2011 Utah Soccer Season Preview

8/23/2011 12:00 AM | Soccer

Aug. 18, 2011

The University of Utah women's soccer team enters the 2011 season with a renewed sense of enthusiasm and excitement. A new conference, a solid core of returning veterans and an influx of talented freshmen make the program's future brighter each day. With a successful preseason behind them, the Utes are hoping to get their new life in the Pac-12 off to a flying start.

"We are returning a lot of important players and our team put in a tremendous effort this preseason," said head coach Rich Manning. "Our on-field conditioning work has been excellent, our new players and veterans are working together to improve and we have made a lot of big strides. This team has shown a true commitment and dedication to reaching the lofty standards and higher expectations of the Pac-12 conference and I hope it comes through in our play.

"As a program, our goal is always to do things the right way," Manning continued. "We push our players to work hard, play good soccer and win games. Between the new players we have brought in and the challenge of our new conference, there is a lot of buzz and excitement around our program right now. We want to represent Utah well and show people that the new kids on the block can play a little bit."

On the Attack...
Utah's attacking group will feature experienced veterans and unproven youth, blending into a versatile mix of speed, quickness and skill to form the Ute attack.

The forwards are spearheaded by senior Erin Dalley, who has a sharp nose for the goal but has battled injuries throughout her career. With a career-high nine goals in 2009, Dalley proved that if she can stay on the field, she has a knack for finding the back of the net in clutch situations. She enters her senior year hoping to improve on her three-goal tally of 2010, and leads a group of talented and developing young players as they look to increase the team's scoring production after managing just 17 goals last season.

Joining Dalley is a diverse mix of talent, including fellow senior Anne Shallenberger, sophomore Lexi Krantz and freshmen Jill Robison and Katie Taylor, coming to Utah following highly-decorated high school careers. Sophomore Percie Allen, a defender by trade, has also shown the ability to play up top, while attacking midfielder Jen Ericson has shown the ability to slide forward as well.

"We are trying to play fast, simple soccer with a lot of movement," said Manning. "If we can do that effectively, we should be able to create a lot of scoring opportunities for ourselves. I think we have a great variety of attacking players, including a lot of new faces. Often times the offense is the last thing to come around during preseason, but we will keep developing our attacking unit and get our players in scoring form. Hopefully having a larger variety of scoring options will help us improve our goal count this year."

Playing Through the Midfield... The middle of the pitch should be a strong point of the team this season as nearly every midfielder from last year's squad has returned, while also regaining the services of three key players back from injury. On the attacking side of the midfield, Ericson is joined by redshirt sophomore Allie Wisner, back to 100% fitness after missing last year with an ankle injury. Versatile sophomore defender Harley Spier also made several starts in that position last year.

The holding midfield position welcomes back redshirt junior Katie Martinez, who returned from injury with seven games remaining last year, but has now put in a full preseason and hopes to remain healthy for a full campaign. Her toughness, ability to hold the ball and her heading presence are all coveted attributes at the holding spot. Redshirt sophomore Stephanie Lemeza, who also missed last season with injury after seeing a lot of action as a freshman in 2009, hopes to find her way back into the midfield rotation as well. In Martinez's absence last year, rising sophomore Leslie Muirhead started nearly every game as a holding midfielder during her freshman campaign and hopes to build on that experience this year.

New additions to the Utah midfield include freshmen Avery Ford, Ashton Hall and McKel Wall, all coming off accomplished high school careers, who will look for their opportunities to impact the scoresheet.

"We look to our midfield to be our first line of defense while also directing our attack," said Manning. "Martinez can control the middle and gives us a huge boost if she can stay healthy and in form. We've got some great players around her as well that are skillful and creative, while not afraid to do the dirty work in the midfield also. Allie [Wisner] had a fantastic preseason, is mobile, creative and can attack from a lot of different places on the field. Avery [Ford] is smooth on the ball and reads the game well. They are just two of the players who could really have an impact in there this year.

"Our goals for the midfield this year are really to keep the ball better, give us more offensive opportunities and control play higher up the field," Manning continued. "We want to defend better and when we do possess the ball, hold on to it longer so we can develop our scoring opportunities more effectively."

Experience on "D"... The "Twin Towers" of Utah's defense are back for their senior campaigns as team captain Lauren Porter and her center back counterpart Lauren Dudley anchor the Utes' back line. Combining for 126 starts in 128 career games, there isn't much they haven't seen. Standing at 5-foot-9 and 5-foot-10 respectively, Porter and Dudley make up one of the tallest back line tandems in the west. Both have demonstrated a terrific heading ability, both on defensive clearances and going forward, accounting for eight goals between the two of them, including six game-winning strikes. Dudley has also emerged as a free kick specialist, routinely placing long strikes into the opponents' penalty box from Utah's own half of the field.

"Lauren and Lauren have a lot of experience and they are playing with urgency," said Manning. "I expect them to have great senior seasons.

"We are trying to defend a little higher up the field this year to take some pressure them and our other backs," Manning continued. "If we can keep the ball in the midfield a little better, it will allow us to defend more effectively and then give our outside backs confident going forward and getting involved in the offense."

Porter and Dudley are at the forefront of a large group of experienced young players and fresh new faces. Sophomores Allen and Jenny Hutton saw a lot of playing time in the back last year, while Spier has put in work there as well. Redshirt sophomore Monica Okapal, who can also play the forward position, has emerged as a solid defensive option as she is also working back from injury. They will all be pushed by gritty and talented freshmen Sarah Duncan, Abby Groth, Lauren Johnson and Monique Morrison, who will battle for playing time in the Ute defense as well.

Shot-Stoppers... With four goalkeepers on the roster, Utah has more depth between the pipes than it has seen for several years. Senior Hannah Turpen, a two-year full-time starter who also played meaningful minutes as a freshman, is at the core of the goalkeeping unit and is coming off a 94-save effort in 2010 that led the Mountain West Conference. Challenging for playing time of her own will be sophomore Cheyanne Mulcock, who had an outstanding preseason, and even also got some experience as a freshman when Turpen missed two games with an injury. A pair of talented and experienced freshman goalkeepers will be training and developing behind them, including Cassity Cutrer, who stands at an athletic six feet tall, and Molly Poletto, a former U-15 and U-17 U.S. National Team goalkeeper.

"We have a really good group of goalkeepers with a mix of experience and varying skill sets," said Manning. "We should have great competition at that position and we are looking forward to them pushing each other and raising each other's game to a higher level."

The 2011 Schedule... Utah's 2011 non-conference schedule may not be the gauntlet it has been in past years, but will nonetheless challenge the team and prepare it for the Pac-12, arguably the best women's soccer conference in the nation. The Utes open the season on the road at Cal State Fullerton (Aug. 19) and then heads to Provo for an early-season matchup at BYU (Aug. 23), before hosting Nevada in their home opener on Aug. 28. Other non-conference highlights include in-state matchups at Utah State (Sept. 2) and home against Utah Valley (Sept. 4) and Weber State (Sept. 16).

"One of the biggest advantages to being in the Pac-12 is the ability to build a team through the early part of the season," said Manning. "We will be able to consistently train and prepare our team without too much strenuous travel. That being said, I think we still have a very exciting schedule this year, especially in conference play. It's a great opportunity for our fans and soccer fans throughout the Salt Lake City area to see new teams, players and coaches, and watch some really good women's soccer.

"The Pac-12 has proven to be one of the best soccer conferences in the country over the last few years and we are extremely excited to join this group," Manning added. "We have played a lot of Pac-12 teams over the years and had some success. We no longer have to wonder how good we could be, or how far we could go if we were in a more powerful league. We get to test ourselves and chase our dreams on a weekly basis."