Tougher slate meant to prep Devils for SUNYACs
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Women's soccer
FREDONIA, N.Y. -- Fredonia State women’s soccer coach Chris Case has strengthened his team’s non-conference schedule with an eye toward returning to the SUNYAC Tournament after a two-year absence.
The Blue Devils missed making the conference playoffs by one point for the second straight year. While an 11-6-1 record established a new team record for wins in a season and resulted in the best winning percentage (.639) in program history, the Blue Devils fell short of the six-team SUNYAC field with a 4-5-1 record.
“Of our five conference losses,” head coach Chris Case said, “four were by one goal. We just couldn’t win the close games.”
With the thought of tempering his team for the tougher SUNYAC games, Case has bolstered his non-conference slate. He’s added Union and Rochester, both of which are regularly among the top five teams in the Northeast Region and often are nationally ranked. He’s also added Westminster, Pa., a team with Union/Rochester-like credentials in its region, and has kept St. Lawrence – a top five regional team last year – on the 2009 slate.
"Preparing ourselves against tougher (non-SUNYAC) opponents,” Case said, “allows us to sort ourselves out. It’s a way to have our opponents expose our mistakes so we can work on them before we get to a conference game.
“Also, I think our women get themselves up for tougher non-conference games instead of for games we know we’re going to win.”
While a 7-1-0 non-conference record in 2008 was a team highlight, so were the 10-goal seasons by a pair of returning Blue Devil forwards. Reilly Condidorio (LeRoy) was chosen First Team All SUNYAC and SUNYAC Rookie of the Year after leading the Blue Devils with 27 points – 10 goals and seven assists – as a freshman. Lauren Heilweil (Binghamton/Chenango Forks) had 10 goals – including three game winners – and four assists. Condidorio and Heilweil were the team’s first double-digit goal scorers since Robyn Domm in 1998.
“Reilly really likes to go after someone, she tries to make things happen,” Case said, “while Lauren is a very tough player to push off the ball. When she’s on, her shot is great.”
Heilweil, a First Team All SUNYAC as a freshman and Second Team as a sophomore, enters her senior year tied for fourth on two all-time Fredonia State scoring lists with 23 goals and 53 points. She and Condidorio will again be teamed with junior Julie LaPolla (Penfield), another dynamic player who has impressed Case with her work ethic.
“Julie’s biggest thing,” Case said, “is how hard she works. That’s what’s allowed her to get better. … Our forwards are the strongest components of our team. Those three (Condidorio, Heilweil, and LaPolla) are all dangerous players that our opponents will have to worry about.”
While the starters at forward are clear-cut, defense is still up in the air. Case enters the season seeking a successor at goalkeeper for Becky Scroger. A three-time All SUNYAC and two-time all-regional player, Scroger set Fredonia State career and single-season records in six categories. Her four seasons between the pipes coincided, not coincidently, with the four best consecutive seasons in program history.
Meaghan Meszaros (Selden/Newfield), a freshman, has emerged as Scoger’s immediate successor. Sophomore returnee Paula Culhane (Williamson/Gates-Chili) and junior transfer Jennifer Johnson (Goshen) will push Meszaros. Johnson played as a freshman at Keene (N.H.) State and has shown the ability to compete for the starting role, while Culhane, Case says, “is still in the mix” for playing time.
“Meszaros,” Case said, “does a few things slightly better than Scroger but has some things she has to work on to get to Becky’s level. With some extra sessions, she has the potential to be a very good collegiate goalkeeper.”
Immediately in front of the goalkeeping will be a defensive quartet consisting of three returning players. The other spot is up for grabs. The returnees are sophomore Lyz Dembrow (Lockport) and twin sisters Lisa and Gwen Curtis (Rochester/Greece Arcadia), who’ll serve as tri-captains along with junior midfielder Rachel Mimken (Fairport). The fourth starting spot will emerge from a group consisting of senior Nicole Campbell (Rochester/Greece Arcadia), junior Maggie Stewart (Jamestown), and freshmen Madison Brown (Niagara Falls/Niagara Wheatfield) and Gina Falcone (Kenmore/Kenmore West).
“It (defense) is our biggest question mark going into the season,” Case said. “But with time, it has the potential to be the strongest part of our team. The chemistry of the (starting) four is not there yet but it (the group as a whole) has improved drastically since the start of pre-season. As long as we consistently improve each game, it can be a successful season for us.”
Despite Lisa Curtis leaving the midfield for defense, there’s still some experience in the midfield. In fact, Case calls midfield possibly the deepest group on the team. In addition to Mimken, it includes juniors Christa Morgante (East Amherst/Williamsville East) and Angela Beck (Randolph); and sophomores Melissa Cummiskey (Clarence), Julia Medwid (Alexander), and Emily Beh (Penfield). Freshman Heather Zimba (Jamestown) has been switched from defense to midfield to give Case additional options.
“Morgante, Mimken, and Cummiskey,” he said, “look to emerge as consistent starters. Each brings a different quality for the field, and because of that, hopefully we will create a solid midfield group. There’s a lot riding on the players to get forward to get us chances, and to slow down our opponents’ attacks.”