Northwestern University Athletics
The 1999 Outlook
9/2/1999 12:00:00 AM | Women's Soccer
Sept. 2, 1999
With two NCAA Tournament appearances in the program?s first five seasons, the 1999 Northwestern women?s soccer team will try to build upon their success and continue to create a tradition of excellence on the field.
After reaching the NCAA Tournament in 1996 and the Big Ten Championship game in 1997, the Wildcats marched into the NCAA Sweet 16 last season before dropping a 1-0 decision to eventual national champion Florida. With eight starters and 13 letterwinners returning, the pieces are in place for another successful season in Evanston.
?Every season is new,? says sixth-year head coach Marcia McDermott. ?The team is completely different even if no one graduates. We have to put past successes behind us and start fresh.?
Offensively, the Wildcats return much of their firepower from a team that set school records in assists and shots on goal. At forward, Northwestern will rely on the one-two punch of junior Brooke Bell and sophomore Katie Hertz. Hertz, the team?s second leading scorer last season, specialized in the dramatic, tallying all seven of her goals after halftime, including three overtime game-winners. Bell, who finished third on the team in scoring, tied Hertz for the team lead in goals scored with seven while setting a Northwestern record with 55 shots on goal.
?Katie and Brooke are are hard workers up front and have shown the ability to put the ball in the net,? says McDermott. ?Both have the tools to step up and lead some of the younger players this season.?
Senior Christie Molitor, who has scored 16 career goals, will also be a key contributor. Junior Bridget Darby, freshmen Gina Napoli, who scored 133 goals in four high school seasons, and Janelle Harwood will all challenge for playing time.
Erica Westrich, the 1998 Big Ten Player of the Year, heads a talented group of midfielders. Westrich, a three-time first-team All-Big Ten selection who ranks third on Northwestern?s all-time assist list, is a versatile player who will be counted on to stabilize the team?s offense. She is an excellent distributor with the skills to go one-on-one.
?As our center-mid, we rely on Erica to organize our attack,? says McDermott. ?She had always been a skillful player, but this spring she went to a new level as a leader and competitor.?
Senior Cathleen Cooke returns after missing the 1998 campaign with a knee injury. Cooke also brings versatility and has started 58 of 60 career games.
Sophomores Sara Bodine and Kase McCoy also return to solidify the midfield. Bodine started all 22 games last season, posting two goals and two assists. McCoy saw significant playing time as a reserve last season and both will be expected to contribute. Sophomore Enyo Dzata and freshman Kelli Wilson are also expected to compete for playing time. Freshman Aileen Guiney, recovering from an off-season injury, will also compete when healthy.
?Having Cathleen back will be a big boost,? states McDermott. ?She is very experienced, something we need in the midfield.
?Kase and Sara both are very talented players,? says McDermott. ?Either or both of them could have breakout years.?
Senior first-team All-Big Ten defender Kristen Palmer returns to anchor the Wildcat defense. In addition to being a tenacious defender, Palmer is also a vital cog in the offense. She led the team in scoring last season and is NU?s career assist leader.
?Kristen is very consistent and very smart as a defender,? says McDermott. ?We rely on her to organize us. She is the greatest defensive leader we have ever had.?
Joining Palmer in the back will be junior Shay Unterreiner and sophomore Katie Kovatch, both starters last season.
Junior goalkeeper Erin Ekeberg returns after posting a solid 1.11 goals against average and seven shutouts a season ago. Sophomore Susan McCreery, who played well in limited action last season, will compete for time.
?Offensively, I think we need to score more goals than last year,? says McDermott. ?Erica is playing the best soccer of her career and will be instrumental, but we need somebody to emerge as a consistent goalscoring threat. Defensively, we should be stronger. Erin is better than she was last year and Katie is improving rapidly.?
As for the difficult schedule McDermott has assembled, ?You get better through competition. Playing teams like Montana, BYU and SMU early will help us prepare for the challenges of the Big Ten season.?
