DePaul Opens 2008 Season
8/21/2008 12:00:00 AM | WOMEN'S SOCCER
CHICAGO - The DePaul women’s soccer program begins the 2008 campaign at home as they compete with crosstown rival Loyola-Chicago in a showdown at Wish Field. Following the match, DePaul takes the road as they seek a victory in the first match-up with the Butler Bulldogs. Friday’s match against the Ramblers is set for a 4 p.m. start and the Sunday’s action begins at 1 p.m. ET in Indianapolis.
2008 Preview: The Blue Demons return 16 players from last season and welcome a dozen newcomers to begin the 2008 regular season... junior forward Shannon Williams returns as the top scorer having led the team with 17 points off seven goals and two assists last season... returning sophomores Callie Hemming and Tara Strickland combined for five goals and three assists in 2007... Shannon Williams enters junior season already ranked among DePaul’s best... in 34 career games, her eight goals tie for the ninth-most in school history while 18 points are tied for 11th... head coach Erin Chastain begins her second season with the Blue Demons having gone 5-13-1 in her first campaign... the 2008 slate will be the 13th season for the women’s soccer program... in matches at Wish Field over the last six seasons, the team has posted a record of 25-22-3.
Scouting Loyola-Chicago: The Ramblers begin 2008 after falling in the first round of the NCAA Tournament... the Ramblers went 14-9-1 overall and 7-1-0 in Horizon League play... eight starters return including Horizon League Player of the Year Cynthia Morote-Ariza... she is the school’s all-time leading scorer with 70 points after tallying 17 goals and nine assists last season... head coach Frank Mateus enters his fourth season with the Ramblers... the team was picked second in the Horizon League preseason poll. The Series: Friday is the ninth meeting between the two programs... Loyola-Chicago has won the last four and holds a record of 6-1-1 against DePaul.
Checking on Butler: The Bulldogs finished 2007 with a 10-9-1 record and a fourth place finish in Horizon League... a total of 13 letterwinners return... Angie Muir is the leading scorer after registering 26 points, 10 goals and six assists last season... head coach Tari St. John enters her third season with Bulldogs... Butler was picked fourth in the Horizon League preseason poll... the team faces BIG EAST foe Louisville in its season opener on Friday. The Series: Sunday will be the first meeting between the two teams.
Exhibition Recap: DePaul picked up the victory against Eastern Illinois in its lone exhibition match on Aug. 16. The two teams played scoreless over the first 80 minutes until Taylor Nieling took a free kick from 35 yards out and found Lauren Pagone in front of the frame. Pagone got the ball past the Eastern Illinois goalkeeper to score the game-deciding goal at 80:43. Kelsey Hoinkes and Brittni Lally combined on the shutout for the Blue Demons with a save for Hoinkes and two stops for Lally. DePaul outshot the Panthers, 16-4, in the game and held a 7-4 advantage on corner kicks.
Preseason Picks: The Blue Demons were picked to finish eighth in the National Division of the BIG EAST preseason poll. Notre Dame was selected to finish first in the National Division while West Virginia received the top spot in the American Division. Notre Dame’s Brittany Bock was the selection for Preseason Offensive Player of the Year while Villanova’s Kelly Eagan was named the Defensive Player of the Year. The Goalkeeper of the Year was Stephanie Labbe of Connecticut.
2008 BIG EAST Championship: The semifinals and championship of the 2008 BIG EAST Women’s Soccer Championship will be Nov. 7 and 9 at Notre Dame’s Alumni Field. The first round and quarterfinal matches will be hosted by the higher-seeded team on Oct. 30 and Nov. 2. The champion receives the league’s automatic bid to the NCAA Division I Women’s Soccer Championship. CBS College Sports Network will broadcast the semifinal and championship matches.