KUTZTOWN, PA. – Coming off of one of its finest season in school history, the Kutztown University women’s soccer team is poised to surpass its memorable 12-win season and possibly make some noise within the rugged Pennsylvania State Athletics Conference (PSAC) in 2009.

Among the highlights of last season were a national ranking for the first time in program history, an 11-match unbeaten streak, and a trip to the PSAC playoffs. Now, the Golden Bears want to raise the bar and they have the pieces to make this season special even though they were picked to finish fourth in the preseason PSAC coaches’ poll.

“After the successes of last season the expectations are higher than ever before,” third-year Kutztown coach Erik Burstein said. “We have a tremendous amount of talent on this squad, but like any group of talented players, we need to find the right mix and get everyone on the same page quickly. Although we have been successful over the last two years, we are still building toward bigger and better things. I am very excited about the start of the season.”

Fortunately for Burnstein, he welcomes back 20 players including his top goal scorer in sophomore Chelsea Bressler (Cleona/Annville-Cleona).

Bressler, who led the offense with 10 goals, six assists and 26 points, was selected as the PSAC East Rookie of the Year. She was also honored by Daktronics as a second-team All-Atlantic Region selection and as a third team NSCAA/Adidas NCAA Division II Women’s All-Atlantic Region selection. Bressler had three multi-goal scoring games.

Junior defender Chelsea Deeter (Langhorne/Neshaminy) returns to anchor the defense. Behind Deeter, a first team all PSAC selection, the Golden Bears posted eight shutouts. She was named to NSCAA/Adidas NCAA Division II Women’s All-Atlantic Region second team.

Junior midfielder Jen Tice (Barnegat, N.J./Southern Regional) returns to provide leadership and experience. Tice was named to the NSCAA/Adidas NCAA Division II Women’s All-Atlantic Region third team. Tice, who was selected to the PSAC East second team, posted two goals and two assists with one game-winner.

“I have tremendous faith in this group and I am completely confident we can experience the same level of success as last year, but it will not be easy,” Burstein said. “Everything is going to have to come together at the right time, we need to avoid injuries and every member of this team must perform at the level we expect on a daily basis.”

Senior forward Raven Chiara (Jamesburg, NJ/Monroe Twp.) was a solid complement to Bressler, finishing third on the team in goals scored (three) and points (seven). Other key returnees for the Golden Bears include junior defender Jen Pyne (Wall, NJ/Wall), junior midfielder Kelly Bushe (Neptune City, NJ/Neptune), sophomore midfielder Shannon Pennock (Mansfield, NJ/Northern Burlington), and sophomore Emily Froehlich (Perkasie/Pennridge).

“I do believe this is the best group of players this program has ever seen, but the teams we compete against are also very strong and getting better,” Burstein said. “This season is going to pose many challenges for our young squad. The major challenge will be to get the 14 in-coming freshmen integrated into our system and positively impacting the program as early as possible.”

The battle for the starting goalkeeper has been intense with junior Kristin Mann (Freehold, NJ/Colts Neck), freshman Alyssa Hackleberg (Randolph, NJ/Randolph) and freshman Megan Heerwagen (Brick, NJ/Brick Memorial) all showing flashes of brilliance during preseason conditioning drills.

Burnstein will rely on newcomers Sarah Black (Hummelstown/Lower Dauphin), Molly Cooper (Palmyra/Palmyra), BrieAnn Shipkowski (Manheim Twp./Manheim Central), Rhea Weaver (Hummelstown, PA/Lower Dauphin), Kelly Rozembersky (Roxbury, NJ/Roxbury), Megan Zimmerman (Warminster, PA/William Tennent), Julie Phegley (Flemington, NJ/Hunterdon Central) and Julia DiFerdinando (Chadds Ford/Garnet Valley) to make immediate contributions.

The Golden Bears will get a strong idea of where they stand when they host reigning PSAC champion Mercyhurst College in its season-opener on August 28 beginning at noon. Mercyhurst, ranked eighth in the 2009 Preseason NSCAA Top 25 poll, advanced to the NCAA Division II Elite 8 last season. Four consecutive home matches begin the season for the Golden Bears including a pair of conference matches against Mansfield and Shippensburg. October will challenge Kutztown as the Golden Bears will play six of their nine matches on the road.

“The PSAC grows so much stronger every year and every game we play has serious playoff implications,” Burstein said. “We will look to get off to a better start this year than last, but we also need to find a bit more consistency over the course of our conference schedule. Home games will be key for us. Although we will need to come up with a few conference wins on the road, which is always very difficult, winning our games at home are critical, especially in conference. The goal this year is the same as last year: a winning season and a conference playoff berth.”

--KU--