St. John's University Athletics
St. John's Women's Soccer 2006 Outlook
8/15/2006 12:00:00 AM | Women's Soccer
Red Storm Picked To Finish Fifth In BIG EAST's American Division
St. John???s returns nine letterwinners from last year???s team that finished with a 6-10-3 (2-7-2 BIG EAST) overall record, and will also integrate new talent into the program with 15 freshmen joining the squad for the 2006 season. The 15-player recruiting class, which includes three local standouts from the state of New York as well as two international players, was ranked No. 6 in the Northeast Region by Soccer Buzz Magazine and will be relied on to make an immediate impact for the Red Storm.
???As a coaching staff, we are very excited about the challenge of blending some accomplished veterans with a large number of exciting incoming players,??? head coach Ian Stone said.
Two seniors, meanwhile, with experience on their side will look to lead their team back to the conference tournament. Natasha Lee, a 2004 All-BIG EAST Second Team selection, returns for her final year in a Red Storm uniform. The aggressive forward scored four goals in 16 starts for the Red Storm in 2005. The squad???s other senior, Erin Bohn, started three games last season before suffering a season-ending injury. The midfielder will look to bounce back in 2006 and return to her 2004 form, where she started all 20 games.
Also highlighting the St. John???s returners are juniors Krystle Jalalian, Julianna Cohen, Susan Byrne and Jaime Beran. Jalalian emerged as one of the conference???s most dangerous scoring threats last season, while Cohen and Byrne anchored the Red Storm defense in 19 and 15 starts, respectively. Beran, meanwhile, shared time in goal with sophomore Rebecca Capinera.
Capinera???s sophomore classmates, Jacklyn James and Brittany Cavarra round out the Red Storm veterans. Both rookies last season, they each started every game for St. John???s and Cavarra contributed two goals and one assist while James was a constant in the back.
Head Coach Ian Stone returns for his 13th season on the Red Storm sidelines. Already the winningest coach in St. John???s women???s soccer history, he is also one of the BIG EAST???s elite and longest-tenured mentors.
???The 2006 St. John???s squad will only be successful if the upperclassmen provide good leadership,??? Stone said. ???In addition, we are relying upon a number of freshmen maturing early to provide competition for starting places. We are looking forward to providing competitive practice situations and enthralled by the potential that having so much depth brings.???
Forwads and Attack
Natasha Lee, Krystle Jalalian and Brittany Cavarra return for the Red Storm as multiple goal-scorers from last season. Although St. John???s lost its leading scorer, Holly Ryder (now playing professionally in Denmark), to graduation, the trio of upperclassmen that return will look to keep the offense productive.
Lee, who entered St. John???s as one of the most highly touted recruits of head coach Ian Stone???s tenure, has lived up to her billing and finished second on the team in scoring last year with four goals and an assist. A natural attacker with a nose for the goal, Lee garnered several postseason awards two seasons ago, and has already cracked the all-time Top 10 list for career goals (17).
Jalalian, meanwhile, persevered through injuries in 2005 to finish with three goals and two assists. Although she also saw time in the midfield, Jalalian was a constant scoring threat for the Red Storm and had her best scoring output of the season against BIG EAST opponent Seton Hall, when she scored one goal and assisted the other in the Red Storm???s 2-1 victory.
Cavarra, one of the most versatile players on Stone???s roster, scored two goals and had one assist last year. Just a freshman in 2005, she started all 19 games and scored the game-winning goals against Pittsburgh and Seton Hall to lift St. John???s to 1-0 and 2-1 victories, respectively.
New to the Red Storm this season and looking to factor into the attack are Tatiana Duggan (Middletown, Conn.), Kaitlin Haas (Langhorne, Pa.), Kelly McConnell (Strongsville, Ohio), Sarah McGrath (Naas, Ireland) and Amanda Santos (West Springfield, Mass.)
Midfield
One of the strongest suits for St. John???s in 2005, the midfield looks to be solid again for Stone???s squad this year. Although Erin Henderson, the team???s leader in assists, and Ryder have graduated, a strong core of midfielders return.
Cavarra and Jalalian both saw time in the midfield last year, and both have proved their offensive productivity. Senior Erin Bohn will look to return to her 2004 form after missing most of last year with injuries.
???Developing the right balance in the midfield area is going to take some time,??? Stone said. ???We have a number of very competitive and athletic players. We now have to work hard to make this unit jell.???
Also figuring into the mix of the Red Storm midfield are newcomers Vaila Barsley (Yarmouth, England), Nicole Canning (Wall, N.J.), Courtney Curby (La Grange, Ill.), Kristine Cunningham (Seville, Ohio), Nicole Doran (Langhorne, Pa.), Duggan, Haas, Tara Mendoza (Valley Stream, N.Y.) Amanda Pasciolla (Park Ride, N.J.), Nicole Pasciolla (Park Ridge, N.J.) and Jessica Simonetti (West Islip, N.Y.).
Defense
St. John???s returns three of the conference???s best young defenders in Susan Byrne, Julianna Cohen and Jacklyn James. Cohen and Byrne, both juniors, have proven themselves as forces in the backfield, while James??? debut season with the Red Storm was very successful.
Byrne brings international experience, as she played for her native Ireland, while Cohen showed her versatility by scoring a goal last season. James, meanwhile, started all 19 games as a rookie and will look to continue her solid play in the back.
Newcomers Barsley, Curby, Doran, Lane and Mendoza add depth to the defensive positions.
Goalkeepers
Jaime Beran and Rebecca Capinera both shone between the goalposts last season, as they split time for the Red Storm. Beran, a junior, finished with 40 saves, a 1.17 goals-against average and a .784 save percentage. Capinera, meanwhile, notched 70 saves and a goals-against average of 1.81.
Adding to the depth of the goalkeeping positions is the newly added assistant coaching position at St. John???s, which focuses on working with the goalkeepers.
The Schedule
With a year under its belt in the new-look, 16-team conference, St. John???s looks primed to make waves in the BIG EAST Conference. Three preseason exhibitions are planned against local foes Hofstra (Aug. 16), Stony Brook (Aug. 18) and Monmouth (Aug. 21), before the 2006 campaign officially gets underway Aug. 25 at Fairleigh Dickinson.
Non-conference tilts against St. Joseph???s and Fairfield follow, before St. John???s hosts the NYC Nike Classic, which includes participants Columbia, Fordham and Sacred Heart.
BIG EAST action kicks off Sept. 15 at Syracuse, and then the Red Storm steps out of league play for a Sept. 19 match against Oregon State at Belson Stadium.
League match-ups against Pittsburgh (Sept. 22), West Virginia (Sept. 24), Louisville (Sept. 29), Cincinnati (Oct. 1), Connecticut (Oct. 6), Providence (Oct. 8), Seton Hall (Oct. 13), Rutgers (Oct. 15), South Florida (Oct. 20) and Marquette (Oct. 22) follow. The tournament runs Oct. 25-Nov. 5, and the NCAA First Round kicks off on Nov. 10.
