2008 Winter - University Of Southern Indiana

Women’s soccer players travelto birthplace of their sportby Dan McDonnell, USI Sports InformationCollege isn’t just about the learningexperience students get inthe classroom. It’s also about thelife experiences they gain.The women’s soccer team traveledto England in August and played soccerin the sport’s birthplace. The playerswill remember not only the 10-day tripbut the dedication it took to get there.“It took a lot of hard work,” USIHead Coach Krissy Engelbrecht said.“The players were training for soccer,going to classes, and on top of that,fund raising. But it got them out in thecommunity, and I think they enjoyedthat.”The team returned from theEuropean trip with a 2-1 record and alifetime of memories.“It was the most amazing thing,”senior Katie Barisano said. “The sightseeingstuff was great, but to play soccerthere was something that you can’treally explain.”The team saw London via theLondon Eye, the world’s tallest observationwheel. They also visited BuckinghamWomen’s soccer players (front row, fromleft) Jessica Snyder and Jessica Stawickand (back row, from left) MeaganHomolla, Katie Grossman, AllisonConquest, Katie Teagarden, KaraGeorgeff, and Victoria Fralick take inthe sights at the London Eye. Passengersin the London Eye’s capsules can seealmost 25 miles in all directions.Palace, Big Ben, and of course, theDavid Beckham Academy.“I have to say, that was my favoritepart,” senior Katie Grossman said of thesoccer academy. “I didn’t think it wasgoing to be that big. But his coach (EdHarris who coached Beckham on theEnglish National Team as well asManchester United) showed up andtaught us a few things.“I liked the stories he had of DavidBeckham and a bunch of the players.”The USI women athletes would nothave heard those stories had it not beenfor an idea they had four years ago.“As freshmen we talked about goingsomewhere as seniors,” Barisano said.“We never really thought that it wouldhappen though.”Last year, she and some of herteammates revisited the thought ofmaking a big trip and came up withthe idea of England.“We wanted to do something bigbecause we heard that the team had goneto Hawaii in the past,” Grossman said.They presented their off-the-cuffidea to the coach.“Coach Engelbrecht said, ‘Hey, ifyou really want to go, you can do it byfund raising,’” Barisano remembered.Engelbrecht laid out stringent goalsfor the players.“Each player had to raise $2,000 aspart of the Walk for Women’s Athletics,”Engelbrecht said. “They also had to passfitness tests.”Financially, the team set monthlygoals to measure their progress.“That definitely helped,” Grossmansaid. “We pushed each other to stayon goal.”Candle sales and car washes helpedthe team earn money. The players hadto balance the fund-raising task withsoccer and school.“We did a lot of things that tookup quite a bit of time along with schooland soccer,” senior Keri Land said.Women’s soccer players, from left, KatieBarisano, Julie Vaughan, Victoria Fralick,and Ashleigh Lemp gather in front ofBuckingham Palace.Though the goals were high, theteam reached them and had the summerto deal with the paperwork and passports.One player received her passportjust two days before departure.Getting everything in line duringthe summer was essential so the teamcould concentrate on soccer during preseasoncamp.Land had a positive memory ofpre-season.“I think this year was probablythe best pre-season we’ve had since I’vebeen here,” she said. “Everyone wasfocused and driven. We knew that wehad to get a lot done in a short amountof time before we left.”December 200720University of Southern Indiana