July 9, 2001
Contact: Whitney Vernieuw
Phone: 573-882-2531
Columbia, Mo.-The University of Missouri women's soccer team officially releases its 2001 schedule. Once again, the Tigers are poised to take on some of the nation's best.
The 2001 season includes four Top 20 opponents, including the North Carolina 2000 NCAA Championship team. The Tigers will also face eight schools that received regional rankings throughout the country last season, including five regionally ranked opponents during Big 12 Conference play.
Missouri is ready to face the tough competition ahead. Spring training introduced a new workout regimen focusing on speed and agility. The youthful Tigers followed up the session going 5-0 during spring play. Mizzou downed Truman State, Houston, Central Missouri State, Nebraska-Omaha and Illinois.
Despite losing all-time leading scorer Nikki Thole and valued seniors Kristin Boeker and Amy Timmermann, the 2001 Tigers return a solid squad of seasoned athletes. Senior captains Mandy Waters and Dyana Russell once again lead the MU squad into battle.
Russell, a second team All-Big 12 selection last season, is undoubtedly one of the finest defenders in the country. She looks to once more reign terror on the Big 12 forward lines.
Waters looks to move into a new role during her final season at Mizzou. She led the defensive line with two offensive points last season after dishing out two assists. While still considered a valuable asset to the Tiger backfield, Waters looks to advance her play by increasing her offensive prowess in 2001.
Sophomores Adrienne Davis and Melissa McLellan return to bolster Missouri's forward lines. Last season, Davis was second on the team scoring 20-points. She had eight goals and four assists to rank second behind Thole. She also led the Tigers with four game-winning goals in 2000 and was named to the All-Big 12 freshman team.
McLellan is Missouri's tallest athlete towering in at 5-foot-9. She was fifth on the team scoring three goals and four assists for 10 points during her freshman campaign. The MU coaching staff looks to McLellan's hard-nosed and aggressive playing style to fill in the gap left by graduating seniors.
Adding to the talent of Mizzou's returning squad, the Tigers welcome a skilled corps of freshman. Angela Furin, Ashley Gibbs, Kim Hibbert, Kristen Heil, Tamara Kochen, Lacy Moore, Missy Peabody and Shea Swoboda look to make and instant impact to the MU squad.
Missouri also returns two sophomore goalkeepers in Megan Duncan and Stephanie Krawczyk. Both athletes played valuable minutes for the Tigers in the box last season. Duncan led MU with a 1.39 goals against average and recorded three shutouts during her freshman year. She played in 10 games going 3-4 before being sidelined by an injury to her ribs. Krawczyk stepped up for the rest of the season posting a 3-3 record and a 2.20 goals against average. Both Duncan and Krawczyk led the team with 43 saves on the year.
Bolstered by a strong returning class and a group of enthusiastic freshmen, the Missouri soccer team prepares for the upcoming 2001 season. Head Coach Bryan Blitz and new assistants Mikki Denney and Manoj Khettry are confident in the talents of their squad and look forward to facing the challenges posed by some of the nation's best teams during the upcoming year.
Date Opponent
Aug. 25 Preseason
Aug. 31 Memphis
Sept. 2 North Texas
Sept. 4 Indiana State
Sept. 7 Iowa
Sept. 11 Eastern Illinois
Sept. 14 Drury Sept. 16 Western Illinois
Sept. 21 at Duke
Sept. 23 at North Carolina
Sept. 28 Oklahoma State*
Sept. 30 Oklahoma*
Oct. 5 at Nebraska*
Oct. 7 at Iowa State*
Oct. 12 at Colorado*
Oct. 14 at Texas Tech*
Oct. 19 Texas*
Oct. 21 Texas A&M*
Oct. 26 Baylor*
Oct. 28 Arkansas-Little Rock
Nov. 2 at Kansas*
Nov. 7-10 Big XII Tournament
Nov. 16 NCAA Tournament
* Big 12 game