|
Volume 5, No.7
It's comparable to Duke rolling into Reed Arena for a November basketball game or Florida State kicking things off in Kyle Field. It's LSU in a three-game series at Olsen Field or Stanford serving it up at the Varsity Tennis Center. Simply put, when No. 1 North Carolina and 11th-ranked Texas A&M face off in a soccer game Aug. 27 at the Aggie Soccer Complex, it will be the hottest ticket in the seven-year history of the A&M program. The defending national champion Tar Heels have been nearly unbeatable over the last 20 years in women's soccer, building perhaps the only collegiate dynasty that can stand side by side John Wooden's UCLA basketball teams of the 1960s and '70s. If ever the Aggies are hoping for some help from the 12th Man, this is it. "Every year, our team has gotten better, but they're always national champions," A&M coach G. Guerrieri said. "But we haven't played them in Aggieland. I've always said if we can get these guys in our backyard with the 12th Man being behind us, that will be at least good enough for one goal and put us in a position to maybe get a good result out of it. "I would expect us to have over 3,000 (fans), and we seat 2,400. It's obviously a big game, and our players know exactly what day it's on. Everyone we know is coming into town for that game." But the Aggies aren't just looking forward to the game because they will be able to grace the same field as the powerful powder blue. A&M, loaded with talent like never before, thinks it can beat the Heels. At least recent history has shown the Aggies are closing the gap. Six years ago, A&M was bombed by UNC, 4-0. Then North Carolina handed the Aggies a 3-0 shutout in 1996, before squeaking out a 2-1 victory in 1997. All three Carolina victories came on neutral fields.
But now A&M gets UNC on its home turf on a Sunday afternoon in August, just after the Tar Heels play Texas in Austin on Aug. 25. "Every time I meet somebody knew, I tell them to come to the game," said senior defense standout Amber Reynolds. "It's a 1 o'clock game, so I tell them to call me if you need passes. They were definitely better than us (in 1997), but this year, I don't know." The confidence to compete with North Carolina and three other top 10 teams in the first eight games of the season stems from the Aggies' talented and experienced senior class. As juniors last fall, they saw the Aggies amass a 17-5-1 record and reach the Sweet 16 of the NCAA Tournament, where A&M finally lost to Big 12 nemesis Nebraska, 1-0. Add in the fact that A&M returns nine of its top 10 scorers from 1999, including All-American Nicky Thrasher, and the Aggies are positioned to turn in a special year. "It's the toughest schedule we've ever had," Guerrieri said. "But we front-loaded our schedule for two reasons: No. 1, it's our most talented team we've ever had; and it's also a mature team because we have a big, experienced senior class. "Also, because we're going to have the ability to play seven games in Europe before our first game, we think we'll be more ready than they will be." A&M just returned from a 10-day tour in Europe, where they played seven matches against international teams from England, Germany, Belgium and Holland. While most NCAA teams were scrimmaging against one another, the Aggies were able to polish their game against some of the top European club teams. The Aggies, which went 9-0 in the spring exhibition season, open with Central Florida on Aug. 25 and play Carolina, No. 7 Hartford, No. 10 Florida and No. 4 Penn State in an eight-game stretch before the conference opener with Texas Tech on Sept. 22. "If we win those first six games, then we're No. 1 in the nation and we're in the NCAA Tournament," Guerrieri said. "If we win three of them, we're still in the tournament, and we should probably still be in the top 15 nationally. It's a no-lose situation. It's only something we can learn from. And I say that because we have a senior-driven team." Besides Thrasher on the attack, A&M will feature midfielder Heather Weibe, outside midfielder Alison Peters, and Reynolds back on the defense. True freshman Jessica Hamilton could be a huge spark offensively, as well. The big hole to fill in 2000 appears at goalkeeper, where Melanie Wilson owned the spot for the last four years. A&M will use veteran backup Angela Barker or incoming freshman Esther Thompson in the goal. Fortunately for the Aggies, Guerrieri is considered the nation's top trainer for goalkeepers in the country, evident by his work with the Team USA development program the last few years. And it was in that program that Guerrieri spotted Thompson, a North Carolina native considered by many as the nation's premier goalkeeper on the junior level. While A&M reached the third round of the NCAAs a year ago, there were some pitfalls, most notably an upset loss to Iowa State in the Big 12 Tournament and a second-place finish to Nebraska in the regular season race. The Aggies and Huskers hook up this fall in Lincoln Oct. 8 in a tape-delayed matchup on Fox Sports Southwest. Once again, the conference title will be at stake. "Nebraska should be the favorites in the Big 12, and we're fine with that," Guerrieri said. "Every year, that game is circled by both teams. One of us has always been the best team in the conference. "When I'm watching or evaluating talent, I ask how will she do against a six-foot Husker. If there's a question, then we avoid that player. Nebraska has forced us to get better." But good enough to beat North Carolina in the second game of the season? "We're going to be awesome this year, I think," Reynolds said. "If we can win that North Carolina game, we basically could be ranked No. 1 the entire year." |
