10.17.2011

FARMVILLE, Va. – Longwood University played one women's soccer match this past week.  The Lancers (6-6-3) earned a 1-0 shutout victory past visiting Cleveland State University of the Horizon League on October 15 at the Athletics Complex in Farmville.  Longwood has two matches scheduled this week, including the final home contest of the season against visiting Eastern Kentucky University of the Ohio Valley Conference (OVC) on Friday night, Oct. 21, at 7 p.m. followed by a road game at Morehead State University of the OVC on Sunday, Oct. 23, at 1 p.m.

Recapping Cleveland State
Sophomore Kelsey Pardue|Henrico (Hermitage) gained possession of the ball in the box and slipped a hard shot through the keeper into the net at 33:57.  The successful shot followed a free kick by senior captain Kacie Oliver|Portsmouth, R.I. (Portsmouth) that deflected through the defensive wall where Pardue collected it and squeezed her shot past the keeper who had appeared to initially make the stop but could not control the ball and prevent it from reaching the net.  It was Pardue's team-leading sixth goal of the season.  Junior keeper Kyra Byron|Richmond (Mills E. Godwin) played the duration for the Lancers with two saves, and posted her fifth shutout this season.

A Quick Look At Eastern Kentucky, Morehead State
Eastern Kentucky is coached by seventh-year head coach Lindsay Basalyga, and is currently 6-8-2 overall, and 4-2-1 in the OVC following a 1-0 road loss at SIU Edwardsville on Oct. 16. Freshman Devon Saini has led the Colonels with four goals and one assist.  Freshman keeper Annie Wickett has played 1427:42 in goal for EKU, yielding 18 goals (1.13) with 64 saves (.780) and three shutouts.  Longwood and EKU are meeting for only the second time as the Lancers took a 1-0 road win in Kentucky last Oct. 27.

Morehead State is coached by third-year head coach Warren Lipka, and is currently 6-7-3 overall, and 2-4-1 in the OVC following a 2-0 road loss at Eastern Illinois on Oct. 16.  Senior Brittany Kiracofe has led the Eagles with five goals and three assists.  Senior keeper Katie Blevins has played 1515:46 in goal for MSU, yielding 20 goals (1.19) with 77 saves (.794) and four shutouts.  Longwood and MSU are meeting for only the second time as the Eagles took a 4-1 road win in Farmville last Oct. 31.

Senior Night Friday Against EKU
The home finale on Friday night, Oct. 21, against visiting Eastern Kentucky University is Senior Night at the Athletics Complex in Farmville.  Longwood will recognize and honor its eight seniors on the roster during a pre-game ceremony.  Those Lancers making their final home appearance include Katie Devlin|Fairfax (W.T. Woodson), Alex Myers|Stafford (Colonial Forge), Alecia McConnell|Carlisle, Pa. (Carlisle), Kristen McGough|Florence, Ala. (Stony Point, Texas), Kacie Oliver, Dylan Spicker|Sherman Oaks, Calif. (Hickory, Va.), Mackenzie King|Stafford (North Stafford), and Soraya Serra|Round Hill, Va. (Loudoun Valley).  During the last five years that members of this class have been a part of this program, Longwood has attained a winning record of 46-38-7 (.544).

Head Coach Todd Dyer
“We had one of our best weeks of practice and it culminated with our team's performance against Cleveland State on Saturday.  It was our first-ever meeting with their program so we really didn't know what to expect.  What we did know was that they compete in a very tough league, and they were having a strong year in terms of their overall record and results against some impressive teams.  Our team really flew out of the gates in terms of their focus and commitment, and that really showed on the defensive side of the ball in how our players were reading the game and stepping to pressure the ball very early.  This effort translated to our attack as well, as we were able to keep the ball and dictate the flow of play most of the game.  This led to us being able to stretch their defense, get in behind their back line and create some good scoring chances.  Our goal ultimately came off of a set piece in which Kacie did a great job of keeping her shot on frame and Kelsey anticipated well and finished off the rebound.  If you spend enough time in your opponent's end of the field, often positive things will happen.

“Now we have to focus on our final home game this Friday when EKU comes in for our Senior Night.  We were fortunate to get a 1-0 result at their place in a very physically demanding game, and this year we'll expect another tough challenge.  EKU comes from another tough conference, and they'll be very combative in how they approach this contest.  To be successful, we'll have to match that type of effort, keep our composure and then get the ball rolling to initiate our possession and attack.  We want to honor this special group of seniors, and the only way to do that is by going out there and collectively earning a positive result that we're quite capable of.

“We'll have a quick turnaround as we get on the bus Saturday and head to Morehead State for our Sunday match up.  We don't want to look past Friday, but what we all still know and feel is that MSU is one of the strongest teams we played last year, and they really hammered us last fall on Senior Day and our last home game of 2010.  We'll do our best to take care of Friday first, and then we can refocus and regroup for what lies ahead after that.”

Leading The Lancers | Season Statistics
Kelsey Pardue continues to lead Longwood in scoring with her six goals and four assists totaling 16 points through 15 matches.  She is followed by Kacie Oliver (5g, 10p), junior Nikki Glisson|Mechanicsville (Hanover) (3g, 3a, 9p), junior captain Lindsey Ottavio|Fairfax (W.T. Woodson) (1g, 2a, 4p) and freshman Kelsey McDonald|Kennett Square, Pa. (Unionville) (1g, 2a, 4p), fifth-year senior Alex Myers (1g, 2p), and senior Mackenzie King (1a, 1p).  Kyra Byron has played 1228:58 in front of the net while allowing 13 goals (0.95) with 47 saves (.783) and the five shutouts, while sophomore Shelby Hall|Purcellville (Loudoun Valley) has played 217:50 in goal while yielding four goals (1.65) with five saves (.556).

Looking Toward That Winning Effort
Longwood has finally climbed back to .500 on the season (6-6-3) for the first time since the third match of the fall (1-1-1).  The Lancers are currently enjoying their first two-game winning streak of the campaign, and are 4-2 in their last six matches, including wins over VMI, South Carolina State, NJIT, and Cleveland State.  Longwood has played every opponent extremely close this fall with the exception of the recent contest against North Carolina State of the Atlantic Coast Conference.  Five of the six losses this season have been by just one goal, including two in double-overtime.  The Lancers have only three matches remaining while looking to post their sixth consecutive winning campaign.

No Place Like Home
Longwood is 40-14-1 (.736) on its home turf at the Athletics Complex since beginning competition at the facility in 2006, though an uncharacteristic 5-4 at home this season.  The Lancers finished 8-2 at home last season, and are 33-13 (.717) at the Athletics Complex since attaining its NCAA Division I certification and eligibility for 2007.

Here We Go Again …
Longwood played six overtime contests during the first eight matches this year, totaling 11 extra 10-minute periods.  Unfortunately, the OT matches were not kind to the Lancers who only won one of the beyond-regulation matches (Tennessee Tech).  Longwood tied three (Richmond, Liberty, George Mason), and lost two (East Tennessee State, Appalachian State) of the OT contests.  Longwood has played 1,446-plus minutes for an average of 96-plus minutes per match – equivalent to a full additional match-plus.  Ironically, the Lancers did not play one overtime match during all of last season (19 matches) when the program finished 11-8.

On The Board
Lindsey Ottavio scored her first and only goal of the season against South Carolina State on Sept. 25.  She now has 20 goals in her career to rank fifth all-time.

First Collegiate Start
Shelby Hall started her first collegiate match at goalkeeper against South Carolina State on Sept. 25, and played the duration for the Lancers with two saves.  She is a junior academically at Longwood, though only joined the women's soccer program last spring while a first-year team member.  She was a member of the Washington Freedom U20 team that advanced to the 2010 National U20 Finals in Chicago.

Season & Career-Ending Injury
Unfortunately, fifth-year senior defender and second-year team captain Katie Devlin will miss the remainder of the season following a (right) knee injury suffered at George Mason Sept. 11. This is the second time during her career that such an injury has happened to her.  Devlin injured her other (left) knee early during her sophomore (2008) campaign and missed the remainder of that year before receiving a medical hardship waiver that allowed this fifth year with the program.

The Coaching Staff
Eighteenth-year head coach Todd Dyer '93 leads Longwood and is assisted by associate head coach Steve Brdarski, in his eighth season, along with director of soccer operations Lindsey Williams and graduate assistant Marcia Biddle '10.  Dyer is the only coach in the program's history as he has attained an overall coaching record of 192-118-19 (.612) over 17-plus years, including 14 winning seasons.

2011 Captains
Katie Devlin is serving as a team captain for the second consecutive season, while senior defender/midfielder Kacie Oliver and junior forward Lindsey Ottavio are in the team leadership roles for the first time.

Up Next
Longwood will play its final match of the season next week, finishing on the road at fellow Independent school Francis Marion University on Oct. 30 in Florence, South Carolina at 3 p.m.