Season preview

New Coach Hopes to Bring Consistency to Women’s Soccer Program

The Northwestern women’s soccer team has seen four head coaches the last four years, but current first year head coach, Blake Wieking, is ready to bring some consistency to the program. Wieking, a Northwestern graduate in 2008, played for the men’s team from 2004-07. Wieking takes over a program that was 5-12-1 last season and 3-8-1 in the GPAC.

The Raiders have three seniors, four juniors, three sophomores, and ten freshmen on the roster and return nine players from last year’s squad. Seniors Becca Bruns and Brittney Punt, along with junior Katy Phillips will take over the captain duties. “Bruns in a good leader on the field and will be someone we look to for scoring and play making,” said Coach Wieking. “Punt is a great leader for us because she leads through her work ethic. She is great a motivating the team to work harder,” Wieking said. “Phillips is very organized and will provide us leadership on the field and off the field,” commented Coach Wieking.

Here is a look at the team by position:
Goalkeeper: Northwestern will be looking to Jenni Cantwell to anchor the defense in goal. Cantwell is a 6’0 junior from Des Moines, Iowa. “Jenni has a strong presence in goal and has great lateral movement in the box. She is confident pulling balls out of the air and is good one on one,” said Coach Wieking.

Defender: 2008 starters Sarah Seeger and Stephanie Wilcox are back and will provide Northwestern some experience in the back this fall. Seeger was a NAIA Scholar-Athlete in 2008 and coach Wieking likes her defensive ability, “Seeger has the ability to be an all-conference defender, she is solid on the ball and makes good decisions. She is an incredibly hard worker and she isn’t afraid to play defense on anyone. Stephanie is also a hard worker who is skilled in defensive play.” Also figuring into the defensive mix is freshman Linden Figgie.

Midfielder: Phillips and Ashley Trail are the only two returners from 2008 at midfield. Phillips will run on the left side. Also joining Phillips and Trail is junior college transfer Annaliese Frye and sophomore Hannah Taylor. Frye was the Female Athlete of the Year at Skagit Valley College for the 2008-09 school year. Taylor is the fastest player on the Raider roster. “Frye will direct our offense and should provide us scoring opportunities. Phillips’ experience should result in some chances and Taylor’s speed should also give us some chances to find the net,” said Wieking.

Forward: Bruns led the team in assists a year ago, with four, and has been a two year starter for the Red Raiders. Brittney Punt and freshman Heidi Postma will also be in the mix at forward. Coach Wieking said, “Bruns is aggressive inside the box and has a strong leg that can shoot from almost any distance. Punt and Postma are very talented at finishing shots inside the 18.”

Northwestern opens the season at the College of St. Mary and returns home to take on Bemidji State and Minnesota-Crookston in the Dordt/Northwestern Pizza Ranch Classic, both of those schools are NCAA D2 schools. The Raiders will take on three D2 schools this fall and one D3. “Our pre-GPAC schedule will be a good indicator for how we will do in GPAC games,” said Wieking.