Women’s Soccer Remains Undefeated
by Adam Davis
September 6, 2006

The Virginia Tech women’s soccer team added two more wins to its record over the weekend, improving to 3-0-1 on the season.  Both wins came at the UNC-Greensboro Tournament against the host UNC-Greensboro Spartans and the High Point University Panthers.

Coach Kelly Cagle said she and her players are very happy with where they are at this point in the season and attribute their success to team chemistry.  However, they do recognize there is a lot of work to be done in preparation for the ACC schedule.

Despite the team’s early success, Cagle said that “You don't want your team to forget what conference you're in because it's the best in the country and we need to be honest about it.”  This is not to discourage her team about the upcoming conference play, but instead, Cagle wants to challenge her team to stay focused as the competition starts to get stronger. 
           
A big difference this year has been the team unity, said midfielder Gina Om, who is second on the team in scoring with four goals.  “This year is the best team we've had,” Om said.  “It's a lot easier to play with everyone, we connect really well, and it's just more enjoyable too.”

Om’s production is at another level this year following two injury-filled seasons to start her career at Tech.  Concerning her comeback from MCL surgery last season, Om said “This year I'm just ready...I just want to be a player that hopefully will impact and help the team every time I get on the field and just enjoy myself.”

Om is not the only player whose production is raising eyebrows. Freshman forward Emily Jukich has scored five goals in her first four collegiate matches.

When asked if she was surprised at how much she was contributing to the team, “I had no idea what to expect at all coming in,” Jukich said. “I'm just happy that I am able to contribute as much as I have been and hopefully it can continue. There are so many people on this team that can contribute… I don't feel any additional pressure.”

While the team has counted on many freshmen in the opening games of the season, there are still plenty of upperclassmen that remembered the loss last season to UNC-Greensboro, their opponent in Friday night’s game. A game that saw the Hokies go down 1-0.

This year was a different story as the Lady Hokies were the ones to walk away with the 1-0 win.  One of the upperclassmen from a season ago was senior goaltender Mallory Soldner, who preserved the shutout for Tech, giving her two shutouts on the young season.

In the first half both teams had several scoring opportunities as Tech led UNC-Greensboro in shots, 8-3.  However none of those shots found the net.  Finally, 15 minutes into the second half, Om broke the scoreless tie on a shot that began with a Julian Johnson throw-in and pass from Laurie Beth Puglisi. 

The Tech offense managed double figures in the shots column and the defense held its opponent to single figures in shots for the third straight game.

“We're sharing the scoring a little bit more than we have in the past,” said Cagle. “But we need to do a better job of getting the ball and keeping possession of it.”

The second game of the weekend came on Sunday afternoon and was much more eventful. Virginia Tech defeated High Point by a final of 3-2 as the Panthers fell to 0-4-0 on the season.

After scoring an early goal in the eighth minute off the foot of Jukich, Cagle decided to try out goalkeeper Ashley Owens, just 17 minutes into the game.

Owens, a redshirt sophomore, got more help from her teammates as Laurie Beth Puglisi scored Tech’s second goal of the game off another long Julian Johnson throw-in.  This assist marked Johnson’s fourth on the season, all coming on throw-ins.

High Point, however, would not go away easily as Traci Anderson scored her first goal of the season in the 33rd minute of play.  That goal was followed by a second, this time from Beckie Lesh to tie the score in the 52nd minute of play.

Feeling the pressure, Tech found the answer in freshman Jukich, who scored her second goal of the afternoon in the 67th minute off an Erin Moore assist.  This time, Jukich stopped the pass from Moore with her chest, spun, and struck the ball in one fluent motion as she sent it into the back of the goal.   

Cagle continued with her tough love as she described her team’s efforts for the weekend.  She said, “I liked the effort. The effort in both games...was good but we've got to do a better job of stringing more minutes together.”

The Hokies will continue to work to improve.  They host James Madison University on Friday at 7:30 p.m., and Liberty University on Sunday at 3:00 p.m., in the Virginia Tech Women’s Soccer Tournament.  Wake Forest will also play in the tournament but will not play the Hokies.