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Indiana
Aug. 20, 2008
Indiana returns a pair of all-conference selections and a player from the Big Ten's All-Freshman team heading into the 2008 season. First team all-conference honoree Kelly Lawrence, second teamer Kristin Arnold and all-freshman selection Lauren Hollandsworth highlight the returners. Overall, Indiana returns 14 letterwinners and eight starters from the 2007 squad that advanced to the third round of the NCAA Tournament. A year removed from scoring 36 goals on a school-record 343 shots, the Hoosiers return 29 goals and 22 assists, which accounts for 77.7 percent of last year's offense. With no seniors on the 2008 roster, the junior class will be looked to as the leaders of the team. At the forefront will be the team's co-captains, Jessica Boots and Natalie O'Bryan. Both natives of the greater Indianapolis area, Boots and O'Bryan have provided strong leadership both on and off the field for the Hoosiers in their first two years, with Boots playing primarily on defense and O'Bryan in the midfield. SCHEDULE Indiana will play 10 home games in the 2008 season. In addition to six conference games on Yeagley Field at Armstrong Stadium, Indiana will host the fourth annual Hoosier Classic during the 2008 campaign. The Hoosiers will open the season with three tough games away from Bloomington. Indiana's season opener will be against regional foe Dayton in Ohio before it sets off for College Station, Texas. In College Station, the Hoosiers will take on a pair of squads that made the 2007 NCAA Tournament -Tennessee and regional No. 2 seed Texas A&M. After playing six road games in conference play in 2007, IU will take on six Big Ten opponents at Armstrong Stadium in 2008. Penn State, Ohio State, Purdue, Illinois, Michigan State and Michigan all play in Bloomington leading up to the 2008 Big Ten Tournament, hosted this year by Iowa.
GOALKEEPER With Hollandsworth back to patrol the cage, the Hoosiers return one of the top freshman keepers in the country heading into the 2008 campaign. The Great Bridge, Va., native set freshman records with 13 wins and six shutouts last season, as she played all but 45 minutes for IU in her debut campaign. Hollandsworth's top performance came in the clutch, as she made eight saves against Purdue in the NCAA Tournament, then made a crucial stop in penalty kicks to advance Indiana to the third round. Pushing Hollandsworth will be a pair of freshmen who come in to immediately contend for playing time in Lindsay Campbell and Lex Dickison. Campbell joins the Hoosiers after playing three years of varsity soccer at the Hockaday School in Dallas, Texas, while Dickison will don an IU uniform after being a four-year varsity starter at Lakota West High School in Cincinnati. DEFENDER Though Indiana graduated a pair of veterans in Katy Stewart and Bev Markwort, the Hoosier defense is strong heading into the 2008 season, led by two-time All-Big Ten defender Lawrence. Also returning on the back line are 2008 starters Boots and Taylor Fallon, who provide significant speed and height at the back for IU. Boots started the first 22 games of the season at both defense and midfield before missing the final game of the season with an injury, and Fallon started all 23 contests for the Hoosiers. Adding further support on defense are sophomores Taylor Miller and Susan Swepston, who each saw time as a reserve in 2007. A pair of freshmen could also see significant time on the field for the Hoosiers in 2008, as Kerri Krawczak and Michelle Lind will push the returners for starting positions. Krawczak was an NSCAA High School All-American for Strongsville (Ohio) High School, while Lind started all 96 career games for Boylan Catholic High School in Rockford, Ill. MIDFIELDER The midfield for the Hoosiers features a plethora of veteran leadership in O'Bryan and fellow junior Christie Kotynski. O'Bryan played in 22 of IU's 23 games, while Kotynski tallied 15 points in starting all 23 games in the midfield in 2007. In addition to the pair of juniors, sophomore Chloe McKay should provide a scoring touch from the midfield after notching three goals and six assists in her freshman campaign for Indiana. The freshman class features a number of talented midfielders with good speed in addition to some scoring ability. Devon Beach, Katie Burden, Kaylin Clow, Gina Daniele and Kirsta Kellin all could see playing time throughout the 2008 campaign after having strong careers in both high school and club soccer before joining the Hoosiers. FORWARD With Arnold back at the front after setting a school record with eight goals in conference play in 2007, the Indiana forwards are in good hands. But Arnold is far from alone in being a veteran up front. Fellow junior Liz Holby will be in strong contention for a starting spot after playing in all 23 games and scoring a pair of goals a year ago. The sophomore class returns a pair of significant scorers as well, as Leigh Anne Cummings and Jocelyn Moses are back after strong debut seasons. Cummings finished fourth on the team with four goals in her 23 games, while Moses scored a pair of clutch tallies in her 22 games of action. Fellow sophomore Whitley Wynns and redshirt freshmen Aleah DeGeneres and Darby Hannon will all provide significant depth for the Hoosiers up front as well. Freshman Carly Samp should push for a starting spot out of the gate, as she brings a wealth of experience both at the high school and club levels with her to Bloomington. |
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