Oklahoma State University Athletics
Soccer Set For First Conference Road Test
October 09, 2003 | Cowgirl Soccer
Oklahoma State hits the road this weekend for its first conference road test of the season, visiting Missouri on Friday and Iowa State on Sunday. The Cowgirls are unbeaten in the first 12 games of the season, setting a new unbeaten streak record at OSU. Missouri has a commanding 7-0-0 lead of the overall series with the Cowgirls. Last year the Tigers defeated OSU 5-1 in Columbia. Iowa State also leads the series with the Cowgirls, holding a slim 3-2-2 advantage after a 2-1 win in Ames last year. Road trips have not been a problem for the Cowgirls so far this season as they are 5-0 with a 24-2 scoring advantage away from Cowgirl Soccer Complex. The stakes will be high this weekend as the Cowgirls are battling for the top spot in the conference standings. Oklahoma State is currently in second place behind Colorado.
Scouting Missouri
Missouri is 6-6-0 overall and 0-3-0 in conference contests entering Friday's game against OSU. The Tigers have fallen to Big 12 opponents Colorado 3-2, Nebraska 3-1 and Oklahoma 2-1 (OT). Mizzou has faced seven opponents ranked in the Top 25 at the time of competition, including its last five. Goalkeeper Megan Duncan recorded her second shutout of the season against #17 California last Friday and owns the career shutout record at Mizzou with 12. Duncan has a 0.64 goals-against average this season and has shared time in net with Stephanie Krawczyk (2.13 GAA). Offensively the Tigers are led by Kristen Heil with 13 points on six goals and one assist and Jennifer Hobis with 12 points on five goals and two assists.
Scouting Iowa State
Iowa State enters the weekend at 3-5-3 overall and 0-2-1 in Big 12 action. The Cyclones fell to Nebraska 5-1 and Colorado 2-0, and tied Oklahoma 2-2 (2OT). Kate Kirwan leads the ISU offense with four goals and two assists. Kristina Baumann, Deb Benakiss and Amy Flores have each scored two goals for the Cyclones. Kirwan earned Big 12 Newcomer of the Week honors earlier this season after scoring the equalizing goal against Illinois State and the game-winner against Mississippi State. Beth Chapman has seen the bulk of the time in net for Iowa State, posting two shutouts and a 1.68 GAA. Chapman is the Cyclones' all-time leader in minutes in goal with over 4,000 to her credit.
Head Coach Karen Hancock
Karen Hancock is in her eighth year at Oklahoma State, having started the program in 1996. In seven years at OSU, Hancock holds a 67-69-9 record and the program has grown stronger each year. Hancock has led the team to a 10-0 start the past two seasons. Last year's squad finished 13-7-0 to set a school record for wins in a season. Hancock's hard work paid off when the Cowgirls qualified for the Big 12 Tournament for the first time and she earned Co-Big 12 Coach of the Year honors.
Stellar Recruiting Class
Oklahoma State's 2003 recruiting cass of Ashlyn Brantley, Katie Lacey, Kathrin Lehmann and Adriane Radtke earned national recognition. Soccer Buzz ranked the class seventh regionally and 38th nationally.
Cowgirls Picked Eighth
Oklahoma State was picked to finish eighth in the Big 12 race this season in the preseason poll voted on by the league coaches. Texas was picked to win the 2003 Big 12 title, followed by defending conference champion Texas A&M and defending Big 12 tournament champion Nebraska. Missouri, Colorado, Oklahoma, Kansas, Baylor, Iowa State and Baylor rounded out the poll. The top eight teams qualify for the conference tournament in San Antonio, Texas.
Radtke Leads The Pack
Adriane Radtke has earned Big 12 Newcomer of the Week honors twice this season. The Munich, Germany, native leads the Cowgirls with 12 goals and 31 points, the most scored by a freshman since 1996. Radtke scored in OSU's first six contests, tying the longest scoring streak in program history. She had a hat trick vs. Vermont and is currently averaging a Big 12-leading 3.10 points per game.
Schweitzer Gets It Done
Jolene Schweitzer notched her second hat trick of the season against Texas on Sunday. The junior scored all three goals in the contest, including two in the first 10 minutes. Earlier this year Schweitzer had the first hat trick of her career against Sam Houston State in a 22 minute span.
Cowgirls Capture Oklahoma Shootout
For the second consecutive year, Oklahoma State won the Oklahoma Shootout. Both OU and OSU were 2-0 in the event, but the Cowgirls edged the Sooners based on goal differential. Four Cowgirls, Marcela Nova, Kathrin Lehmann, Nikki Wojtowicz and Kim Graves were named to the all-tournament team. Graves was also tabbed the Offensive MVP.
Cowgirls Earn National Recognition
The Cowgirls success on the field is turning heads as five rank as the top statistical leaders in the nation. Kathrin Lehmann leads the country with a 0.22 GAA while Nikki Wojtowicz tops all with a 1.17 assists per game average. Adriane Radtke is eighth in points per game (2.58), tied for 11th in goals per game (1.00) and tied for 27th (0.58) in assists per game. Kim Graves is also tied for 27th (0.58) in assists per game. Joanne Edwards rounds out the Cowgirls in the top 30, coming in tied for fifth in assists per game, averaging 0.73. As a team the Cowgirls lead the nation in scoring offense and are second in goals-against average and win-lost-tied percentage, trailing top-ranked North Carolina in both categories.
Cowgirls on the Web
For the latest information on 2003 Cowgirl Soccer visit the official web site of Oklahoma State Athletics at www.okstate.com. All OSU home games will be broadcast live on the web site as part of the MVP portion of the site.
