Guilford's
women's soccer team has made great progress over the past three years and looks to clear
the hurdle known as the Old Dominion Athletic Conference (ODAC) Quarterfinals. The Quakers
followed a school-record 11-7 season in 1997 with a 10-7 mark last year, but fell in the
opening round of the league tournament for the eighth consecutive season. Fifth-year head
coach Ken Glardon returns three starters and seven letter winners from the 1998 club set
on reaching the conference semifinals and beyond.
Glardon will rely on his talented returning veterans and an inexperienced supporting cast to replace five graduated seniors and three other starters who helped Guilford to its best two seasons in school history. The team's unity and strength in the middle of the field will aid the Quakers' ODAC title hopes, but the club's lack of depth makes consistency and fitness high priorities for a successful campaign.
Guilford will surely miss the services of Alison Schott '99, who graduated with four school records, including career points (83) and goals (31). The Quakers' initial first team All-ODAC selection, Schott earned first team all-conference honors in 1997 and 1998 and played with the Piedmont Spark of the United Soccer Leagues (USL) W-2 League last summer. The transfer of all-conference midfielder Jessica Lee (13g, 23a in two seasons) to Cortland State and the loss of forward Ingrid Werge (22g, 8a) deplete the Quakers' offense.
The loss of three of last season's top four scorers leaves a big void on offense, but Guilford returns the ODAC's leading returning scorer, plus two top defenders. Sophomore Amy Evans, a second team All-ODAC pick in 1998, scored 18 goals as a rookie and finished with a league-best 39 points. Junior goaltender Jenny Akman picked up honorable mention all-league honors a year ago and is a candidate for postseason honors again in 1999.
Here's a complete look at the 1999 Quakers by position:
Forward: With Evans moving to the center midfield to compensate for the loss of Schott, expect a pair of newcomers up front of Guilford's 4-4-2 formation. Junior Kerrie Campbell brings significant speed to the Quakers' attack, but lacks extensive experience. A point guard for Guilford's basketball team, she hasn’t played competitive soccer since high school. Senior Melissa McKallagat will likely see action at forward after three seasons as a reserve goaltender.
Midfield: Evans shifts to the center midfield for her sophomore season where she will assume additional play-making responsibilities. With Schott in the lineup, Evans could concentrate more on scoring, but this season she'll need to cover more ground and will be more closely covered by opposing defenses. Sophomore Lisa Bray, who started 15 games in the midfield as a rookie, occupies the other central midfield position. The move should come easily to the speedy Bray, who played in the middle as a scholastic and club player. Junior Miranda Bunge starts her third season with the club with just five matches of experience due to assorted injuries. Sophomore Kirsten Dexter is in her first soccer season after receiving the lacrosse team's Most Improved Player Award in 1999. Bunge, Dexter and rookie Kasie Gray of White River Junction, VT, must contribute from the flank midfield to give Guilford a balanced effort.
Back: The loss of junior Elizabeth Saintsing leaves a major void on defense and forces Glardon to keep speedy sophomore Erica Brammer in the back instead of playing her at forward. Brammer and classmate Angela Rioux have the most experience of the returning defenders. Newcomers Melissa Urann and Dana Holmer will also contribute on the back line.
Goalkeeper: For the first time in a number of years, goalkeeper is one of the Quakers' strongest positions on the field. A starter in each of her 25 career matches, Akman is a steady keeper who comes up with the big saves when needed. If she continues the improvement shown over her first two seasons, there's no reason to believe she won't be ranked among the top keepers in the conference. Freshman Brandee Adams comes to Guilford with impressive scholastic credentials as a keeper at Princeton (NJ) Day School and may push Akman for playing time. Given the Quakers' lack of depth, don't be surprised to see the backup goaltender playing in the field on occasion.
Guilford's schedule features six teams ranked in the final 1998 National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA) South Region poll, plus three first-year programs. The tests start early for the Quakers as Emory University, ranked ninth in the 1999 NSCAA preseason national poll, visits September 5 in Guilford's third game of the year. The following week, the Quakers visit preseason ODAC favorite Lynchburg College, an NCAA playoff participant a year ago. The Hornets defeated league rival Roanoke College in the opening round of the NCAA Tournament last season after the Maroons won the ODAC Tournament by beating Randolph-Macon in the final. Those three teams, plus Washington and Lee, represented the ODAC among the top nine teams in the South region last season. ODAC rivals Bridgewater and Eastern Mennonite are fielding varsity teams for the first time this season, as is Division I Western Carolina, an October 3 opponent on Guilford's Haworth Field.