WAC SOCCER
UH’s second season starts
The Hawaii women's soccer team begins defense of its Western Athletic Conference regular-season title tomorrow on the road at Idaho.
This is the kind of match, a "trap match" that coaches fear, praying their players ignore the opponent's record.
The Vandals have yet to win a match this season and have been shut out 10 times. They scored just their third goal of the season on Tuesday in a 2-1 loss at Eastern Washington.
But everything is equal for the Rainbow Wahine (6-5-2) and the Vandals (0-12-0). They are starting the "second season" with no wins, losses or ties.
"Every Division I team can play and if we don't come out with the right mindset, it is going to be a tough situation," Hawaii coach Pinsoom Tenzing said.
"The wonderful thing about my team is they always come out to play. This is the money end of the season. We really need to put out. I will get them ready."
The Wahine will be without senior defender Kelly McCloskey, who suffered an injury to her right knee in the San Diego match Sunday. She returned to Honolulu on Tuesday and will have an MRI today to determine the extent of the injury.
"Kelly not being in the lineup diminishes us in a big way. We lose height and tremendous heading power," Tenzing said.
That means Koren Takeyama will be back as a defender. She will still be free to make the occasional offensive run, but won't be at outside left midfield, where it is easy to join the attack often.
Liza Amaya, a sophomore midfielder, joined the team for Tuesday's Loyola Marymount match, keeping the UH traveling roster at 18 players.
Offensively, the Wahine do well at creating scoring opportunities and put 45 percent of their shots on goal.
Taryn Fukuroku leads the Wahine with six goals and has scored in three of the last four matches. Kelli-Anne Chang and Ambree Ako are the other multiple-goal scorers with four and two, respectively.
Hawaii plays four of its seven WAC matches on the road. The Wahine are 1-3-1 away from home this year and 13-20 all-time in WAC road matches.
Here is a capsule look at the WAC teams in the order they play Hawaii, with overall record in parentheses:
Idaho (0-12-0)
Coach: Peter Showler, second season, 3-28-0 (.097).
2005 record: 3-16-0 overall, 1-6-0, seventh in WAC.
Players to watch: Jenny Springer, senior striker; Ashley Irish, sophomore striker.
Outlook: The Vandals' first priority was to improve an offense that produced just 10 goals in 19 matches in 2005. Showler hoped 11 newcomers, including five transfers, would help, but so far, Idaho has scored just three goals (two in a 7-2 loss) and given up 43, while being shutout 10 times. Springer was the top goal-scorer a year ago with four.
Plays UH: Tomorrow at Moscow, Id.
Boise State (5-4-1)
Coach: Steve Lucas, seventh season, 51-61-10 (.459).
2005 record: 10-8-2 overall, 4-3-0, sixth in WAC.
Players to watch: Kim Parker, senior goalkeeper; Katie Keller, junior striker; Brennan Lau, senior midfielder.
Outlook: The Broncos return 10 starters and nine of their top 10 scorers. However, the top scorer this season is Katie Keller (three goals), a junior, who sat out last year after transferring from Utah State. Mililani's Annie Tom is the third-leading scorer with two goals and one assist. The Broncos open WAC play at San Jose State tomorrow.
Plays UH: Sunday at Boise, Id.
Louisiana Tech (4-4-2)
Coach: Jennifer Burns, third season, 11-24-4 (.333).
2005 record: 7-10-0 overall, 0-7-0, eighth in WAC.
Players to watch: Emily Cleaveland, sophomore striker; Brittany Davis, sophomore defender; Brook Kelly, sophomore midfielder.
Outlook: After going from 0-10-2 in their first year of varsity soccer to 7-10 last year, the Lady Techsters look to continue the improvement with a squad that has no seniors and just two juniors. LaTech scored 42 goals against a weak nonconference schedule in 2005, then failed to score in WAC play. Burns -- who got married and changed her name from Jennifer Soileau in the offseason -- upgraded the nonconference schedule considerably this year and the Lady Techsters have responded with a 4-4-2 record. LaTech hosts Utah State on Sunday in its first WAC match.
Plays UH: Oct. 13, 7 p.m., Waipio Peninsula Soccer Park.
Utah State (5-6-0)
Coach: Heather Cairns, fourth season, 28-33-3 (.461).
2005 record: 7-9-4 overall, 4-1-1, fourth in WAC.
Players to watch: Ali Griffin, sophomore goalkeeper; Charity Weston, senior midfielder; Dana Peart, junior striker.
Outlook: The Aggies have been solid on defense but have really struggled on offense, with just seven goals in their first 11 matches. Weston, the top goal-scorer with seven a year ago, got her first two goals this year last weekend in 1-0 wins over Eastern Washington and San Francisco. The Aggies play at Louisiana Tech on Sunday in their first WAC match.
Plays UH: Oct. 15, 5 p.m., at Waipio Peninsula Soccer Park.
San Jose State (3-8-1)
Coach: Dave Siracusa, third season, 14-33-5 (.317).
2005 record: 6-12-3 overall, 4-2-1, fifth in WAC.
Players to watch: Jennifer Guadagnolo, sophomore midfielder; Jessica Scott, sophomore striker; Nicole Irwin, junior striker.
Outlook: The Spartans are searching for their first winning season since 1999, although they reached the WAC tournament championship match last year. The problem this season has been the close games, as they have suffered five one-goal defeats. The Spartans, who lost to No. 3 Santa Clara 6-0 yesterday, host Boise State to start WAC play tomorrow.
Plays UH: Oct. 23, 5 p.m., at Waipio Peninsula Soccer Park.
Nevada (7-2-2)
Coach: Terri Patraw, eighth season, 70-66-8 (.514).
2005 record: 11-7-2 overall, 4-2-1, second in WAC.
Players to watch: Jessica Wilcox, junior defender; Miranda Montejo, sophomore midfielder.
Outlook: The Wolf Pack won 11 matches last year, nine more than the year before, in Patraw's second season of rebuilding the program. They finished second in the WAC. The expectations are high this year with every goal-scorer and 10 starters back. Nevada is off to its best start in history and blanked its last three opponents in road matches. Patraw had to fill the goalkeeper's spot, and Jen Mavis and Caitlin Holmes have shared the duty with a combined 0.52 goals-against average. The Wolf Pack open at Fresno State tomorrow.
Plays UH: Oct. 27 at Reno, Nev.
Fresno State (6-4-1)
Coach: Steve Springthorpe, third season, 21-23-7 (.480).
2005 record: 10-10-2 overall, 4-2-1, third in WAC.
Players to watch: Cortney Sobrero, junior striker; Alison Sill, sophomore midfielder; Angie Larsen, senior goalkeeper.
Outlook: The Bulldogs have qualified for 10 consecutive WAC tournaments and hope to benefit from the experience 11 freshmen gained a year ago to qualify again. They started 6-1-1 with seven shutouts, but have scored just once in the last three matches. Preseason WAC Player of the Year Cortney Sobrero is the leading scorer with three goals. The Bulldogs, who have not played in 11 days, host Nevada to start conference play tomorrow.
Plays UH: Oct. 29 at Fresno, Calif.