KUTZTOWN, PA (September 1, 2010) – The Kutztown University women's soccer team opens the 2010 season with a pair of immediate tests when it battles Concord and Assumption in the East Stroudsburg University tournament on Friday, September 3 and Sunday, September 5 at Eiler-Martin Stadium.
The Golden Bears, who are ranked 22nd in the National Soccer Coaches' Association of America (NSCAA) top 25 preseason poll, meet Concord of the West Virginia Intercollegiate Athletic Conference Friday afternoon beginning at 5 p.m. and Assumption of the Northeast 10 Conference Sunday at 1:30 p.m.
“This is going to be a challenging weekend for us,” Kutztown head women's soccer coach Erik Burstein said. “Both Concord and Assumption have good teams and consistently play against strong opposition. Preseason camp went well, but we still have a number of things to iron out. I am completely confident we will be prepared for this weekend's tournament.”
Concord returns eight starters from last year's squad that went 12-7 and reached the finals of the WVIAC Tournament for the second straight year where it lost to West Virginia Wesleyan. The Lions were picked to finish fifth in the coaches' preseason poll.
Concord returns its top two goals scorers from last season in Gemma Nortcliffe and Kelsey Ballard. That duo combined to score 34 goals. Nortcliffe scored 21 goals and finished fifth nationally in goals per game (1.313) and sixth in points per game (2.81). Concord also finished fourth nationally in scoring offense (3.53). Concord scored seven or more goals four times last season.
Meanwhile, Assumption presents another challenge for the Golden Bears. The Greyhounds, who play in a very difficult conference, posted a 7-9 record last season. Assumption scored 16 goals total last season. The top two players for Assumption are Molly Kessler and Kristen Chirichetti, who combined to score five goals last season.
Kutztown, on the other hand, enjoyed a memorable 2009 season. It won a school record 15 matches, advanced to the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) championship game, hosted a round of the NCAA Division II Atlantic Region championship tournament and finished the season ranked 25th in the final NSCAA Top 25 poll. The Golden Bears peaked at No. 9 in September in the NSCAA poll.
The Golden Bears welcome three all-Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) players back to the team. Senior Cheslea Deeter, junior Shannon Pennock (Mansfield, N.J./Northern Burlington) were PSAC East first team selections while sophomore Kelly Rozembersky (Roxbury, N.J./Roxbury) was a second team honoree. The Golden Bears were picked fourth in the PSAC preseason coaches' poll.
Deeter, a national women's soccer national player of the year candidate, and Rozembersky anchored a defense that posted a school-record 13 shutouts in 2009. A two-time first team all-PSAC selection, Deeter was named to the first team Atlantic Region squads of the Daktronics and NSCAA postseason teams. She's one of the best defenders in the PSAC.
Pennock finished with six goals and 14 points last season and was named to the NSCAA Atlantic Region second team.
Following this weekend's tournament, the Golden Bears begin PSAC play when they host Mercyhurst (Friday, September 10) and Gannon (Saturday, September 11). Both games will be played at Keystone Field and start at 3:00 p.m.
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