GNAC Play Begins

Posted by Lauren "Lo" Anderson, Senior Defender

This week definitely went by way too fast. We only had two days of school last week before we hit the road again to Washington for our first two conference games of my last season. In Seattle, we played SPU at their home field which is always one of the toughest atmospheres to play in the GNAC. I must say we had a killer support system backing us up in the stands to help us through our first conference challenge. I can still see the image of all the diehard fans holding huge letters that spelt GO MSUB . The new soccer scarves were definitely a big hit as well. All of the families, friends, and former players there was so great. They really added to the energy of the game. Unfortunately, we didn’t get the result we wanted, but one of the fans said at the end of the game, “we’ll get SPU on our Turf,” and I couldn’t agree more.

The next morning, Pikes Market with the team was really fun. We had some time to enjoy ourselves, move on from the loss and start to prepare ourselves for Central Washington. Saturday morning in Ellensburg, we had another great turnout of support and we stepped out onto the field and battled our way to a victory over Central Washington 2-1, coming from behind. We flew back home with a split on the weekend against two respectable opponents.

Now that I am a senior and conference has started on my last season ever, I find myself saying almost daily how strange it is that it’s all coming to an end. I spent a lot of time with the other seniors this trip and when together, I find it hard NOT to talk about how fast it went, and reminisce about so many memories we all share together. It seems crazy that as a freshman you think it will never end, and as a senior you have no idea where all the time went. I also had a small epiphany this weekend about the seniors. We are old. Not only do I envy the Freshies, and how much energy they have, it was also confirmed when I gave Sam (Senior Captain) a 15 minute hip massage. : )

For the Love of the Game

Posted by Kari Foreman, Senior Midfielder

We traveled to my hometown of Lakewood Colorado this past weekend to play our last two regional games. It proved successful as we beat Colorado Christian University 4-1and tied Colorado School of Mines 1-1 (#8 in the most recent Midwest Regional Poll ). We are undefeated in regional play for the first time since I started playing for MSUB in 2007, a sweet start to my senior year.

The trip was particularly special for me because it was the first time a lot of my family and friends have been able to watch my team play. They were at both games, with high spirits and t-shirts that I have sent home, on numerous occasions, from the bookstore here on campus. I am blessed to have such a wonderful and enthusiastic support system back home. I was so thrilled to have my family be there to support my soccer family, and to those of you who do read the blog, thank you so much for being there for me throughout my ENTIRE soccer career and life. I love you all.

When I got to visit for that short time, one of my many supporters asked me all about my life as a college athlete and after I explained in detail to her the often overwhelming schedule we go through on a daily basis she asked me “Do you love it?”. Truth: I’m obsessed, completely head over heels, could even be considered soccer’s creepy stalker, LOVE IT. Former player Sara Gress once referred to soccer as a complicated relationship because no matter how many times it gets you down you always come back. You notch that one game winner and you can taste that sweet moment for a long time. I replay every bad day with soccer over and over again and contemplate how I could have done it differently, I lose sleep over soccer. I hate how soccer makes me feel. But the next day, on the road in Western Oregon, second overtime, two fans and a muddy jersey, I score the golden goal. The euphoric feeling is something you just don’t forget, the team laughing and cheering, you’re a winner, and there is no other feeling as addicting as being a winner. You can’t break up with soccer, because when you are with soccer you are better than yourself, you are a part of something bigger than you. Because for just that minute that you score that goal, make that save, stick that tackle, you go from ordinary to extraordinary.

The problem is, that eventually, competitively anyways, soccer will leave you. And you aren’t allowed to go back, because it moves on without you. Some of us will hang on, trying out our luck in older leagues, or coaching, but for all of us, who have been both recognized and scorned by the six letter hobby, the lessons we have learned while we were with it will be with us forever. And occasionally, when we step on that field again, as a coach, a rec player or a spectator, we can relive our glory days with those who are willing to listen.

For now, soccer is slowly trying to divorce me, but I’m doing everything I can to hold on for as long as I can. We all are. Tell us we aren’t even ranked and that we are facing # 8 in the region, see if we falter. Because, we don’t care who we have to beat, we want that feeling, we want to be winners. This is our time, to prove to soccer and ourselves that we are extraordinary. And we’ll do it all, for the love of the game.

MSUB Cup Champions!

Posted by Sam Boehm, Senior Captain

Our team is off to a great start with two big regional wins this past Labor Day weekend. On Friday we beat Dixie State 1-0. Heidi scored her first collegiate goal with the game winner! We played again on Monday with a great win versus University of Mary. The game ended 4-1 with goals by Jen Brookshire (her classic diving header), Sami Sandau, Kari Foreman, and Jen Larsen. With the two wins, we won the 8th Annual MSUB Cup and as a bonus Sami was named tournament MVP. The team couldn't be happier with this start to the season!

School starts tomorrow which I'm sure everyone is excited about (wink wink..) and we have one practice before we head off to Colorado. There we will have two more regional games against Colorado Christian and Colorado School of Mines. These are both huge games for us not only because they are regional, but because we lost to Colorado Christian 1-0 last year and School of Mines made it to the quarterfinals of the NCAA tournament last season. I am looking forward to getting revenge on Colorado Christian, as well as a great win against Colorado School of Mines. It should be a fun trip with great games. We are also stopping at Kari Foreman's house in Colorado for a home cooked meal...Looking forward to that as well!

Preseason 2010

Posted by Sam Boehm, Senior Captain

We all made it through this year’s preseason and are ready for the season to begin! Preseason was tough and grueling as always, but we have come out a better team. All the practices and sprints are worth it in the long run! We had mainly two practices a day along with two exhibition games and finished the preseason with an intra-squad Blue/Gold Game this past Sunday. Along with the training and games, our team has enjoyed the team dinners that families around Billings have been so gracious to provide us (another plus to preseason!!)

We have another week of training to prepare for our first game against Dixie State. The game is this Friday at 5pm at the COT field. We are excited start the season off and get some games under our belts. We all have high expectations for this season and are ready to show the GNAC what we’ve got. Hope to see you all at our games this weekend!

15th Anniversary Team

Congratulations to the members of the 15th Anniversary Team:

Goalkeeper

* Megan Plank, 2003-2006

Defenders

* Lacey Albrent, 2004-2005 (Member of All-Decade Team)
* Abby Bennett, 2004-2007
* Sara Gress, 2005-2008
* Vicky McCarthy, 1999, 2001-2002 (Member of All-Decade Team)

Midfielders

* Melissa Carlson, 2005-2008
* Margot Merrill-Johnson, 2001-2004 (Member of All-Decade Team)
* Mandy Ploskonka, 2005-2008
* Brittney Sandau, 2004-2007

Forwards

* Abby Farmer, 1997-2001 (Member of All-Decade Team)
* Ally Stroup (Taylor), 2003-2006

Summer Check In

Posted by Kelley Minard, Junior

Preseason is just around the corner, one week away! Time really flew! I know I can speak for everyone when I say how excited we are to be reunited again. I have been counting the days to when I will see my teammates again and to meet the new ones that have joined the MSUB family. It's been nice to train a little with the girls that decided to come back early, and it's interesting to see that we can spend a
whole summer apart and still come together as if we just saw each other yesterday. True family, true teammates, true friends. I look forward to this preseason because it will not only tighten the bond between the upper classmen, but also extend it to the new comers experiencing their first MSUB preseason. I will never forget my first day as a freshman coming into preseason, ten sets of jingle jangles right off the bat. Needless to say, I was a little intimidated.

But days turned into weeks, weeks turned into months, and months finally turned into a couple years. I am a junior this year, heading into my third preseason. I was talking to a couple of my older teammates and we both agreed that even though we have been through it a couple of times, nothing can shake those preseason jitters. Emotions of anticipation, excitement and nervousness flooding in as
time grows nearer, welcoming the thoughts of pre season just around the corner. You just have to love it.

This summer was busy! Between workouts, jobs, and our co-ed team, I was always doing something. I nannied for a family with two boys. They are great kids and I enjoyed spending the summer with them. I also got to travel home a lot which was nice.

It just seems like yesterday all of us were meeting up in Mexico to celebrate the beginning of summer, and now we’re getting ready for preseason. Crazy how fast it flies. Well, I am very excited to see everyone and to conquer another preseason. :] EOP.

Summer Check In

Posted by Jaucelyn Richter, Sophomore

Summer is quickly coming to an end and I know we're all asking ourselves ‘WHERE HAS IT GONE?’ Although we'll all miss the summer months, I think I can speak for most of us that it is pretty exciting to think we'll all be together again (only about one week left!).

My summer went well; I spent most of it in Billings with an occasional trip to my cabin at Canyon Ferry Lake. I also went to the National Folk Festival, which was a very interesting experience! I worked two soccer camps to make some summer money, including our own MSU-B overnight camp, and I am currently working a soccer camp for the Magic City Soccer Club. It is a lot of work, but fun to coach the kids. I also had a small baby-sitting job with Courtney watching Wojtek and Maggie's twin girls. They were such a blast.

Staying in shape has definitely become top priority as pre-season starts to creep up on us. There will be plenty of hard work and some very hot weather, but it will be well worth it to work towards that top spot in the conference!!! :] I'm getting really excited to see how we’ll we do this fall.

See you all soon. EOP.