Baptism by Fire
Early injuries for the Dukes force position shifting, extended freshman minutes
By John Galle, sports editor
Posted on August 28, 2006

Although it is returning seven starters, the JMU women’s soccer team will rely on a group of freshmen to give quality minutes for much of the season.

The Dukes lost four players to graduation, including four-year-starter Jessica Hussey and their top goal-scorer Kim Argy. On top of that, the Dukes have been hit with an early injury bug that has claimed senior defender Shannon Seipp and sophomore defender Caitlin Walko. Both are coming off ACL reconstruction in the off-season.

“I don’t want to dwell on the injuries,” JMU coach Dave Lombardo said. “That’s the hand we’re dealt. We can’t delay the schedule until we get people back. [They’re] going to have to play some positions that aren’t comfortable for [them], but soccer is soccer.”

Junior midfielder Melanie Schaffer and sophomore forward Teri Mayoski are battling nagging injuries that could have them sidelined for weeks, but they are expected to play later in the season, Lombardo said.

Senior defender/midfielder Kara Dunston has been playing spot minutes with a knee brace. Sophomore forward Megan Deaver is recovering from a shin injury, but is still a few weeks away from getting extended time.

“We’re going to get where we can win a lot of games, but right now with a lot of injuries we are just trying to get a feel for each other,” junior forward/midfielder Annie Lowry said. “With all the [underclassmen] coming up, we have depth. It’s just a matter of them knowing what to do when they get on the field.”

The Dukes have played another tough opening schedule, losing three games to No. 8 Penn State, Rutgers and No. 17 West Virginia.

Still, the team is working hard to gel together and get back to winning come conference play.

“We are relying on a lot of freshmen,” senior forward Sarah Cebulski said. “We just have to get them to not look at themselves as freshmen, but as soccer players. And I think everyone is doing a good job doing that. We don’t think about classes on the field.”

Still, it’s hard to ignore.

Right now, amidst all the position shifting, the Dukes are trying to find a starting goalkeeper. Hussey has come back to the team as a student assistant coach to help out and guide the three competing freshmen inside the 18. Though redshirt freshman Missy Reimert has seen college shots a bit last season, the starting role is up for grabs.

“It’s a guessing game,” Hussey said. “Whoever steps up and gets the job done is the person who is going to get to step in.”

Said Lombardo, “Jess is absolutely big shoes to fill. She was a four-year starter and that doesn’t happen very often. She was a big time goalkeeper. We have some youth and inexperience in there right now and we’re going to take the first third of the season to really figure out who the heir apparent is.”
In the meantime, the Dukes will try for an NCAA postseason appearance that they missed out on last season, after getting there seven times in 10 seasons. To do that, they will look for role players to emerge, while taking advantage of a strong schedule.

“We look to play a legitimate non-conference schedule because you want two chances to get into the NCAA tournament,” Lombardo said. “One way is to play yourself in with a conference championship. But if you should falter, you still want something the committee can look at and go, ‘Wow, they beat these big name schools early on in the season.’ That’s always been my recruiting philosophy.”

And freshmen might be the spark to get them into contention.
           
Freshman forward Jess Remmes hit a wonder-strike goal against Rutgers in the first shot of the match for JMU. She has been described as an Argy-like goal scorer by players and coaches alike. Lombardo said Corky Julien, listed as a freshman forward, has stood out as a midfield-motor for the Dukes.
           
Said Lombardo, “It’s like the old adage, ‘A door closes and a window opens.’”