Week 10: Nicole Sperl

Horizon League Semifinals - Loyola

Friday was just our second game in almost three weeks, and we were ready to play. Not only was it our first conference tournament game, but it was against Loyola—a team we typically have a hard-fought battle against for 90 minutes. Both teams came out with high energy, but we were able to stay focused and control the play of the game and finally squeaked a goal in the 25th minute by Kenzie (Gillaspie). We knew it wouldn’t be enough to deflate Loyola’s energy. We went into halftime knowing they were capable of coming back and causing chaos. We came out at halftime and just had intense ball pressure. Apple (Hagen) finally found the back of the net in the 75th minute from Laurel (Ragalie). We were able to keep them away from our goal… only giving four shots for the whole game.

Horizon League Championship - Valparaiso

The league championship game was Sunday and we were ready to make history being the first number one seed to win the championship (since the top seed was awarded hosting rights). It was a really nice Sunday afternoon and just being around the team you could tell everyone was ready to go. It didn’t take long for Apple to score her first of four goals, within the first 10 minutes. Which, last time we played Valpo she also had four goals! She scored again in the 13th, 25th and 58th minutes. Apple got MVP of the tournament again for the second year in a row. Forbes, Kenzie, Megna, and myself made the all-tournament team. I think we have really grown as a team, and we are ready for the first round of the NCAA tournament. We find out who and where we play on Monday. We will be at Harry’s Bar and Grill and we will be our gold travel tops!

Week 9: Nicole Sperl

Friday - Detroit

We had to leave for Detroit on Thursday afternoon, and thankfully our trainer Chad had brought “The Proposal” for us to watch. Otherwise, our assistant coach Chris picks out the worst movies ever for us to watch (no offense Chris). We woke up Friday and ate a good breakfast and we were ready for the game. We were especially pumped for the game because Mike didn’t make us go on a walk after breakfast! We got to their field and the weather was deceiving. The sun was out and when the wind died down it was actually very nice considering the weather we’ve already played in. We came out a little slow, but we got a free kick a little outside the 18 on the left side of the field. There was a quick start and Megna took the ball down the line and had a hard serve, and Apple came crashing in with a diving header. Once again Megna served a ball into the box and Apple ever so calmly tucked it away. Jamie Forbes came up big for us with a one handed save on a breakaway.

Sunday - Wright State

After the Detroit game we drove back home, preparing for Sunday. It was our Pink Out game, Senior Day, possibly the last game at Engelmann for the year, and we could clench the conference title. Everyone was pretty excited for this because a lot was riding on it and we got to wear pink and white jerseys. This was probably one of our toughest games we have faced this year. In the first half we both had some chances, but in the second half we were on the prowl. We out shot Wright State 21-2, but only found the back of the net once. Keara hit the cross bar, so typical. Megna and Apple hooked up again in the 77th minute. And then, we were able to hold them off, especially in the last two minutes when they pressured us hard. This is the 10th-straight year we have won conference. We travel to Green Bay on Friday to finish up regular season.

Week 8: Nicole Sperl

Editor's Note: After a week hiatus, the Women's Soccer Player Blog is back with junior Nicole Sperl.

Cleveland State Friday
We were excited to be back at home under the lights of Engelmann field, despite the nasty cold, rainy weather. Our opponent, Cleveland State, came off a big weekend, beating Detroit and tying Loyola, so we were prepared for a game against a scrappy team. Sophomore Laurel “Caribou” Ragalie started off the scoring under 20 minutes into the game and then found the back of the net 10 minutes later, off an assist by Kate “Baby Face Magy” Megna—which broke the career record for assists. We really are very proud of her!!!

We went into half time with a 2-0 lead, knowing that we should have finished more of our chances. We came out strong in the second half, Kate and Sarah “Apple Big Head” Hagen got the ball rolling off a corner kick. Then a short time later, our newly-appointed right back Erin “Come Again” Kreuser, showed her lighting speed and the only way of stopping her was to trip her in the box. Apple calmly stepped up to the penalty marker and slid the ball right past the keeper. Once again “Baby Face” Megna served up yet another sick ball to Apple, giving her back-to-back games of scoring three goals, aka a “hat trick”, while Megna continues to make her record untouchable.

Kenzie “I wear headbands” Gillaspie had probably the goal of the game… from about 25 yards out—fired a shot and hit the bottom of the cross bar and went in. Then, Sammy “Too fast to handle” Vovos jumped over a Cleveland state defender to finish a nicely served ball from Laurel. Our eighth and final goal came from freshman Meghan “Elvi” Elvington, who had an unassisted goal from 15 yards out, the first of her college career.

Youngstown State Sunday – Parent’s Day
After coming off a good game of finishing, we knew the expectations would be just as high on Sunday. We were also honoring our parents and wanted to make them proud. We jumped on YSU early within five minutes Laurel Ragalie started off the scoring from an assist from Megna. We held possession well and found the back of the net again this time Nicole Hirsch giving the assist to Keara Thompson. They had a quick transition goal on us and made the score 2-1, but we responded well and scored within two minutes of their goal. Once again Apple gave us the third goal by following up and getting a rebound and tucking it away. The clock was dwindling down to the last couple minutes of the first half when Sarah Talbert passed the ball to Keara, who then beat a couple of defenders and hit a shot from 20 yards out. Seconds later Megna served a ball just behind the defense; Apple ran on to it and was able to chip the goalie. So we ended the half 5-1.

Youngstown came out a little bit more defensively on us, making it very difficult for us to generate much offense. But, Sammy Vovos was able to give us a little spark after beating a couple of players out wide and serving the ball to Louis Vraney who tucked it away in the corner. We were able to keep them from generating any threatening chances. Coming away with a 6-1 win on parents’ day, now we are looking to prepare for our away game on Friday at Detroit. After that, we come home for Pink Out/Senior Day against Wright State next Sunday.

Hope to see you there!

Week 6: Louise Vraney

The start of the Horizon League is like the start of a new season. While games early in the season certainly do matter, if we lose one it doesn’t have much of a consequence in the next game. In conference play, however, our record decides who hosts the Horizon League Conference Tournament and whoever wins the tournament gets to go on to the NCAA tournament. And starting the first game of the conference was one our biggest foes, Loyola.

We always expect Loyola to come out their hardest when they play us, and it usually takes close to our best play to beat them because they have a desire to win. So we knew it would not be an easy game at all, even though they were missing their star forward (Cynthia M.A.).

Late in the first half, Keara Thompson served a great ball into Sarah Hagen’s head, which she calmly placed in the left corner of the goal. I think that first goal really helped our mentality going into the second half. We knew we had the advantage and we just wanted to get more goals. Which we did! Sarah Talbert had a stellar finish off a cross from Apple as well as a rocket into the lower left corner from 25 or so yards our to tally two goals, and Apple had one more goal as she broke away from the defender that was grabbing her arm to put another one away. I love when Apple gets on those breakaways because short of fouling, there isn’t a whole lot the defense can do to stop her. Lastly was Nicole Sperl’s goal which was a ball she served in, and Kelly McGrath did a great job of getting in the keepers way to let the ball slip through.

The whole game was played in the rain which made the surface slippery and caused a lot of falls, but none of it mattered after the game was done and we had won 5-1. The night continued to be fantastic because the coaches informed us that we had two practices off, which was much needed after a month of combined soccer and school stresses were taking their toll.

On Sunday morning the team did the run for breast cancer, and it was amazing to see so many people out supporting the cause. The weather was absolutely beautiful, and it was a very enjoyable event. Countless people came up to me as I was walking home and told me how much they appreciated the athletic teams doing that--even away from the race site! It was a very humbling, enjoyable experience.

All in all, it was a great way to start off our season and a fantastic weekend!

See you all soon at Butler and Valpo!

Week 5: Louise Vraney

This past weekend was our first full weekend of travel, and we began with the team at Purdue. We walked the field earlier on Friday before the game, and noticed the unique grass on the field. I believe it’s called Bermuda grass, and Purdue was as far north as it can be grown. I absolutely loved the surface—it was like a combination of turf and real grass and was very easy to run on.

Purdue is ranked 11th in the country, so we knew it would not be an easy game. Purdue played with three forwards and five midfielders, so they were very good at possessing the ball in the attack and had some quick forwards. However, they only played with three midfielders which worked to our advantage in transitions. We got some good opportunities in the first half from Apple, before she put one away off a free kick early in the second half. It was a hard shot straight to the upper left corner—the keeper never had a chance!

It was a frustrating game, I have to say. I was able to put away a goal on a corner kick, which was called back for someone being offsides—a very debatable call as two Purdue players were on the posts. At the end of the game, Talbert finished a goal to put us ahead, which was again called back. And we were called for an unintentional handball in the box as a penalty kick. Frustrating!!!

On Saturday we left for Illinois. We played hard, but maybe not “our game” as best we could. Apple had another great free kick for our only goal. An amusing moment to me occurred when Illinois scored—not the goal, but the celebration song was “Party in the USA”. It was an amusing choice for a soccer game. All in all, the only thing we could do was take everything we learned from this weekend into account and prepare for next weekend against conference foe Loyola!

See you all then!

Week 4: Louise Vraney

After Marquette and Notre Dame last week, our team was ready to rectify those losses with some wins. Our first game was against Minnesota, a team that has done very well the past couple seasons. We knew it would not be an easy game, and of course, it was not. Minnesota put the pressure on us by scoring first, and we were left trying to catch up all game. Although we did have our chances, Minnesota proved the victor in a 3-2 outcome after finishing their opportunities well. The goals we had were great, and we had many chances to score, but it was frustrating to lose again, and at our practice on Saturday we put in a lot of focused energy for a good practice and looked ahead towards Sunday.

On Friday, there were a lot of recruits that visited and got to see the team atmosphere before the game and then stayed over night in the dorms with the freshman. It’s a neat opportunity to get to share with the incoming players what our life is like, and what it’s like to be a part of the Panther family. I can say from past experience that this is the most enjoyable team to play on—all the girls have great personalities and we work hard and have fun together. Any player would be lucky to come to UWM to play soccer.

Sunday came and with it our game against Iowa. It’s a bit painful to talk about that game because none of us like how it went down, but it is a lesson to learn from and move forward from. I know from the past that we are more than a team, we are a family, and we work out the difficulties that we have and move forward together.

I would like to take this opportunity to thank all of the parents on our team. No matter what happens at a game, all of you are always there with a smile and words of encouragement. The goodie bags we receive after the games are phenomenal, and the way you drive hundreds of miles to watch us play means so much. None of us would be here if not for you, and it is truly a pleasure to play for you each and every game. Thank you all so much for your support, and I know we will see many of you next weekend when we have two more tough games with Purdue and Illinois!

Louise Vraney is a senior with the Panthers. She is the second Panther to contribute to the player blog this season.

Week 3: Louise Vraney

As the biggest weekend to date of the 2009 Women’s Soccer season began, I can speak for the team in saying everyone was anxious yet excited. Our first game of the weekend was cross-town foe Marquette, and as most of the girls on our team have grown up playing with a lot of the Marquette players, it is always more of an emotional game than anything. The last few years we came away with bragging rights, and I was definitely hoping that they would stand for another year. Before the game Mike told us that winning the game would depend on which team had the best composure around the goal, and (of course) he was right on the mark.

Marquette scored their first goal soon into the game, and you could tell from the way the girl slid to get her toe on the ball that she really wanted to score. Same thing with the second goal- the player was composed and kept it on frame and all of the sudden we were down 2-0. It’s possibly the worst feeling in the world to be down to the one team you want to beat most, but what I love about our team is that we always believe we can come back and win. I’ll always remember a game in 2006, my freshman year, against Green Bay when we were down 2-1 and scored 46 seconds after the next kickoff, then got a penalty kick in the box to win the game. We have a fight and a drive, and it came out in the second half when we outshot Marquette 15-2. Kate Megna and Sarah Hagen were both so dangerous around the goal, and Wando (Mary) rocketed a shot that the goalie barely got her hands on. We were clearly the better team in that second half-the only thing missing was the composure in front of the goal!

The next day we left for Notre Dame, where we stayed in possibly the nicest hotel ever... the beds and pillows were feather-soft. I slept 10 hours straight and probably could have gone a few more. I guess that Notre Dame puts their competitors into that hotel in an effort to try and lull their competitors into coming to the game still sleeping. That plan was foiled as (unfortunately for those that wanted to sleep after breakfast) Mike made us go for a 45-minute walk to digest our food, which cut out half of our rest time!

All I can say about the Notre Dame game is that I think we missed out on a great opportunity to upset the #2 team in the country. While Notre Dame is a talented team, the thing that separates them from others is their mentality to score when they are near the goal. As Marquette did on Friday, they took advantage of their opportunities well. We left that game unsatisfied and frustrated that we did not play up to our potential, and I think we are all eager to make up for it and prove our talent this coming weekend.

My personal highlight from this weekend was getting to play in my first game since my surgery in July, which was by no means just a little exciting. I think my knee is as good as it will get, and it doesn’t bother me too much unless I make an awkward cut on the ground. Although I did not do much worthwhile while I played, it felt WONDERFUL to be out there with the team again, running around, and I am excited for the rest of the season.

See you all on Friday!

Louise Vraney is a senior with the Panthers. She returned to the pitch last week after an off-season surgery. She is the second Panther to contribute to the player blog this season... she will be back next week.

Week 2: Nicole Munnelly

Dia duit aris! (Hello again!)

The excitement of college life is really starting to hit me as campus is getting quite busy. The sight of new students lugging all their boxes of clothes, stationary and not to forget food, up flights of stairs is a common one, while I’m side-stepping them down the stairs on the way to practice.

The bookstore too is full of students and their parents who have confused looks on their faces, hoping that this particular $300 BIO SCI book is the right one for their daughter. For me, I’ve had to do all this without the help of my parents... UWM campus is a little far for my mam and dad to come and help put my bed sheets on or help me choose what colour folders I should have. :) Believe It or not, getting ready for college life isn’t as simple. It’s quite stressful at times, but also pretty sweet. I’m feeling much more independent and responsible... I just hope I got the right BIO SCI book. :)

We completed our “Iron Chef” challenge last week. For those who don’t know what this is, it is a cooking competition in which the team is split into groups and each group chooses a theme (e.g. Asian) and cooks various dishes that inspire the chosen cuisine. Michael, David & Chris then vote and decide the best group. The themes chosen were Asian, Mediterranean, Italian and Mexican. Each group had something to prove theirs was the best... like... hmmm... chocolate dipped fortune cookies. :) The coaches haven’t decided on a winner yet... hope it’s a little earlier than last year.

We kicked off our season with 2 scoreless draws (v. Northwestern & Madison) and 2 wins (v. Michigan & Rice). The two nil-all (0-0) games were a little frustrating to us. We played good soccer but the goals unfortunately just wouldn’t come. These 2 games were my first road trips. After the Northwestern game, some of the parents gave us goody bags (snack packs) for the trip home which were gratefully received as it rained for the whole match and we were in need of a little cheering up... what better way than to give us food. For the Madison game, we went to Sammy Vovos' house for our pre-match food, which was fun. We ate, and then relaxed in her garden with her cute dogs until it was time to all pile back on the bus and head to the game.

The Michigan game was our first match on Engelmann and all of the team had faith that we would score this time, and when we did... we scored big. The Michigan game started off lacking some intensity, but the second half was the complete opposite. We came out and scored 6 great goals! Well done to the whole team but especially to Kreuser, Megna (she got 2, one real cracker!! [great goal]), Sperl, Apple and Kenzie who put to bed our near (but not really) goal drought. Congrats to Laurel for getting the game winner against Rice.

Let’s keep it up Panthers for the local derby (crosstown) game against Marquette this Thursday at Engelmann!

P.S. - Ireland plays Cyprus this Saturday in an important world cup qualifier, so get your green shirts on and support the Irish :) (1:30 p.m. Milwaukee time)

Slán go foil (Bye for now)

Nicole Munnelly is a freshman with the Panthers out of Dublin, Ireland. She is the first Panther to contribute to the player blog this season.

Week 1: Nicole Munnelly

Dia duit! (Hello!)

My big move to America had finally come! It was an emotional day saying goodbye to a few of my closest friends at Dublin airport but lucky for me I had my parents and sister to help me along the way.

The first few days were spent getting stuff sorted out, bank accounts, state ID, meeting the other players, buying new clothes of course, oh and getting my classes sorted out! Who knew there was this much involved?

I was really looking forward to getting into the pre-season training but unfortunately I got injured playing in Dublin in the summer so the first place I visited was the Klotsche Pavilion and the first person I met was Chad, our athletic trainer. My physio (rehab) sessions with Chad were good fun as while he was treating my ligament injury. I was teaching him some Irish slang like "massive" and “savage” meaning very good/nice. I had a lot of physio appointments with Chad so it was only a matter of time that he advanced into speaking, well attempting to speak, the Irish language – Gaelige. He’d ask how to say “Hi, how are you?” I’d say “Dia Dhuit, Conas ata tu?” but he just couldn’t quite ace the accent. :)

While the team trained together I was doing my own individual work trying to strengthen my ankle, which was quite frustrating. All I wanted to do was play. However, my injury was improving day by day.

Finally I was used to the heat and I was able to get fully involved in pre-season training with the rest if the team. The pre-season was an eye opener as all we seemed to do was train, eat, sleep, train, eat, sleep!!

David Nikolic, our associate head coach, got married on Sunday 02 August, so the team got to go to the evening celebrations. It was a chance to get out of our sweaty soccer gear and into some nice dresses...

Thursday 06 August I had my first experience of s’mores!! And I LOVED THEM :) We had a team dinner at Coach Moynihan’s and then Meghan Elvington gave me a little intuition on how to make a s’more. I slightly burnt the marshmallow, but it was still delicious! I will definitely make them again... not during the season of course. :)

Due to the Irish Secondary School (High School) system, my graduation results were not published until Wednesday 12 August, so I couldn’t be cleared by the NCAA to play. I missed the opening exhibition game against ISU. However, I did get to be involved in the ‘freshman duties’ of putting the nets up (and taking them down). We drew (tied) the game with ISU where Kate Megna passed a lovely ball into Laurel Regalie, who stumbled at first but got a great goal. :)

On Wednesday 12 August, my results came on the internet at 12 noon Irish time (6 a.m. Milwaukee time). I was complaining because the one day the team had a late practice I had to get up at 6 a.m. to see my results! Typical! I got my results and my Dad did the complex calculation of converting the Irish Leaving Certificate score into the U.S. GPA. He gave me the good news that I won’t have to get the next flight home. :)

My dad had a busy day on Thursday as when he got back to Ireland he had to go to my school and get my original Leaving Certificate results and my transcripts. He had to then get them by courier to the NCAA in order to get clearance. Steve Lautz and my dad did a good job, while I was helping put the nets up for the Alumni game on Friday evening, David told me that I was cleared to play. I didn't have time to get nervous as I wasn't expecting to play. It was good to finally get involved and Coach Moynihan put me on for the last 25 minutes. It was great game, winning 3-0 and the cookout after the game prepared by the parents really satisfied our hungry stomachs.

Saturday 15 August was move in day to the dorms. All the freshmen were so excited to finally get into the dorms! We were all sick of living out of our suitcase (in my case 4) Me and my roomie, Kera Modell, decided to have a pink color scheme. :)

Unfortunately, I didn’t make the travel roster for the exhibition game at MSU and Kera is injured so she didn't go either. That whole day we spent going back and forth to various different shops in an attempt to make our perfect pink dorm! :)

Slán go foil (Bye for now)

Nicole Munnelly is a freshman with the Panthers out of Dublin, Ireland. She is the first Panther to contribute to the player blog this season.