The U soccer team (8-1) heads to California for a two-game road trip this weekend as the No. 19 team in the NSCAA poll. This marks the first time in team history that the Utes have cracked the NSCAA’s Top 25, the closest thing to an official poll in women’s college soccer.
The Utes also jumped from No. 9 in the West region to No. 6. Despite this overdue national recognition, the team seems to be focused on improving.
“(The ranking) is a nice reward for some of the success we’ve had this season, but eventually we want to have a program that’s ranked all the time,” coach Rich Manning said. “I think one of the positives is that we will have to start dealing with the responsibilities of being a good team.”
The Utes will take their higher profile act to Moraga, Calif., on Friday to face a top-notch opponent in St. Mary’s. Despite a 3-5 record, the Gaels have Utah’s respect.
“I know from playing them in the spring that they’re a tough team,” junior Lauren Field said, emphasizing the word ‘tough.’
Of the Gaels’ five losses, three were by one goal to ranked opponents, including a 1-0 overtime loss to No. 2 UCLA. Most recently, St. Mary’s fell to No. 17 Stanford in double overtime 3-2.
The Gaels play in the West Coast Conference, which Manning called “the best soccer conference in the country,” and St. Mary’s has always been one of the WCC’s top teams.
“They play like crazed animals,” Manning said. “They’re very organized and aggressive.”
Their style of play is similar to Montana’s in that they are defense-minded and they wait for scoring opportunities to arise from their opponents being out of position.
The Gaels’ attack, however, is substantially better than Montana’s, so the Utes may need a repeat of Sunday’s defensive gem against Florida, for which goalkeeper Ashley Mason received MWC Defensive Player of the Week honors.
Utah’s maturity will be put to the test against St. Mary’s, as the Utes are coming off a big win and need to head into conference play without a letdown.
The team seems to be aware of the situation at hand.
“St. Mary’s is a good team,” sophomore forward Carisse Winegar said. “This will be a big road game for us.”
The second game of the road trip is in Sacramento, where the Utes will face Sacramento State (2-4-1).
The Hornets aren’t of the same caliber as St. Mary’s, but as Manning said, “We have a big target on our chests now that we’re ranked, so I’m sure it will be a tough game.”
The trip will be made tougher by the fact that the Utes will again be without star forward Lauren Field, who has at times carried the team’s offense. Field is sidelined with an ongoing medical condition.
Fortunately for the Utes, Winegar has stepped up and played well in the starting role vacated by Field.
Last season, the Utes lost to St. Mary’s 2-1 in an overtime thriller at Ute Field, so revenge is a motivating factor. Utah also looks to extend its six-game winning streak and enter conference play on a roll.
“Our main focus has been conference play all season,” Manning said. “We need to keep things going for next weekend when conference play starts.”
