Temple University Athletics
Temple Women's Soccer 2013 Season Begins Today at New Jersey Institute of Technology
8.23.13 | Women's Soccer
NEWARK, N.J. – Training camp workouts have come and gone for the Temple women's soccer team and now it's time to turn the focus to the season-opening match on the road against the NJIT Highlanders, which will commence at 7:00 p.m. tonight from Lubetkin Field at J. Malcolm Simon Stadium. Live stats and a live video feed will be provided by clicking the links above.
This will also be the season opener for the Highlanders. NJIT, which began Division I competition in women's soccer in 2006, posted a 4-13-3 record in 2012. Temple defeated NJIT last year on August 31 at Ambler Field 1-0.
The 2013 season marks a fresh start for the Temple women's soccer program. They compete in their first year in the American Athletic Conference after leaving the Atlantic 10. Seamus O'Connor steps in as head coach after being an assistant coach and recruiting coordinator for Temple the last two years. He brings in a system that's very aggressive, hoping to increase production on the offense. His first recruiting class brings in three transfers and 10 freshmen, making almost half the roster consist of newcomers. O'Connor has been very excited with the new beginnings of the program. His young squad will gain valuable experience in a conference that will have much stiffer and tougher competition than Temple has been accustomed to.
Being one of only four upperclassmen, senior defender Karly O'Toole will be looked upon for leadership as a captain. O'Toole, providing an offensive punch with her defensive work, started in 19 games, had two assists to tie for the team lead, and was third on the team in shots with 20. The two other captains, sophomores Erin Lafferty and Kaylee Harner, join O'Toole as defenders in making the defense the strength of the team. Lafferty will look to build off a very productive freshman season in which she earned a spot on the A-10's All-Rookie Team. She started all 20 games last season, allowing her to lead the team in minutes played, and accounts for one-fifth of the returning goal production. Harner started 18 games. Selected captains as only sophomores, Harner and Lafferty are expected to be some of the young members to rise up and be vocal leaders for the young squad that has 24 underclassmen.
Sophomores Paula Jurewicz, Rachel Barbella and junior Alyssa Kirk also return for the defense. Kirk, the only junior on the roster, is the third-leading returning scorer with three points. Jurewicz started 18 games, tied for the team lead in assists with two, and had 12 shots on goal. Barbella played in all 20 games, starting in nine. Sophomore Taylor Trusky will look to make an impact after transferring from the University of Pittsburgh. Freshmen Morgan Elliot, Megan Sullivan and Kelly Moran (transfer from Marshall) will also compete for a spot in the rotation.
Senior forward Jackie Krostek looks to help lead Temple to a successful first season in the American Athletic Conference. She has overcome much adversity in her career, having torn her same ACL twice in the past two seasons. She hopes to return at some point in her final season to contribute for the Owls. Sophomore Kelly Farrell transferred in from Old Dominion where she played in 14 of 16 games, and hopes to make an immediate impact. Fellow sophomores Colleen Diviny and Brendi Ernst return for Temple. Freshman Morgan Evans also will also compete for a spot in the rotation.
Paige Rachel leads the midfielder position. The sophomore started in 14 games and tied for the team lead in goals with two. The third senior, Amanda Ward, also hopes to contribute as a midfielder in her last season. Sophomores Shannon Senour, Katie Burgess and Jordyn Richman also return for the Temple Owls. Richman appeared in the Maccabiah Games this past summer with Team USA, and Senour started three games last year. Also contending for playing time will be freshmen Clara Guenter, Ingrid Mello, Jillian DiBlasi, and Megan Sullivan.
Coming off a season in which she started nine games as the goalkeeper and recorded four shutouts, sophomore Shauni Kerkhoff will look to build off her first season as a Temple Owl that produced a spot on the Atlantic 10 All-Rookie Team. Her save percentage last year (.874) was ranked eighth best in the nation. Freshman Madison Hileman and Emily Doherty will be pushing Kerkhoff for playing time in between the posts.
