Aug. 21, 2009
Washington, D.C. - The Georgetown women's soccer team opens their 2009 season tomorrow, Saturday, August 22, at 1 p.m. when they host their cross-town rivals, American University.
The 2008 season was a successful one for the Georgetown women's soccer program. The team attained their best BIG EAST regular-season finish (8-3-0, 24 points) and finished one win shy of the single-season record set in 2007. The Blue & Gray also set new team records for shutouts (11) and fewest goals allowed (14) while achieving the highest single-season winning percentage.
The Hoyas hosted a BIG EAST Championship quarterfinal for the first time and had five players (Toni Marie Hudson, Kelly D'Ambrisi, Jackie DesJardin, Caitlin Durkee and Stephanie Zare) named to All-BIG EAST Teams, the most ever for GU.
DesJardin, Durkee and Zare were also named Regional Academic All-Americans as Georgetown had the most players honored of any BIG EAST team. The squad collected numerous BIG EAST Weekly Awards and various other soccer media outlets (TopDrawerSoccer.com, SoccerBuzz Magazine, Soccer America) recognized the play of GU's student-athletes.
Individually, five players made jumps on the all-time and single-season Georgetown charts. Hudson led the team in goals (10) and tied for the single-season record. She also moved into a tie for ninth on the all-time goal-scoring list. Her 24 points put her in fourth place on the single-season scoring list.
Freshman Samantha Baker's eight goals put her in a tie for fifth on the single-season list and her 10 assists tied her with Durkee for the team lead and third on the single-season helpers list. Her 26 points tied her for the single-season high with Jessie-Beers Altman (2002).
DesJardin continued her charge on the goalkeeping records, breaking her own single-season shutout tally with nine blankings. Her 120 career saves and 16 shutouts have her fourth and second on the all-time lists, respectively.
Georgetown also returns Sara Jordan and Ingrid Wells this season after an injury and U.S. National Team duty kept them out of action last season. Jordan was an All-BIG EAST preseason selection last season and ranks among the top 10 in every Hoya offensive category for her career. Wells re-wrote the record books in her freshman season and was a NSCAA/adidas All-American, the first Hoya to ever earn those honors.
Last season, the Hoyas trailed 1-0 at halftime after a goal from Kelsey Brasher put AU on the board. Georgetown found the equalizer 12 minutes into the second half on a goal from Hudson off assists from Jordan and D'Ambrisi. After 90 minutes of action the game went to overtime and Baker, in her first collegiate game, scored the winner with seconds remaining in the first extra session. It was the fourth-consecutive win for Georgetown over American and the seventh in eight contests
The Eagles finished 2008 on a positive note after earning points in five of their final six contests and finished with a 2-2-3 record in the Patriot League. American will be led offensively by Brasher, the sixth all-time leading scorer in American women's soccer history with 19 goals. Brasher has led the Eagles in both points and goals in each of the last two seasons. At the midfield position, senior tri-captain Erin Stebbins, who started all 19 games in 2008, will lead the charge.
The defensive unit will be a strong point for the Eagles in 2009, as all four starters return from a season ago. Senior tri-captain Olivia Heditsian and junior Friederike Engel will anchor the back third, both of whom were 2008 All-Patriot League First Team selections. At the goalkeeper position, sophomore Arianna Efstathiou is expected to fill the void left by graduated Kelsey Wiggins, the 2007 Patriot League Goalkeeper of the Year.
