started 18 of 19 games a year ago and was one of TU's most consistent players.
Several newcomers will compete for starting roles and playing time in the midfield, including redshirt freshman Jessica Leuenberger and freshmen Alexis Arment, Ean Garvin, Monica Karriker.
"After battling injuries last season, Melanie has the ability to start. She's a very consistent player who leads by example. Emily is a tenacious worker who was our best player in the spring and gave us major contributions last year. Barbara was consistently one of our best players throughout the spring and should be primed to make big contributions this season," said Gore. "Liz has shown great improvement and has become a more versatile player. Shelly is coming off a serious automobile accident, but is making great strides to getting back to her freshman form. Staci has the ability to start every game as a wide midfielder.
"As for the newcomers, Alexis has excellent size and speed and should compete for a starting position at wide midfield. Ean might be the best pure athlete we have on the team. Monica has the ability to start as a midfielder or as a defender. She is an excellent defender who is very athletic and has the ability to make an impact in the midfield or on defense," Gore added.
Defender
As good as the Hurricane was on the defensive side of the field last year, TU should be even better in 2001. Tulsa returns five defenders who have started 12 or more games during their careers. The senior duo of Shannon Blatny and Kara Heer returns to lead a seasoned group of defenders.
Although she was forced to miss all but one game last season with an injury, Blatny has 30 starts under her belt and will look to challenge for a starting spot. Heer started 16 contests last year and will look to retain her starting spot.
Junior Tracy Artis was also hit by the injury bug last season and saw action in just seven games. A pair of sophomores are coming off impressive showings as freshmen. Keely Flynn started 12 games last year and excelled beyond the coaching staff's expectations, while classmate Katie Schlecht started 19 games and proved to be a very consistent and high-caliber player.
Redshirt freshman Jessica Taylor is a solid defender who will look for playing time, while freshman Lily Defee could play either as a defender or as a midfielder.
"Kara was a consistent starter a year ago and will provide solid leadership to our defense. Shannon is coming off an injury, but had an impressive spring. Tracy is finally healthy after having nagging injuries last season.
"Katie and Keely both had very successful freshmen campaigns and will make big contributions on the defense. I expect both Jessica and Lily to compete for playing time as well," Gore said.
Goalkeepers
Tulsa's goalkeeper corps of senior Corinne Bowman and sophomore Pam Devore return as TU's top two netminders.
Last year, Bowman came to Tulsa as a Junior College All-American, but injuries prevented her from showcasing her talents. She played in just four games, collected 10 saves and allowed two goals.
One of the big surprises last season was the emergence and steady play of Devore. She came in as a true freshman and started every game. Devore recorded six shutouts, 109 saves, which ranks second among TU's single-season saves leaders, and allowed 25 goals for a 1.30 goals-against-average.
However both of Tulsa's returning goalkeepers are coming off injuries. Bowman has been hampered by injuries since last season.
After her outstanding fall campaign, Devore suffered a knee injury during the spring season and her status will depend on her health. Freshman Abby Fahrig will look to push both Bowman and Devore for playing time.
"This is the most depth we've had at goalkeeper since I've been here. Pam is coming off a great freshman season, but suffered a knee injury in the spring. I anticipate she will be ready to go by preseason drills.
"Corinne should be healthy enough to compete for the starting spot in goal and with both players competing for a starting position, it should make both of them better. Abby is an excellent athlete who will challenge for playing time," Gore said.
The Schedule
Tulsa's 2001 slate is loaded with six games against first time opponents, nine home games and an always tough WAC schedule. A total of 13 contests are within a couple of hours of the TU campus.
"Our 2001 non-conference schedule should prepare us well enough to compete among the WAC schools. We want to have success against our non-league opponents, but at the same time, we need to help ourselves get ready for conference play.
"Our goal this year is to win the WAC Championship and get to our first NCAA Tournament. Last year, the players got a taste of what it takes to get to the tournament championship game. I think SMU, Fresno State, San Jose State and Tulsa are the teams that will compete for the 2001 WAC title," Gore said.
Tulsa begins the season in Burlington, Vt., at the Vermont Diadora Classic. The Hurricane will face New Hampshire (Sept. 1) and Vermont (Sept. 2), both contests are first time meetings.
The Golden Hurricane makes the short trek east to Springfield, Mo., for back-to-back games against Southwest Missouri State (Sept. 7) and Drury (Sept. 9).
One week later, TU opens its 2001 home slate against Arkansas-Little Rock on Sept. 16 at the Donna J. Hardesty Sports Complex.
In late September, Tulsa travels down the Turner Turnpike for the second annual Oklahoma Shootout. The Hurricane opens the tournament against in-state rival Oklahoma State (Sept. 21) and two days later, TU battles Texas Tech (Sept. 23). For the first time since the 1998 campaign, Tulsa will host its own tournament. The Hurricane will host the Adidas Classic and will square off against Southeast Missouri State (Sept. 28) and St. Bonaventure (Sept. 30) in first time meetings.
Tulsa players will have revenge on their minds when the month of October rolls around. The Golden Hurricane opens the month against cross-town rival Oral Roberts on Oct. 2. The Golden Eagles claimed their first-ever victory in the series last season with an overtime, 2-1, victory.
Tulsa opens the 2001 WAC schedule with the team that ruined its dreams of a WAC title in 2000-- San Jose State. The Hurricane and the Spartans will tangle in San Jose, Calif., on Oct. 5. Two days later, TU and Fresno State hook up in a conference game on Oct. 7 in Fresno, Calif.
The Golden Hurricane returns home and begins a season-long three-game homestand on Oct. 12 against Hawai'i. Following the Hawai'i contest, Tulsa takes a break from WAC play with a non-conference game against North Texas on Oct. 17. TU then resumes WAC play with a match against Rice at home on Oct. 19. The Owls begin their first season of women's soccer in 2001.
Tulsa hits the road one last time in league play with games at SMU (Oct. 26) and UTEP on Oct. 28.
TU concludes the regular season with home dates against WAC rivals Nevada (Nov. 2) and first-year member Boise State on Nov. 4. The Boise State match is a first time meeting between the two teams.
Tulsa begins its journey for the school's first WAC title and NCAA Tournament appearance at the 2001 WAC Tournament in Dallas, Texas, Nov. 8-11.
