September 15, 2010
(KIRKSVILLE) – Life on the road in the MIAA kicks off this week for the Truman women's soccer team, as the 3-1 Bulldogs head to a pair of upstart conference foes in Missouri Southern (Thursday, 7:00 pm) and Southwest Baptist (Saturday, noon).
The Bulldogs and MSSU Lions currently share the top spot in the MIAA with six conference points each through two games. Truman defeated Northwest Missouri and Nebraska-Omaha at home last week, while MSSU earned a 2-0 road win at Washburn and a 4-1 home rout of Emporia State.
Southwest Baptist, meanwhile, kicked off conference play with a 5-2 win at Emporia and appeared poised to also move to 2-0 in the MIAA, leading Central Missouri 2-0 at the half on Saturday. But the Jennies rebounded with two quick goals out of the break before hammering home the game-winner in the 90th minute to send SBU to 1-1 in the conference.
Both the Lions and Bearcats have offensive firepower through specific individuals, as MSSU's Danai Noftz and SBU's Ashley Creason share the conference lead in goals scored with three apiece. Creason's came unconventionally, however, through a hat trick against ESU.
The conference race still runs through Kirksville, though, as the defending MIAA champion and preseason favorite Bulldogs are looking to remain unblemished in conference play. Following a season-opening neutral-site loss to Midwestern (Texas) State, the Bulldogs have won three in a row but will have to maintain momentum on the road, as six of the next eight contests take place away from the Truman Soccer Park.
Southwest Baptist hosts Missouri Western this Thursday prior to Saturday's showdown with Truman, while MSSU only plays Truman this week and is idle on Saturday.
Following the Team:
Live stats will be available at Missouri Southern, but not for Saturday's match at Southwest Baptist. Alink will be provided on the Women's Soccer schedule page at http://www.trumanbulldogs.com.
In addition, box scores and match recaps will be available immediately following each match on the website.
Bulldog Coaching Staff:
Mike Cannon is in his 18th season at Truman and is the most successful coach to lead the Bulldog program during its 26 years of existence.
With a career record of 234-81-30 (.722), Cannon is the winningest coach in Truman women's soccer history and is ranked eighth in victories among all-time Division II coaches entering the 2010 season. During his tenure as head coach, Cannon has had seven players named to the all-American squad by the National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA) and has landed 52 student-athletes on all-region teams with 21 first-team selections.
When it comes to MIAA play, the Bulldogs have been the most dominant team in the league's history, having won nearly 85% of their conference games by compiling a combined 107-16-13 record in 11 seasons. Four players have been named the MIAA's Most Valuable Player, while a league-high 107 players have been named all-conference, an average of nearly ten per season, since the league added women's soccer as a conference sport in 1999.
He has been named MIAA Coach of the Year eight times - most recently in 2009 - and was the Central Region Coach of the Year in 2001.
He is assisted this season by Katie Reuck, who shifts from the field to the sideline after scoring 20 goals in three seasons as part of the Bulldog attack. She was an all-American following the 2009 season.
Bulldogs Sharing the Wealth:
The Bulldogs have been getting goals from multiple angles at the start of the season, with the team's six goals coming from four different players.
Senior Beth Bystrom and sophomore Olivia Hayes each have two goals apiece, with juniors Megan Buri and Jaclyn Schumann each adding one.
In Truman's three wins, a different player has scored the eventual game-winner each time.
Grisham Earns Player of Week Nomination:
Junior keeper Jayne Grisham was Truman's nominee for MIAA Player of the Week after positing 135 scoreless minutes of action between the pipes.
Grisham shut out Northwest Missouri, making two saves, in the first half of last Thursday's game before stopping seven Nebraska-Omaha attacks in a full-game shutout on Saturday.
She lowered her season goals-against average to 1.14 and now is 3-1 on the season with one solo shutout and one combined shutout.
Scouting This Week's Opposition:
Missouri Southern “Lions” (2-2, 2-0 MIAA)
- Top Offense: Danai Noftz (3 goals, 5 shots); three with one goal each
- Top Keeper: Randi Russell (4 games, 0.54 GAA, 7 saves, 77.8%?sv pct)
- Head Coach: Alese Woolard (1st season at MSSU, 2-2 career record)
Southwest Baptist “Bearcats” (2-2, 1-1 MIAA)
- Top Offense: Ashley Creason (3 goals, 13 shots); Marene Gomez (2 goals)
- Top Keeper: Megan Link (3 games, 1.60 GAA, 15 saves, 78.9% sv pct)
- Head Coach: Rob Podeyn (2nd season at SBU, 9-11-3 career record)
Series Info:
Truman vs. Missouri Southern
Truman leads all-time series, 15-2-3
- 2009: Truman won 4-0 on Sept. 24 in Kirksville; Truman won 2-0 on Oct. 23 in Joplin.
Truman vs. Southwest Baptist
Truman leads all-time series, 17-3-5
- 2009: Truman won 4-0 on Oct. 3 in Bolivar; Truman won 5-0 on Oct. 10 in Kirksville.
A Youth Revolution:
The 2010 Bulldogs have 26 players on the roster, and with only two seniors and four juniors, head coach Mike Cannon has one of his youngest rosters in recent history taking the field.
Because of last season's depth and experience at many of the major positions, Cannon was able to redshirt most of the 2009 freshman class, bringing back eight redshirt freshmen to go with the six true freshmen in 2010.
Women Top MIAA Coaches' Poll:
After capturing its ninth MIAA title in 2009, the Truman women's soccer team was predicted to pick up title No. 10 in 2010 after garnering the top spot in the annual MIAA Preseason Coaches' Poll, released Wednesday by the conference office.
The Bulldogs picked up six first-place votes (coaches could not vote for their own team) en route to 60 points, edging out Nebraska-Omaha and Central Missouri. UNO came in second with 56 points and one first-place vote, while Central Missouri picked up the remaining two first-place votes but landed one point back of UNO with 55.
Washburn (Kan.) (42 points) held a solid grip on fourth, with Missouri Western (31 points) winning a close race for fifth against Northwest Missouri (29 points) and Southwest Baptist (Mo.) (28 points). Missouri Southern (14 points) and Emporia (Kan.) State (9 points) rounded out the nine-team poll.
Fellow MIAA members Fort Hays (Kan.) State, Lincoln (Mo.) and Pittsburg (Kan.) State do not compete in women's soccer.
The Bulldogs have won nine of the 11 MIAA championships awarded since the conference began sponsoring the sport in 1999 and have posted 16 consecutive winning seasons – the seventh longest stretch in NCAA Div. II history.
2010 MIAA Soccer Preseason Coaches' Poll
1. TRUMAN (6) – 60 pts.
2. Nebraska-Omaha (1) – 56 pts.
3. Central Missouri (2) – 55 pts.
4. Washburn – 42 pts.
5. Missouri Western – 31 pts.
6. Northwest Missouri – 29 pts.
7. Southwest Baptist – 28 pts.
8. Missouri Southern – 14 pts.
9. Emporia State – 9 pts.
Up Next:
The Bulldogs get a breather next week with only one game on the schedule, as Truman will host Emporia State at 4:00 pm on Thursday, Sept. 23.
