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The Red Storm has two home games this weekend at Belson Stadium.
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St. John's Welcomes Georgetown, Villanova For BIG EAST Women's Soccer Action
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Red Storm play at Belson Stadium Friday night and Sunday afternoon.
Sept. 29, 2005
GAME 12
ST. JOHN'S (5-5-1, 1-2) hosts GEORGETOWN (9-1-1, 2-0-1)
FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 30, 2005 * 7 p.m.
BELSON STADIUM * QUEENS, NY
GOGIRLGO! GAME NIGHT
GAME 13
ST. JOHN'S hosts VILLANOVA
SUNDAY, OCTOBER 2, 2005 * 1 p.m.
BELSON STADIUM * QUEENS, NY
The Red Storm women's soccer team returns to Belson Stadium Friday night for a 7 p.m. game against BIG EAST opponent Georgetown. St. John's is looking for its second conference win of the year following a victory over Pittsburgh last Friday at home and a loss at West Virginia Sunday. Holly Ryder leads the Storm offensively, as she has tallied three goals and two assists, while freshman goalkeeper Rebecca Capinera and the St. John's defense have posted four shutouts on the year. Friday night is GoGirlGo! Night, and giveaways will be available for all in attendance as the women's soccer team joins with the Women's Sports Foundations to help promote physical activity in girls between the ages of 8 and 18.
Noting the Red Storm
The Red Storm began the bulk of its conference slate with a shutout of Pittsburgh last Friday night before falling to West Virginia later in the weekend. The victory over Pitt evened the Red Storm's 2005 home record at 3-3, as Brittany Cavarra scored her first career goal to give St. John's a 1-0 victory.
Following Friday's shutout, the Red Storm traveled to Morgantown, W.Va., for a showdown with then-nationally ranked West Virginia. St. John's had a solid defensive effort, but could not find an offensive rhythm and fell by a score of 3-0.
More than halfway through the regular-season schedule, St. John's holds an overall record of 5-5-1 and a 1-2-0 conference mark.
Statistically speaking, the Red Storm defense has been one of the team's strengths in 2005. Goalkeepers Rebecca Capinera and Jaime Beran, who have split time between the posts all season, have allowed just 13 goals (1.16 per game). Capinera leads the team with 42 saves, while Beran has a goals-against average of 0.63. Together, they have combined for four shutouts.
Seven different players have scored goals so far this season (Holly Ryder, Natasha Lee, Julianna Cohen, Lauren McGrory, Kaitlin Schmidt, Erin Henderson and Brittany Cavarra.) Ryder leads the Storm with three goals and two assists, also making her the leader in points with eight. Lee is the only other player with multiple goals, as her score on September 20 vs. Rider was her second of the year.
St. John's is 3-3 in Belson Stadium this year, and will play its next four contests in Queens.
A Look At Georgetown
St. John's leads the series with Georgetown, 4-3-1, but trails in all-time games played in Queens, 1-2-1. Last year the Hoyas came away with a 3-0 victory in Washington, D.C.
Georgetown is 9-1-1 (2-0-1), with conference victories over Rutgers (3-1) and Seton Hall (1-0).
The Hoyas are led by Chrissy Skogan (six goals, one assist), Alexandra Hardy (four goals, two assists) and Sara Jordan (two goals, six assists). Goalkeeper Jade Higgins has allowed eight goals and posted 42 saves in 11 starts.
Dave Nolan is in his second year as head coach of the Hoyas.
A Look At Villanova
St. John's trails the all-time series with Villanova, 12-3-1, including a 3-5 record at home. Last year, however, the Red Storm defeated the Wildcats, 1-0, at Belson Stadium. Laura Burlacu scored the game-winner to defeat the 18th-ranked `Cats.
In 2005, Villanova is 6-3-2 (2-0-1) with conference wins over Rutgers and Seton Hall.
Villanova is led by Lindsey Finnegan (four goals, three assists), Nikki Mabery (three goals, four assists) and Kelly Breslin (two goals, two assists). Goalkeeper Jillian Loyden leads the Wildcats with 44 saves and a 0.70 goals-against average.
Head coach Ann Clifton is in her ninth season at the helm of Villanova women's soccer.
Head Coach Ian Stone
Ian Stone is in his 12th season as the head women's soccer coach at St. John's. In 2004, he became the only St. John's women's coach to surpass the 100-win plateau, and he now owns a 106-95-18 overall record.
In more than a decade at the helm of the Red Storm women's soccer program, Stone boasts several achievements, most notably the 1994 BIG EAST Championship title.
His teams have qualified for the BIG EAST Tournament in each of the last four seasons and were crowned 2002 ECAC Champions.
Lee Named To Preseason All-BIG EAST Team
Junior forward Natasha Lee (Albuquerque, NM) was named to the BIG EAST's Preseason All-Conference team. Lee led the Red Storm last season with six goals and finished second on the team in points with 12. This season, Lee has notched two goals.
2005 Schedule: One Of The Toughest
St. John's will face at least two opponents who are listed on Soccer America's women's preseason top 25 poll. The 2004 BIG EAST Champion Connecticut, currently ranked No. 14, travels to Belson Stadium on Oct. 9, while Marquette is currently ranked No. 17 and hosts the Red Storm on Oct. 23 in Milwaukee.
Meet The Newcomers
New to the Red Storm in 2005 are three talented freshman, Rebecca Capinera, Brittany Cavarra and Jacklyn James. All three have seen significant action so far in '05.
Capinera was a four-year letterwinner at Watertown High School, where she captained her team as a senior. She earned MVP honors for three straight seasons and was named second team all-state as a junior and as a senior. For her career, she posted 26 shutouts and 840 saves.
Cavarra played three years of varsity soccer at J.K. Mullen High School in Denver, CO, before transferring to Arapahoe as a senior. She led Arapahoe to the State Championship game and earned second team all-state honors as a senior. She tallied 20 goals and 39 assists in four seasons.
James, a local product from Flushing, NY, complete a four-year varsity career at St. Francis Prep High School. As a senior, she captained her team to the Catholic High School AA Championship. James played for the Eastern New York ODP team for six years, including one year under Red Storm head coach Ian Stone. James is the sister of former Red Storm men's soccer player Dennis James, who played for Coach Dave Masur from 1997-99.
Looking For No. 5
The Red Storm has made four straight appearances in the BIG EAST Tournament, and is looking to top that unprecedented mark with number five. Last year's senior class was the first class in school history to qualify for the conference quarterfinals in each of their four seasons.
This year's senior class has also seen tournament action, and looks to continue down the road their predecessors took. In each of the four previous years, the Red Storm has bowed out in the quarterfinals of the BIG EAST Tournament, last season losing to Notre Dame, the eventual National Champion.
Stone Names 2005 Captains
St. John's University women's soccer head coach Ian Stone has announced his captains for the 2005 soccer season. Three seniors, Andrea Coukoulis, Erin Henderson and Kaitlin Schmidt, have been designated to lead the team in its quest for a BIG EAST Championship.
Coukoulis, a defender from Scottsdale, AZ, guided the Red Storm defense as the center fullback during her freshman and sophomore seasons, and moved to sweeper as a junior, where she led the defense to five shutout victories in 200. Her defensive efforts have been recognized, as she was named the Most Valuable Player of the St. John's Women's Soccer NYC Nike Classic after leading the Red Storm to back-to-back shutout wins en route to the tournament title.
Henderson returned to the field in 2005 after missing most of the 2004 season with a knee injury. The midfielder from Watervliet, NY, made an impact in her few appearances last year, recording one goal and two assists in the first seven games of the season. She was named the Most Valuable Player of the BAE Systems Army Classic in 2004 after scoring one goal and two assists in the Championship round against Army and was also named to the All-Tournament team at the Red Storm's tournament after two solid performances against LIU and Wagner. Last year, she battled through injuries all season and finished the year with four goals, including the game-winner in the postseason-clinching win against Providence.
Schmidt has earned several regional honors and in 2002, was named to SoccerBuzz Freshman All-America Second Team. She is a BIG EAST Academic All-Star and is on the St. John's Athletic Director's Honor Roll, is a member of the National Dean's List and is a Dean's Scholar.
Red Storm Picked Fifth In BIG EAST's A Division
St. John's, which finished eighth in the league last season, was tabbed to finish fifth in Division A in a poll voted on by the league's head coaches. The Red Storm finished with a 10-9-1 overall record last season and is looking to make its record-breaking fifth straight appearance in the BIG EAST Tournament in 2005. Connecticut, the 2004 BIG EAST Tournament champion, was selected to win Division A with 13 votes and was followed by West Virginia (3), Syracuse, Marquette, St. John's, Pittsburgh, South Florida and Providence. Defending national champion Notre Dame earned 15 votes to earn the top spot in Division B, while Villanova earned one vote and was picked second.
BIG EAST Is Biggest Conference In 2005
This season, the BIG EAST conference expanded to 16 teams for women's soccer, making it the largest conference in the nation. New for 2005 are Cincinnati, DePaul, Louisville, Marquette and South Florida. Ten teams will qualify for the BIG EAST Championships, five from each division, with the top three teams from each side earning a bye directly into the quarterfinals.
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