Oklahoma State University Athletics
1998 Season Preview
June 21, 1999 | Cowgirl Soccer
July 6, 1998
STILLWATER, Okla.-
Does momentum carry over from one season to the next? The 1998 OSU women's soccer team hopes the answer is "yes" as the Cowgirls enter their third year of Division I competition.
A 1997 team laden with true freshmen won seven of its last 10 games en route to a 9-9-1 record, and the Cowgirls narrowly missed qualifying for the Big 12 Championship, winning four league games after going 1-6-2 in conference competition the previous season. Three seniors - goalkeeper Chrystal Emerson, defender Emily Morgan and midfielder Melissa Wykes - will be called on to lead the young Cowgirls in 1998, according to third-year head coach Karen Hancock.
"Melissa was our co-leading scorer last year, and we look for her to score even more this season," Hancock said. "Chrystal has great potential as a goalkeeper, and she's fought hard to return from four different knee surgeries. Emily has been our captain for two years. She is a solid player and a very good leader by example."
Like the three seniors, junior forward Missy Moss played for Hancock and assistant coach Colin Carmichael at South Alabama in 1995.
"Missy may well have been our best player in the spring," Hancock said. "She had a great showing at the University of Tulsa's tournament and in friendlies against Oklahoma and North Texas. She showed a lot more composure on the ball, her decision-making was better, and she produced some key goals to give us big wins."
A key to the Cowgirls' improvement last season was the development of its freshmen: defender Julie Harris, forward Andrea Larsen and defender Mercy Morrical. The talented trio were the only three field players to see action in all 19 games last season.
"Obviously, our freshmen made tremendous strides last season, and we look for that to continue," Hancock said. "It's such a big jump from high school and club competition to Division I soccer, and we look for our players to continue their upward swing this season."
Of that trio, Larsen played the most recognizable role as the team's top striker, scoring six goals and assisting on six others. Her game-winner against Arkansas followed a brilliant 50-yard run through the Razorback defense and turned out to be the catalyst for the team's late-season charge. "Andrea has some of the best attacking skills of any player I've coached; her dribbling and her ability to hold defenders off are outstanding," Hancock said. "Her goal against Arkansas, beating eight different defenders, was the best individual effort I have ever seen as a coach at the Division I level."
Harris and Morrical will join Morgan in anchoring the OSU defense in 1998. Fellow sophomore Andi Lute led the team with eight assists last season. "Andi had a good fall, but she had a great spring," Hancock said. "We fully expect her to be a major force in the midfield next season. Julie is one of our most physical players, and her athleticism in defense allows her to create problems for our opponents. We have nicknamed Mercy 'The Animal,' and in addition to her intense style of play in defense, she has developed some impressive offensive skills. We look for her to come forward much more this season."
The Cowgirls have been snakebit by injuries the past two years, especially sophomore Kellie White, who missed the second half of 1996 and virtually all of 1997 with knee injuries.
"Kellie has proven herself here; we know she's a player who can help just by being on the field," Hancock said. "She's the kind of player who can fit in anywhere on the field, from sweeper to striker. We're also hoping to have Heather Hartstein back healthy after she suffered an ACL injury just before the start of her freshman season last year. She'll be looking for a spot up front with Andrea and Missy Moss."
Also returning is midfielder Kindel Fenscke, who missed six games due to injury last season.
That core group of returning players will be joined by seven to 10 freshmen, some of whom will likely step into immediate starting roles. "Entering our third year, we feel like the group of freshmen we've signed can help us make the small steps needed to compete at the top of the Big 12 Conference and to become a real competitor in the south region," Hancock said.
Hancock said defense will be the team's main focus this season. "We're really trying to be solid in the back," she said. "We want to be a tough team to score on, and we feel like we need to work from the back forward."
While defense may be the first priority, Hancock also wants the Cowgirls to make the most of their offensive opportunities and take more shots in '98. "Last year our goal production was not as high as we would like, and we've talked to our team about the importance of them being a little more productive," she adds. "This year, we think we'll be putting out a stronger 11 than we had last year, and hopefully we'll have more chances and we will be able to capitalize on the opportunities we create in the box." The bottom line, Hancock added, is that fans will see exciting soccer in Stillwater, with the Cowgirls giving 100 percent.
"We coach our kids to play very hard. You're going to see some relentless defending. You're going to see some creativity on the attack. And if we can get our team to capitalize on their opportunities, hopefully you're going to see more goals."
OSU was 10-7-2 in its first year of Division I soccer in 1996 and 9-9-1 last season; the Cowgirls were a tiebreaker away from earning one of the six spots in the Big 12 Championship tournament. According to Hancock, moving past those plateaus will be key goals for the team this year. "After being around .500 the past two years, we'd like to improve on that and win around two-thirds of our games," she said. "We have yet to attend the conference tournament, and that's a goal to shoot for. Also, we want to gain some regional recognition and hopefully start to get some national looks."
Achieving those goals will be difficult, though, as the Cowgirls compete in the always-tough Big 12.
"Only in its third year, the Big 12 is a lot tougher than people realize," Hancock said. "In addition to Texas A&M and Nebraska, who are in the top 10 nationally, Baylor and Texas are among the top 50 programs, and the rest of us are knocking at that door. As the conference grows and its programs develop, the Big 12 will be a dominating force in this part of the country." Being a member of the prestigious Big 12 has been a boon to recruiting, Hancock added.
"We've started to make a name for ourselves in the Midwest and in the Big 12 area," she said. "There are a lot of kids who are aware of us and are starting to contact us. Hopefully we'll be able to really start drawing the caliber of student-athlete that we need to get this program to the next level."
When she talks to recruits, Hancock said she mentions a number of factors. "We sell the opportunity to play, we sell the Big 12 Conference, and we sell Stillwater," she said. "Stillwater is a great community. It's a small town with big-time athletics and it's exciting for a kid to be a part of that.
"The future looks bright."
