Aug. 25, 2005
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ORLANDO, Fla. - The UCF women's soccer team will open the 2005 season in California, where the squad will take on Pepperdine in Malibu Friday evening at 6 p.m. EST and UC Santa Barbara Sunday afternoon at 4 p.m. The 2005 season marks the first for the Golden Knights in Conference USA.
The Golden Knights begin the season ranked No. 28 in the nation by soccerbuzz.com, the highest ranking in school history.
The team returns 14 letterwinners from the 2004 squad which advanced to the Second Round of the NCAA Tournament.
Head coach Amanda Cromwell will begin her seventh season at the helm of the Golden Knights. Cromwell enters the year with an 89-37-5 record at UCF and a 109-52-6 overall mark.
Sophomore Kendra Flock returns after she led the team in goals (13), points (29), game-winning goals (4), shots (67) and shots on goal (31) last season. For her efforts, Flock earned NSCAA/adidas NCAA Division I Women All-Southeast Region Second Team honors and soccerbuzz.com All-Southeast Region Second Team, All-Freshman Team and Freshman All-America Third Team.
Seniors Courtney Baines and Jennifer Montgomery return for their final season after the duo combined for 12 goals, 16 assists, 40 points and five game-winning goals last season. Baines was named the Atlantic Sun Defensive Player of the Year in 2004.
In the backfield, senior Julie Snaman will occupy the net once again with fellow classmate Shaina Ross and sophomores Jessica Hallgren and Stacey George as the front line of defense. Snaman started 20 matches during the 2004 season, posting a 15-3-2 record with nine shutouts. She had a 0.62 goals-against average with 56 saves.
The Golden Knights will welcome the 44th-ranked recruiting class in the nation and the eighth-ranked in the Southeast region as determined by soccerbuzz.com. The newcomers include transfers Michelle DeCespedes and Roberta Pelarigo and freshmen Jessica Jackson and Hanna Wilde.
UCF was picked to finish second in C-USA as voted upon by the league's coaches.
Pepperdine returns 20 letterwinners from its 2004 team which finished the season 9-7-3. The Waves also made their fourth consecutive appearance in the NCAA Tournament.
Leading the way for Pepperdine are seniors Megan Woods, Jenna Fodor, Anna Picarelli and Daniella Bosio. Woods was named first team All-West Coast Conference, while Picarelli earned second team All-WCC honors and Bosio earned honorable mention All-WCC.
Woods finished the 2004 season leading the Waves with 13 points (5 goals, 3 assists), while Fodor was tied for second with nine points (4 goals, 1 assist). Picarelli had 10 shutouts last season and set a school record with a 0.61 GAA.
UCSB returns 13 letterwinners from the 2004 team which finished the season 13-6-2. Leading the way for the Gauchos are juniors Chandi Bickford and Allie Kueny. Bickford recorded three goals and 10 assists last season for a total of 16 points, while Kueny netted five goals with four helpers for 14 points.
Kueny was rewarded for her efforts by being named to the Second Team All-Big West. In addition to Kueny, Kristyn Bright and Katie Cooper also picked up conference honors last season.
Senior Jamie Considine returns for her final season as the Gauchos goalkeeper. Considine played in 15 matches during the 2004 season where she recorded 58 saves and six shutouts and allowed 17 goals for a 1.13 GAA.
UCF has never faced Pepperdine or UC Santa Barbara.
The Golden Knights make their home debut on Sept. 3, hosting the UCF Invitational. UCF will face Ole Miss at 7 p.m. Buffalo and Jacksonville are also participating in the event.