THIS WEEK...The Angelo State Rambelles kick off their 2008 season this weekend when they travel to St. Joseph's, Mo., to participate in the Drury Inn Classic, hosted by Missouri Western State University. ASU will face Emporia State in its season opener at 5 p.m. Friday, Aug. 29, and return to the field at 12 p.m. Sunday, Aug. 31, to face host Missouri Western.
CONTINUING A WINNING START...The Rambelles will be looking for their seventh-straight season-opening win when they face Emporia State on Friday. The last time ASU dropped a season opener was in 2001 when it fell to St. Mary's, 2-1, in San Angelo. The Rambelles are 9-4 all time in the first match of the year.
VERSUS OPPONENTS...Angelo State has met Emporia State and Missouri Western only one time before, last season in Ada, Okla. The Rambelles were victorious in both meetings, defeating MWSU, 2-0, in the first game of the year then came back two days later to out-gun ESU, 4-3. In the two matches, former Rambelle Ashley Tatum tallied six goals and was named Lone Star Conference Offensive Player of the Week. It also marked the fifth time in the previous six seasons that ASU had won its opening two matches.
Emporia State enters the match against the Rambelles looking to break a 29-match (0-27-2) winless streak. The Hornets last win came on Sept. 23, 2006 against Missouri Western, 3-1, in Emporia, Kan. ESU returns two of its top goal scorers in senior Caitlin Riemer and junior Amanda Miano. Riemer finished the 2007 season with three goals to tie for the team lead while Miano finished right behind Riemer with two goals. Freshman Jennifer Stillmock will take over in net for the Hornets and should see the majority of the minutes in goal.
Missouri Western is coming off a 4-15-0 campaign, having dropped its final two contests last year. The Griffons are led by senior Michelle Polk, the school's all-time scoring leader. In her three seasons at MWSU, Polk has tallied 21 points (9g, 3a). The goalkeeping duties will be shared this season by sophomore Jenna Weis and freshman Joyce Endicott. Weis appeared in three matches last season with a 6.28 goals against average while Endicott posted a 1.33 GAA and a .871 save percentage during her senior year in high school.
McCORKLE RETURNS TO SAN ANGELO...Angelo State head soccer coach Travis McCorkle returns to San Angelo as the school's fourth-ever head coach after a five-year stint at the helm of the Eastern New Mexico women's program. While at ENMU, he compiled a 40-46-4 record after the program from scratch in 2003. He also started the men's program at Eastern New Mexico in 2004 before handing it over to his assistant in 2005. During his tenure at Eastern New Mexico, McCorkle coached 13 All-LSC players and 29 Academic All-LSC honorees. Additionally, his teams were honored with National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA) Team Academic Awards each of his five seasons with the program.
Prior to ENMU, McCorkle was the Rambelles' assistant coach from 2001-02 and helped guide ASU to 14-15-4 record. Before his stint at ASU, he supervised the Grand Junction (Colo.) Soccer Club, spending more than six years as director of coaching and player development. During those years he oversaw more than 1,200 players and was responsible for the overall philosophy of the club.
ASSISTANT COACHES...Pamela Bradley is in her first season on the Angelo State coaching staff after joining the women's soccer program this summer. Bradley played for ASU from 2001-05 and was a two-time All-Lone Star Conference honoree. A constant in the ASU defensive backfield, she started every game for the Rambelles during her final three seasons and ended her career with a string of 58 consecutive starts. She won the 2004 ASU Holland's Award for soccer and then served as a team captain for the Rambelles her senior season. She was also selected to the Lone Star Conference Commissioner's Honor Roll after each of her final two seasons.
Stephanie Sanchez joined the ASU coaching staff this fall as a graduate assistant after a stellar playing career at Eastern New Mexico under Travis McCorkle. Sanchez logged over 5,500 minutes in goal during her four years with the Zias and twice earned All-Lone Star Conference honorable mention. She posted a 28-20-3 career record with seven shutouts and a goals-against-average under 2.00. She was named LSC Player of the Week four times during her career. A true student-athlete, Sanchez was also recognized for her efforts in the classroom. She earned Academic All-LSC honors as a junior and was twice selected to the LSC's Commissioner's Honor Roll.
THE RAMBELLES...Angelo State returns two of its top goal scorers in junior forwards Jennifer Bukowski and Skylar Searles, who were second and third on the team in goals last fall. The return of junior forward Lauren Moore, who missed last season with an injury, will give the Rambelles yet another potent goal scorer. Moore was third on the team in 2006 with five goals.
ASU also returns all four midfielders from last year's roster, including honorable mention All-LSC pick Christy Knaub. A senior from Salt Lake City, Utah, Knaub scored two goals and added three assists last fall. The other returning midfielders are juniors Lauren Thome and Christian Willman and sophomore Shannon Dean.
Anchoring the ASU defense is a pair of honorable mention All-LSC picks in senior Amber Korb and junior Kristen Boister. Korb is a two-time Academic All-LSC selection and heads a very experienced backfield. Boister was a second team All-LSC honoree as a freshman in 2006 and already ranks second on the program's all-time assists list with 16 in just two seasons. Seniors Marianne Glutz and Brittany Tollison and junior Lucy Thompson help provide the Rambelles a steady wall on defense.
In goal, sophomore Natalie Shannon will be called upon to lead a three-some of young Rambelle goalkeepers. Last season, she split time between the pipes with the departed Becky Martin, ASU's all-time leader in minutes played and victories. Shannon appeared in eight games as a true freshman in 2007 and had a 2.05 goals against average. Sophomore transfer Melanie Peterson from the University of North Texas will see some time in the net for the Rambelles this season. Twice an all-district selection at Fort Worth's Fossil Ridge High School, Peterson saw limited action in goal at UNT last fall.
Combined with the solid corps of returning players, the group of 13 new players gives the Rambelles firepower not only for this fall, but for the next several seasons. McCorkle's challenge will be integrating the newcomers (three forwards, five midfielders, three defenders and two goalkeepers) into his seasoned veteran squad.
UPCOMING MATCHES...The Rambelles have one more road match next week before returning to San Angelo to begin the home portion of its 2008 schedule with a three-match homestand. ASU travels to Dallas on Friday, Sept. 5, at 7 p.m. to meet Dallas Baptist before coming home to host Incarnate Word at 2 p.m. Sunday, Sept. 7, at the ASU Soccer Field.
