Schedule  |  Roster  |  Media Guide
 
Desktop Wallpaper: 800x600 | 1024x768 | 1280x1024 | 1440x900 | 1680x1050
 
2017 Women's Soccer Schedule Poster (.PDF) (shown above) | Desktop Wallpaper (.JPG)
 
KUTZTOWN, Pa. – The Kutztown University women's soccer team has been a model of consistency for more than a decade under head coach Erik Burstein, entering his 11th season leading KU. KU has streaks of 15 straight seasons with 10 or more wins and 12 times in the last 13 years it has qualified for the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) tournament.
 
No season was more successful than 2016.
 
The Golden Bears ended last year with a 20-5 overall record, surpassing its previous program record of 16 wins during the 2011 season. The Maroon and Gold also set program records for regular season victories (15) and PSAC wins (13), and matched records for shutouts in a season (13) and consecutive wins (9).
 
KU reached the NCAA Tournament's Final Four for the first time in team history, and was just the second PSAC school to qualify for the final weekend.
 
The team graduated five seniors who made its impact on the program.
 
Alaina Curry (York, Pa./Dallastown Area) was a Second Team All-America and First Team All-Region selection, Katie Miller (Lansdale, Pa./North Penn) was also on the First Team All-Region team, and Cassie Schmidt (Whitehall, Pa./Whitehall) received All-Region Third Team honors in 2016. Dana Wong (West Milford, N.J./West Milford) appeared in 65 games in four seasons and played a pivotal role in KU's success as a team captain. Katie Jaxheimer (New Cumberland, Pa./Cedar Cliff) played in 60 career games.
 
That is an important group that played a huge part in the historic 2016 season. But just like in years past, Burstein is reloading.
 
Heading into the season, Kutztown is ranked fourth in Division II after the United Soccer Coaches (formally NSCAA) Preseason Poll was released in early August. It is the same rank KU ended last season with – the highest in program history.
 
Two seniors return in Morgan Staley (Landenberg, Pa./Kennett) and Hannah Oren (Wind Gap, Pa./Nazareth Area), two of the three team captains.
 
"We graduated a large group of impactful players last year that we are really going to miss," Burstein said, Kutztown's all-time winningest coach (137-58-13 overall record). "We're a younger team this year and not as deep as we were last year, but I think the players have a much better understanding of their roles and responsibilities within our system. Last year we experimented a lot with our system, and it was new to a lot of the players. Now that my coaching staff and I have really analyzed what we were doing last season, and identified some things we need to change, we have been able to provide the players with a very clear picture of what we need from each line on the field."
 
The question Burstein and his new staff of Sharif Saber and Mark Laudenslager will be asking at the start of the season is 'will these new tactics work?'
 
"I'm happy with where we are so far," Burstein said. "The rotation is a bit clearer, and the players have a much better understanding of their roles and responsibilities within our system. We just need to take it one game at a time and deal with the situations in front of us. We are not looking too far ahead."
 
Even after the success of last season, the expectations are the same as they are every year.
 
"A double-digit win season and a top-eight finish in the PSAC is our goal," Burstein said. "The PSAC is such a competitive conference, with truly fantastic teams, that making the playoffs is a wonderful achievement for any team."
 
The Golden Bears lost the opener to Millersville last season before winning three consecutive games and eight of the next nine.
 
"We lost our opening game last year and there was a bit of panic within the team," Burstein said. "But our program has always had the ability to rebound quickly and not allow one loss to turn into a losing streak. That credit goes to the players! They do not allow one poor result to derail their focus or affect their mentality."
 
The PSAC coaches picked Kutztown second in the Preseason Poll, the highest it has ever been picked.
 
After checking off the boxes of an Atlantic Region championship and the program's first-ever appearance in the NCAA Final Four, the Maroon and Gold will look to capture another first in 2017, a conference title.
 
FORWARD
 
In a league that is always difficult to score goals, the youngest position group heading into the season is up front.
 
Oren is the lone upperclassman of the unit. She found the back of the net once in the seven games she appeared in last year. Oren has played in 29 games so far in her career.
 
Sophomore Emily Zwiercan (Reinholds, Pa./Cocalico) may be the most decorated player returning. She appeared in 25 games as a freshman, which ties a KU record for games played in a season. Zwiercan wasted no time in contributing as she recorded five goals and six assists (fourth in PSAC), and was third on the team in points (16).
 
"I think Emily, even as a sophomore, has great experience and scored a number of goals for us last year," Burstein said. "She worked really hard in the spring to get herself fit, and she'll continue to be a handful for teams to deal with."
 
Chelsea Fadio (Audubon, N.J./Audubon) missed all of last year due to injury, but has been coming along well in the offseason. Sophomore Megan Kelly (Shoreham, N.Y./Shoreham-Wading River) started two games last year and notched a goal. Classmate Schyler Ackerman (Mountville, Pa./Hempfield) will miss the season with an injury.
 
Three freshmen coming in include Rachel Rizzo (Manahawkin, N.J./South Regional), Maggie Cecere (Batavia, N.Y./Batavia) and Randi Smith (Wayne, N.J./Wayne Valley).
 
"The hardest thing to do in this league is score goals," Burstein said. "But we have a very talented group of dynamic attacking players and I am very excited to see them develop throughout this coming season."
 
MIDFIELD
 
The deepest group for KU comes in the middle of the field where they bring back five players that started multiple games last season, and seven that appeared in double-digit contests.
 
The midfield is led by junior captain Alyssa Ryan (North Wales, Pa./Wissahickon) and sophomore Maddie Mohr (Elizabethtown, Pa./Elizabethtown Area).
 
Ryan is the veteran of the group. She started 18 of the 24 games she played last year, tallying two goals and an assist.
 
"Alyssa does a lot of things really, really well," Burstein said. "We've looked at her in the midfield, we've looked at her as a forward, and we like her in both roles. She can feature in either of these areas this year. We're throwing a lot at her, but I think she's more than capable of handling it."
 
Mohr played in a program-record 25 games, making 24 starts. She led KU and was second in the PSAC with 11 goals (10th all-time), seven assists and 29 points (fifth). Mohr also earned several postseason accolades, including being named to the All-PSAC and All-Atlantic Region First Teams. Mohr also became the first freshman in program history to be named an All-American, earning All-America Third Team honors from the D2CCA.
 
"Maddie has quickly established herself as one of the top players in the PSAC, and there is no doubt she is going to be a player that every team is aware of," Burstein said. "Although this will be a very challenging year for Maddie, she is extremely focused and fully prepared for what lies ahead. I have complete confidence that she will continue to be a very impactful player for us again this season, and throughout the rest of her career at KU."
 
Junior Angela Motolese (Schnecksville, Pa./Northwestern Lehigh (Fairleigh Dickinson)) is in her second year with the program after transferring from Fairleigh Dickinson.
 
Sophomores Courtney Browning (Camp Hill, Pa./Camp Hill), Madison Mummert (Glen Rock, Pa./Susquehannock) and Kate Martin (Lititz, Pa./Warwick) bring a wealth of experience, all playing in 10-plus games as freshmen.
 
Junior Gabrielle Evans (Pottsville, Pa./Pottsville Area) is out for the year due to injury.
 
Freshmen Savanna Harrison (Perkasie, Pa./Pennridge), Sam LaBianca (Beachwood, N.J./Toms River South) and Gabby Sileo (West Deptford, N.J./West Deptford) begin their first year with KU.
 
"Overall we have players that can feature in a number of different roles within our system - this should provide us with some flexibility throughout the season," Burstein said. "We have plenty of options, but just need to figure out what our best partnerships are and how we want to approach each game. These decisions will all play a part in how we line up and how we rotate each game."
 
DEFENSE
 
The objective for Burstein at the back end is to find the best partnerships and combinations.
 
The defensive unit has six players returning that made at least three starts last season for a group that allowed just 19 goals all season, good for fifth in program history since 2002.
 
Sophomore Kristina Miller (Lansdale, Pa./North Penn) locked in a starting role at center back. She started 16 games, making 21 appearances, tallying a goal and an assist. Staley has the most experience of any returning defensive player and is the likely partner in the middle. She started in all 13 appearances in an injury-shortened season.
 
Erica Monte Carlo (Sewell, N.J./Washington Township) looks to have solidified herself at one of the outside back positions along with former midfielder Kaylee Kupiec (Deptford, N.J./Gloucester Catholic), who has made the switch to defense.
 
Junior Olivia Novak (Manheim, Pa./Manheim Central (Temple)) and freshman Anna Hull (Mechanicsburg, Pa./Cumberland Valley) are also competing for starting roles at both center and outside.
 
"The hardest thing is to find the right combination and partnerships on the back line," Burstein said. "The good thing, however, is that we have a lot of versatility with the players we have in the back. Any one of these players can effectively play in the center of defense, or at outside back."
 
Sophomore Shea Conway (Warminster, Pa./William Tennent) and freshmen Victoria Thomas (Raleigh, N.C./West Johnston) and Lexi Gaetano (Mountain Top, Pa./Crestwood) are younger players developing, but will provide depth for the unit.
 
GOALKEEPER
 
Coaches love to have quality depth at positions. When there are multiple players that could start at one position, it can be a difficult decision choosing one, but it can also be a good problem to have.
 
In front of the net, Burstein has a three-player competition at goalie.
 
Junior Imani Taylor (Voorhees, N.J./Eastern Regional) started in 13-of-14 appearances last year, and held a 0.76 goals-against-average with a 10-3 record and seven shutouts. She started all four NCAA tournament games, going 3-1 and leading the field with 28 saves. Taylor was named to the All-NCAA Tournament Team, holding a 1.25 goals-against-average that included two shutouts.
 
Sophomore Jenna Bracken (Wanaque, N.J./Lakeland Regional) started in 12 of her 13 games played last year. She posted 10 wins (eighth all-time), 47 saves, a 0.75 goals-against-average and .839 save percentage (fifth in PSAC), while recording six shutouts.
 
Freshman McKenna Zerbe (Mountville, Pa./Hempfield) will be pushing Taylor and Bracken for immediate playing time.
 
"This is going to be decided by the thinnest of margins," Burstein said. "We are fortunate this year to have three exceptional goalkeepers. They all have different qualities and they are all capable of being among the top goalkeepers in the PSAC. There will likely be a rotation in goal again this year as we try to find the goalkeeper who is performing at the highest level each week. Having a high quality goalkeeper coach like Mark [Laudenslager] has been great to have this year. His training has kept all three of our goalkeepers sharp and performing at a very high level."
 
UP NEXT
 
The Golden Bears open the regular season on the road at Charleston (WV) on Thursday, Aug. 31. They return home to play their next three games at Keystone Field, beginning on Saturday, Sept. 2 against Shepherd. They begin conference play on Wednesday, Sept. 6 versus Lock Haven.