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Utah Women's Soccer Striving to Maintain Momentum from 1998
Utes look to build off last season's 12-7 mark.
Aug. 27, 1999 The Utah women’s soccer program is experiencing a little deja vu going into the 1999 campaign. In its opening season in 1995, the program comprised of 16 freshmen who made up more than half the roster. Over the last four years, that group of rookies matured into a veteran team that not only established a solid foundation for the Utes, but started building a proud tradition. This year, following the graduation of 10 seniors, the Utah program is once again reloading with a new freshman class. Fourteen freshmen join four seniors, one junior and four sophomores on the 1999 Ute squad. For that reason, the Ute coaching staff focused its pre-season on assimilating the newcomers with the Utah program and the rigorous challenge of playing collegiate athletics. If the pressure of preparing for college play wasn’t enough of a shock, this youthful team takes the field following the best season in Ute soccer history. The record-breaking 12-7 campaign boosted the program’s five year mark to 40-32-4 under Head Coach Amy Freeman Winslow. The 1998 Utes placed fourth in the Western Athletic Conference Pacific Division with a 2-4 record in its final year as league member. This year, the Utes will compete in the newly formed Mountain West Conference. The new conference offers virtually the same competition the Utes faced in the old WAC Pacific Division. Since the inclusion of women’s soccer in the WAC in 1995, the Pacific Division was the home of the conference’s toughest and most talented teams. In the four years of tournament play, Pacific Division teams won the WAC championship three times. “In the last four seasons, we’ve only been to the conference tournament twice, but that’s nothing to be ashamed of because we played the toughest teams in the conference,” Winslow says. With the move to the Mountain West, Utah is guaranteed a tough conference schedule. The seven MWC teams include Brigham Young, a national top 16 team last year, and NCAA qualifier San Diego State. The other four schools in the MWC are Air Force, New Mexico, UNLV and Wyoming. All seven teams will qualify for the MWC Tournament in November. In addition to their tough conference competition, the Utes play a solid non-conference schedule, as well. Utah faces three other NCAA Tournament teams in Michigan, Texas A&M and Washington. To prepare for the rugged season, the Utes trained at an intense level, including two pre-season scrimmages to gauge the cohesiveness of the team and correct any problems. *In the past, we’ve always been an extremely athletic team, but this year we are much faster and more athletic. Once the athletes become a cohesive team, we’ll be even stronger,* Winslow predicts. While the team has lost some valuable athletes, Winslow is confident that the accomplishments of the previous season can be matched, and possibly bettered. “We have graduated some maturity, but we’ve kept a challenging skill level,” she says. “The players have continued their blue collar work ethic and the players are intense and competitive.” The Utes will again emphasize a strategy of strong team defense to promote a good offense. The objective is to give up fewer goals, while taking more shots. Last year, the Utes outscored their opponents 41-26 and slammed 173 shots-on-goal (the opposition was held to 116). Utah is also focusing on improving the team’s mental game. “The talent of this team is the greatest I’ve ever coached. We just need to solidify our mental approach. The players have the capability, they just need to create the right mind set,” Winslow says. Back to lead the Utes is senior forward Staci Burt, a 1998 SoccerBuzz all-West region third team pick. Burt was named to the 1998 WAC Pacific Division first team and to the Pacific Division second team in 1996 and ’97. The team co-captain was also honored as Utah’s 1998 Offensive Player of the Year. Last season, she led the Utes in scoring and points with 13 goals and six assists for 32 points. She already holds the Utah career records for points with 76 and goals with 31 (both records were previously held by Jacki Doman, 1995-96). Over the summer, Burt kept her skill level up by starting in the midfield for the Chicago Cobras, a W-League summer team that played in the 1999 National Tournament. “Staci blossomed in Chicago,” says Winslow. “The team is made up of assistant coaches and graduated players, and it was a tremendous learning experience for her. She is one of the most talented players I’ve coached, and we’re looking to rely on her talent and maturity up top this year.” Strengthening the forward line is sophomore Alli Cerruti and freshman Shauna Gurr. Last year, Cerruti started all 19 of Utah’s games as an attacking forward. She took 40 shots, scoring four goals and two assists for 10 points. “Alli is a strong target player who works really well with Burt. She is good with her back to the goal, allowing Staci to roam and attack the wings. Ali will have a tremendous impact on our attacking game this season,” Winslow says. Gurr spent her first season with the Utes as a freshman redshirt recuperating from ACL reconstruction. Utah is looking to Gurr to add the same momentum to the forward line this year that she exhibited as the three-time leading scorer at Woods Cross High School (Utah). “Shauna is very talented on the ball and she has a rocket of a left foot. She loves to take people one-on-one and will be a great addition to our offense,” Winslow says. Anchoring the Ute defense are seniors Bernie Hogan and Dana Bolton. Last year Hogan, Utah’s sweeper, took eight shots and scored two goals and one assist. In the last three seasons, she has played a key role in the Utes’ defensive strategy. “Bernie is a solid player in the defensive line and a great leader in the back,” Winslow says. “Dana is a talented player with the ability to go one-on-one with the opposition’s best offense.” Sophomore Amy Kofoed supports the midfield. As a freshman last season, she scored five goals and four assists for 14 points. As Utah’s left-wing, she looks to control the midfield and feed the ball to the Ute forward line. “Kofoed is an extremely aggressive player. She is universally talented because she works well on the defense, but also has the speed and skills of a great offensive player,” compliments Winslow. Tonya Dansereau will likely start in center midfield. The 5-foot-9 senior has worked her way into a starting position after three years of demanding conditioning. “Tonya is in the best shape of her life. She has worked really hard. Her height and skills make her one of our greatest assets in the midfield,” says Winslow. Supporting Dansereau in the center is California newcomer Sandi Fouts, a four-year varsity starter at Torrey Pines High School and a member of the California Olympic Development Team. “Fouts will get time in the midfield. She is an extremely technical player and is going to fill in the gap that Jessica Narajowski and Tara McNeil left when they graduated. She has great vision and ability, and she is going to be our key distributor in the midfield,” Winslow predicts. Other recruits to watch are Megan Maxwell, Katie Tate and Maren Harper. Maxwell, a defender/forward from Pasco, Wash., is a universal player capable of filling the wing positions up top and in back. She scored 200 goals in the last two years and was a Region IV Olympic Development player. Along with her scoring power, Maxwell also brings tremendous speed to the Ute offense, as she was the anchor leg of three Washington state championship relay teams. “Megan is an extremely gifted player. She has amazing speed, keen insight and controlled ball handling skills. She can play any periphery position and will be a huge factor,” Winslow says. Tate vies for time in Utah’s center midfield. She played for Hiram Johnson High School (Calif.), was named the team and league Most Valuable Player and was a three-year all-Metro League first team member. Harper led St. Francis High School (Calif.) in goals and assists as a senior and was a two-time all-Metro League pick. Harper hopes to take field on the Utes’ defensive line. “Both Katie and Maren bring tremendous talent to the team. They have great ballhandling skills and good vision,” Winslow says. The graduation of starting goalkeeper Tawni Martineau and second string keeper Sarah Englis has spurned changes in the Ute goal box. Freshman Courtney Hills spent her first season at Utah as a redshirt prepping to take over the starting spot in 1999. At Mountain View High School (Utah), she was selected to the Salt Lake Tribune and Deseret News all-state first team from 1995-97 and was second team all-state in 1994. She set the Utah state records for most shutouts in a season with 12 and total career shutouts with 33. “Courtney has been working hard to prepare for the upcoming season. She is poised under pressure and is hungry to play,” Winslow says. Another change in the Ute defense is new assistant goalkeeper coach Erin Fahey. In 1995, Fahey played in the NCAA final for the University of Portland and a professional team in Varonezh, Russia, in 1998. For the last three years, Fahey has been the goalkeeping coach for Oregon’s Olympic Development Program and the F.C. Portland team. “Erin is a great addition to our staff. She has a lot of coaching experience and really relates well to the athletes,” compliments Winslow.
As the 1999 season gets underway, the Utah women’s soccer program is dealing with a lot of adjustments. However, even though some of the names have changed, the commitment to quality soccer hasn’t. Combining upperclassmen maturity with unbridled freshman enthusiasm, the Utes will continue to build upon the solid foundation laid by teams that came before.
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