http://www.tommiemedia.com/sports/womens-soccer-takes-season-opener-with-overtime-goal/

UST travels to Tacoma this weekend and plays Pacific Lutheran and Puget Sound in more non-conference play.

This year's top two spots went to defending regular-season champion Concordia (10 first-place votes) and last year's playoff champion Carleton (two votes).

The St. Thomas women bring back 12 players from a 13-6-1 team that reached the NCAA playoffs for the second consecutive season. The returners include all three goalkeepers and six other starters, including senior all-conference honorees Lexie Fisher (first team) and Regina Horak (honorable mention).

The 2010 Tommies will look to continue their strong defense, which has recorded 19 shutouts and allowed just 27 goals over the last 39 games. St. Thomas was ranked as high as No. 13 nationally in 2008 and as high as No. 24 last season.

The Tommies open their season at home this Wednesday against UW-Stout (2 p.m.), then will travel west to Washington for a pair of games on Sept. 3-4. They begin their conference season Sept. 14 at St. Catherine.

Click here for MIAC poll:

http://www.miac-online.org/news/2010/8/29/wsoc_083010.aspx

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2010 St. Thomas Women's Soccer

The Buzz

The St. Thomas women bring back 12 players from a 13-6-1 team that reached the NCAA playoffs for the second consecutive season. The returners include all three goalkeepers and six other starters, including senior all-conference honorees Lexie Fisher (first team) and Regina Horak (honorable mention). The 2010 Tommies will look to continue their strong defense, which has recorded 19 shutouts and allowed just 27 goals over the last 39 games. St. Thomas was ranked as high as No. 13 nationally in 2008 and as high as No. 24 last season.

Coaching Staff

Sheila McGill starts her fourth season as UST head coach. Her 37-14-6 overall record includes a 22-7-4 mark in regular-season conference games. Returning as assistants are Andy Kaasa, Dan Weisz and Courtney Walior. Matt Carlson will coach goalkeepers, and Emily Fischer also joins the staff.

2009 Recap

The Tommies won the 2008 MIAC championship and came back to place second in the 12-team 2009 race. They won all five regular-season games against Wisconsin state university teams before falling 1-0 to UW-Stevens Point in the NCAA playoffs.

Did You Know?

The Tommies are 16-0-3 in road games over the last two seasons. They will be tested this fall on the road in conference play with games at Concordia, Macalester, Augsburg, St. Catherine, St. Olaf and St. Ben’s.

New Faces

St. Thomas has 12 freshmen in 2010, including five players from the Twin Cities area, three from Rochester, and four from Wisconsin.

Senior Watch

Six seniors are on hand to lead St. Thomas –- goalkeeper Amanda Domeier; forwards Fisher, Horak and Hannah Gikling; midfielder Kaitlin Denis; and defender Rachel Personius. Fisher has scored five goals and seven assists over the last two seasons. All nine of Horak's career goals have provided a game-winning margin, and St. Thomas is 9-0 when she scores a goal.

Rock Solid

Junior defender Tess Hanson, an Academic All-America candidate with a 4.00 grade-point average, has started all 38 games on her career and helped the Tommies post 27-7-5 record in that span.

Key Dates

The Tommies open their season at home Wed. Sept. 1 against UW-Stout, then will travel west to Washington for a pair of games on Sept. 3-4. They begin their conference season Sept. 14 at St. Catherine.

The Challenge

St. Thomas graduated two key scorers in All-American Kirsten Moran (seven goals, 10 assists in 2008 and 2009) and 2008 MIAC Player of the Year Erin Sprangers (71 points in 71 career games).

Ready to Go

The UST women get the distinction of opening the 2010-2011 St. Thomas athletics season as they play host to UW-Stout this Wednesday at 2 p.m. on the south campus field. The Toms won last year's game with the Blue Devils 1-0 on a goal late in the second overtime.

Exciting Times

The Tommie players are enjoying the new $52 million Anderson Athletics and Recreation Complex, especially the expanded training room, weight room and cardio room. By 2011 they also will have locker rooms and a training room next to their field when renovations at McCarthy Gym are complete.

Fun Stat

Women's soccer has been right in the mix of St. Thomas' recent string of athletics success. The squad is among seven Tommie teams to win at least 70 percent of its games over the last two seasons. McGill's team is 27-7-5 for a .756 winning clip. That joins UST men's basketball (53-5, .914 win percentage), softball (80-14, .851), volleyball (54-11, .831), football (18-5, .783), baseball (76-22, .776) and women's basketball (40-16, .714) at that impressive pace. All seven teams reached the NCAA playoffs at least once in those two seasons.

Moran, a two-time All-MIAC honoree, scored seven goals and 10 assists in 40 games over two seasons with the Tommies. She helped St. Thomas go 27-7-6, make two NCAA playoff appearances, win the 2008 conference championship, and take second in 2009.

Moran is the first All-America for Tommie soccer since Tessie Thompson won back-to-back honors in 2001 and 2002.

Thirty-seven players were selected on three teams. Moran was one of three MIAC players chosen, along with second-team defender Maddie Mette of Macalester, and third-team forward Sam Johnson of Concordia-Moorhead.

The trio is among six MIAC players who made first-team All North Region. That group includes UST forward Erin Sprangers (SR-Woodbury/Hill-Murray). Sprangers, a two-time All-MIAC honoree, had 71 points in 72 career games (30 goals, 11 assists), and UST went 24-2 on her career when she scored a goal. The Tomswere 24-4-6 when she played the last two seasons. The 2008 conference Player of the Year, and a two-time All-Region honoree, Sprangers has a 3.70 gpa in Psychology. She’s also a track and field All-American and has contributed to seven MIAC team championships in soccer and track and field.

Click here to view NSCAA story and All-America team:

http://www.nscaa.com/articles/20091207214524528.php

Click here to view NSCAA story and All-Region team:

http://www.championshipsubdivisionnews.com/index.php/2009/11/12/miac-profiles-of-excellence-erin-sprange?blog=5

UST outshot the Pointers 11-7.

Allie Byron had four goals in net and UWSP's Liz Hunter had six saves.  

Point plays Sunday at 6 p.m. against host Augustana, a 2-1 winner over Albion.  

Coach Sheila McGill's team, which plays Saturday in Rock Island, Ill., in the NCAA playoffs, had two repeaters among 20 first-team honorees -- forwards Erin Sprangers (SR-Woodbury/Hill-Murray) and Kirsten Moran (SR-Southlake, Tex./Carroll).

Kirsten Moran has seven goals and 10 assists in 39 games over two seasons with the Tommies.

Sprangers has 71 points in 71 career games (30 goals, 11 assists), and UST is 24-2 on her career when she scores a goal. The Toms are 24-4-6 when she’s played the last two seasons. The 2008 conference Player of the Year, an All-Region honoree and a two-time all-conference recipient, Sprangers has a 3.70 gpa in Psychology. She’s also a track and field All-American and has contributed to seven MIAC team championships in soccer and track and field.

Forward Lexie Fisher (JR-Buffalo/Rockford) made the elite first team for the first time. Fisher has five goals and seven assists over the last two seasons.

Forward Regina Horak (S0-Elm Grove, Wis./Brookfield East) and defender Tess Hanson (SO-Rochester/John Marshall) were among 17 named honorable mention All-MIAC. Emily Burgmeier (SO-Dubuque, Iowa/Wahlert) was named to the MIAC All-Sportsmanship Team.

Horak missed last season with an injury but has made several important goals in her career. All nine of Horak's career goals have provided the winning margin, and St. Thomas is 9-0 when she scores a goal.

Hanson was named to the ESPN the Magazine CoSIDA Academic All-District V team. She was honored on the second team. She's one of a select group of Tommie student-athletes to maintain a 4.00 grade-point average. Hanson has started all 38 games on her career and helped the Tommies post 27-6-5 record in that span.

Burgmeier has played in 36 games the last two seasons and has scored two assists.

Click here to view MIAC news release:

http://www.miac-online.org/news/2009/11/10/WSOC_1110091757.aspx

--UST plays Saturday at 7:30 p.m., in Rock Island, Ill., and has a first-round rematch with UW-Stevens Point (15-3-1). That follows a 5 p.m. game between host Augustana (Ill.) (18-1-1) and Albion (Mich.) (9-4-6).

The winners play Sunday at 6 p.m. for the championship, with that victor reaching in the national round of 16.

Click here to view tourney webpage:

http://www.augustana.edu/x17235.xml

--This marks the Tommies' ninth NCAA women’s soccer playoff berth and second in a row. St. Thomas reached the national Final Four in 1987, and in 2002 advanced to the Division III Elite Eight where they lost a two-overtime, 0-0 shootout to eventual national champion Ohio Wesleyan. Last season, the Toms lost a shootout after a 1-1 deadlock with Loras.

--The Tommies are among four MIAC teams and five Minnesota teams in the field. Carleton won the conference playoff and took the automatic berth, while Concordia-Moorhead and Macalester also received Pool C bids. Mac and Concordia join St. Scholastica of the Upper Midwest Athletic Conference and Dubuque in a four-team weekend tourney hosted by Macalester, while Carleton travels to Chicago for first-round play against Wheaton.

--St. Thomas won the 2008 MIAC championship and placed second behind Concordia this year. Coach Sheila McGill’s team is 27-6-6 over the last two seasons.

--St. Thomas was ranked as high at No. 13 nationally in 2008 and as high as No. 24 this season.

--UST started this season 2-2 while playing without ace forward Erin Sprangers. The Toms then put together an 11-game unbeaten streak (10-0-1) before it lost three one-goal matches to Concordia and Macalester late in the season.

--The Tommies is 5-0 vs. Wisconsin state university teams, including a 1-0 victory over UW-Stevens Point on Oct. 3. The Tommies also edged the Pointers 3-2 in overtime in October 2008

--UST has recorded nine shutouts and have allowed just 14 goals in 18 games this season. The Toms also had 10 shutouts in regulation last season and 12 goals allowed in 20 games.

--Sophomore Allie Byron is 8-5-1 in goal the last two seasons, while junior Amanda Domeier is 11-1-4 and freshman Callan Faulkner is 4-0.

--The Toms are 7-0-1 in away games and 0-1 on neutral fields in 2009. Last season, they went 9-0-2 on the road and 0-0-1 at neutral sites.

--Ten different players have scored goals for UST in 2009.

--Senior Kirsten Moran has seven goals and 10 assists in 39 games over two seasons with the Tommies.

--Sprangers has 71 points in 71 career games (30 goals, 11 assists), and UST is 24-2 on her career when she scores a goal. The Toms are 24-4-6 when she’s played the last two seasons. The 2008 conference Player of the Year, an All-Region honoree and a two-time all-conference recipient, Sprangers has a 3.70 gpa in Psychology. She’s also a track and field All-American and has contributed to seven MIAC team championships in soccer and track and field.

--Junior forward Regina Horak missed last season with an injury but has made several important goals in her career. All nine of Horak's career goals have been the official game winners, and St. Thomas is 9-0 when she scores a goal.

--Sophomore Cailee Ostermann has just two career goals but both have been huge on the road to win overtime games – against Stevens Point in 2008, and at UW-Eau Claire this season.

--Junior forward Lexie Fisher has five goals and seven assists over the last two seasons.

--Fourteen of the Tommie are Minnesotans with players also from Wisconsin, Iowa, Texas and Colorado.

--Sophomore defender Tess Hanson was named to the ESPN the Magazine CoSIDA Academic All-District V team. She was honored on the second team. She's one of a select group of Tommie studnet-athletes to maintain a 4.00 grade-point average. Hanson has started all 38 games on her career games and helped the Tommies post 27-6-5 record in that span.

It's the Tommies' ninth NCAA soccer playoff berth and second in a row.

UST plays Saturday at 7:30 p.m., in Rock Island, Ill., and have a rematch with UW-Stevens Point. That follows a 5 p.m. game between host Augustana (Ill.) and Albion (Mich.)

Brackets will be announced later this morning, but the Tommies are among four MIAC teams and five Minnesota teams in the field. Six of the seven teams in last week's Central Region

Carleton won the conference playoff and took the automatic berth, while Concordia-Moorhead and Macalester also recieived Pool C bids. St. Scholastica of the Upper Midwest Athletic Conference received a Pool B bid.

The conference runner-up at 13-5-1, St. Thomas started the season 2-2 without ace forward Erin Sprangers (71 points in 71 career games). The Toms then had an 11-game unbeaten streak (10-0-1) before it lost three one-goal matches to Concordia and Macalester late in the season.

The Tommies went 5-0 vs. Wisconsin state university teams, including a 1-0 victory over UW-Stevens Point.

In Division III men's soccer, conference champion Carleton missed the field after a loss in the playoffs to Macalester. Carleton lost 2-0 in the regular-season finale to St. Olaf, and the Oles received an NCAA bid.

Click here to access NCAA news release:

http://www.ncaa.com/sports/w-soccer/spec-rel/110809aad.html