Aug. 26, 2002
SAN DIEGO - As head coach Chuck Clegg embarks on his 10th season at the helm of San Diego State's women's soccer program, he is determined to recapture the success that has managed to elude his teams the previous two years.
Clegg and the SDSU Aztecs certainly are not strangers to success. Clegg boasts a 102-64-6 record as the women's head coach. From 1993-1999, the Aztecs posted seven consecutive winning seasons and made trips to the NCAA Tournament in 1998 and 1999, advancing to the round of sixteen in 1998, with Clegg garnering Soccer Buzz Far-West Coach of the Year honors.
This season, a surge of positive energy permeates the women's soccer program on Montezuma Mesa. SDSU's 2002 soccer team fields familiar faces and welcomes newcomers that will assist the Aztecs in their quest for the Mountain West Conference Championship. Clegg is convinced this team is capable of achieving its goal to be a contender in the Mountain West as long as the athletes play smart, consistent soccer.
The team returns 16 letterwinners. Seven seniors will play in their final season of collegiate soccer, two overcoming injury to compete. SDSU adds to the mix 10 accomplished recruits and a new assistant coach, Angela Morrison.
Both coaches are looking for leadership from the returning players, exemplifying what Division I soccer demands.
Aztec opponents will face two first-rate scoring threats in Kim Castellanos and the return of Nicole Findlay. Findlay suffered a severe leg injury during the third match of the 2001 season. Castellanos, a highly-decorated athlete who earned first-team all-Mountain West Conference honors the previous two seasons, as well as MWC co-Freshman of the Year in 2000, led SDSU during the 2001 campaign in goals (10), shots (66) and points (22). The Escondido native was also awarded MVP and the Golden Boot at the U-19 National championships. Her San Diego Surf Club team earned the National club crown for the second time in three years.
Findlay received a medical redshirt after sustaining her injury, but made the most of her short season, as she knocked in three goals and took seven shots in the games against Montana and Eastern Washington. Clegg noted that the loss of Findlay had an enormous impact on the team's performance in 2001.
"We have proven goal scorers on our team," said Clegg. "When Nicole went down early in the season, the scoring burden fell to Kim, allowing teams to double and triple-team her and she still scored 10 goals. With both of them healthy and ready to play, we will give opposing teams something to think about."
Joining Castellanos and Findlay on the front line are seniors Arinda Alvarez and Jamie Harlor, sophomore Annie Klotovich and UC Riverside transfer Courtney Burns.
The midfield offers an abundance of players with a variety of strengths including experience, speed and versatility. Returning midfielders include seniors Boo Robinson Tinling and Michele Wagner, junior Annette Shinn and sophomores Noelle Jouglet and Gina Salinas. The Aztecs have added Brianna Weymouth, a transfer from the University of Massachusetts, and freshmen Erica Lopez, Lisette Martinez and Alexis Solovij.
Tinling, a team captain, and Wagner are three-year letterwinners for SDSU. The pair lead this position in experience, having seen action in 40 or more matches in the course of their collegiate careers.
Clegg attributes Salinas' speed and Jouglet's intelligent play as assets to the midfield. "I think Gina stepped forward as a freshman last year, proving she can compete with the best in Division I and, with her speed, will continue to improve this year."
Clegg added that Jouglet's great field of vision always puts her in the right position to create a scoring threat. Martinez competed in Canada in the U-19 World Championships for the Mexican National team during the 2002 summer, gaining invaluable international experience.
Team captains Shawni Flint and Hannah Garl, both seniors, are the heart of the Aztec defense in 2002. Garl has played in more SDSU matches (60) than any player on the San Diego State roster. Flint has anchored the Aztec defense as a vocal leader since her arrival in 2000, starting 16 games last season.
Clegg feels the biggest strength in the defense is the maturity level of these two athletes. Flint and Garl's play will add to the intensity junior Becky Prilaman and sophomore Jessica Roysdon bring to the back line.
"The defense should be solid," notes Clegg. "With the strength, depth and athleticism of so many of the midfielders, we have the option of sliding some of them into the defense. Our focus will be finding the right combination."
With the loss of seniors Linnea Qui?ones, a two-time all-Mountain West Conference selection drafted by the San Jose Cyber Rays of the WUSA, and Erin Haentjens, the position at the net is one that is wide open. Junior Stephanie Pearson, who appeared in one game last season and did not allow a goal, is the lone returning keeper.
Sophia Perez and Amber Aspinall will join Pearson guarding the net. Perez notched 64 saves and posted a .538 goals-against-average last year at Mesa College, while Aspinall was a member of the Canadian National team pool.
Coach Morrison has been a goalkeeper at both the collegiate and professional level, as well as the goalkeeper coach at the University of Maine. She comes to SDSU via the University of North Dakota, where she served as the program's head coach last season. Her extensive playing experience in the net will certainly benefit the keepers, but her head coaching experience will provide great support for Clegg and the team as a whole.
The enthusiasm and optimism for the 2002 season cannot be denied. Coach Clegg looks forward to the approaching season, secure in the potential of his squad.
"I am genuinely excited, and the women are excited, too," said Clegg. "When you see the players being this excited, you know something great is going to happen. They won't have it any other way."