This Week in Wake Forest Athletics
6/21/1999 12:00:00 AM | General
Sept. 14, 1998
MEN'S SOCCER VISITS RADFORD, HOSTS No. 4 VIRGINIA IN FIRST ACC MATCH OF 1998 - The Wake Forest men's soccer team (3-1) looks to rebound from its first loss of the season this week, as the Demon Deacons travel to Radford on Tuesday night for a 7 p.m. match. The Deacs then open the 1998 ACC season on Saturday night, hosting 1997 NCAA finalist and fourth-ranked Virginia at 7 p.m. at Spry Stadium. Wake Forest holds a 2-0 series advantage over Radford, but has defeated Uva only twice in 23 meetings - and not since the 1991 season.
Wake's impressive 3-0 start earned the Deacons their first national ranking of the season last week, a No. 20 nod in the NSCAA soccer coaches' poll. They suffered their first defeat at the hands No. 24 UNC Charlotte on Friday night, falling 2-1 in overtime. Freshman midfielder Jamal Seale (Overland Park, KS), who earned ACC Co-Player of the Week and Soccer America Team of the Week honors in his first week as a collegian, scored the Deacs' lone goal in the loss to the 49ers. Seale currently leads Wake Forest in scoring with four goals and two assists, while junior goalkeeper Sean Conner (Georgetown, TX) has posted a 0.74 goals against average and two solo shutouts in the first four games.
VOLLEYBALL FACES THREE OPPONENTS IN TWO DAYS - The Wake Forest volleyball team will have a five day break from competition this week before returning to action on Saturday, Sept. 19. The Deacons will travel to Radford, Va., to take on the Highlanders at 6 p.m. preceded by a neutral site affair with East Carolina beginning at noon on the Radford campus.
Wake Forest will return home to play Appalachian State on Sunday. Game time between the Deacs and Mountaineers is set for 2 p.m. in Reynolds Gym.
Wake Forest owns an all-time record of 30-12 against its upcoming weekend's opponents, including a 14-0 mark against ECU. Wake leads its series with Appalachian St. by a count of 11-10. The Deacons currently stand at 6-2 after going 2-1 at the Nike Classic in Minneapolis over the past weekend. WFU picked up wins over Missouri and Oregon, while falling to host Minnesota. The squad is paced by freshman outside hitter Trina Maso de Moya (Ft. Lauderdale, FL), who leads the Deacons with 119 kills and 105 digs.
WOMEN'S SOCCER OPENS ACC SEASON AT FSU, CLEMSON - The Wake Forest women's soccer team opens the Atlantic Coast Conference season this weekend at Florida State at No. 12 Clemson. The Deacs face the Seminoles on Fri. at 7 p.m. in Tallahassee and take on the Tigers on Sun. at 2 p.m. in Clemson.
Wake Forest is off to a 3-1-1 start to the season after posting a 2-1 record last week. The Deacs downed Davidson (4-0) and Oregon (3-2, OT) before falling to 6th-ranked Portland (4-1) in their first loss of the season.
The freshman class of forwards Emily Taggart (Pleasanton, CA) and Rachel Parri (Madison, CT) and midfielders Sarah Kate Noftsinger (Richmond, VA) and Stacy Roeck (Solana Beach, CA) have been especially impressive to date this season and are responsible for five of Wake Forest's 11 goals to date.
Senior midfielders Meghan Suddes (Dublin, OH) and Stefanie Mathews (Tucson, AZ) each stepped up their play last week, combining for five goals and one assist over three games. Junior midfielder Anne Shropshire Lexington, KY) now has a team-high five assists on the season and became Wake Forest's career leader in that category last week.
FIELD HOCKEY TO OPEN ACC AND HOME PLAY THIS WEEK - The Wake Forest field hockey team will open Atlantic Coast Conference play on Wednesday at 7 p.m. in Durham against Duke. The Blue Devils, ranked 20th in the nation, knocked the Deacons out of last season's ACC Tournament.
The Deacons then open a 10 game homestand on Friday with William & Mary. Game time is slated for 3 p.m. in Kentner Stadium. The homestand continues on Sunday as the Deacons host Kent beginning at 1 p.m. Wake picked up its first victory of the season with a 5-1 win over Virginia Commonwealth on Sunday. The Deacs are currently 1-3 on the year. The squad is paced sophomore Jenny Everett (Rutland, VT), who leads the team with three goals scored.
MEN'S CROSS COUNTRY HEADS TO TENNESSEE INVIT. - The Wake Forest men's cross country team returns to action this weekend after taking last week off. The Deacon harriers will be in action on Saturday, Sept. 19 at the Tennessee Invitational in Knoxville, Tenn. The squad got the 1998 season off to a good start two weeks ago at the UNC Charlotte Cross Country relays, which used a team relay format as five schools battled head to head. Wake Forest finished the meet in second place with a 3-1 record, defeating North Carolina, Radford and Wofford, while falling only to UNC Charlotte.
The duo of sophomore Stephan Pro (Olathe, KS) and freshman Philip Wiles (Huntsville, AL) was Wake's most successful relay team on the day, clearing the 12 mile course in a time of 1:01.05 to finish in fourth place individually.
WOMEN'S CROSS COUNTRY RESTS AFTER FAST START - Off to a running start to the season, the Wake Forest women's cross country team takes the week off after posting wins in each of their first two meets of the season. Last weekend the Deacons won the Lou Onesty Invitational in Charlottesville, Va., run on the same course that will host the ACC meet in Nov.
The squad was once again paced by All-American junior Janelle Kraus (Shelter Island, NY) who beat all the competitors to the finish line for her sixth career individual title. Kraus won for the second consecutive week after picking up the title at the Appalachian State Invitational in the first meet of the year.
Wake Forest is currently ranked 14th in the country in the latest Women's Cross Country Association national poll.
MEN'S TENNIS HOSTS WAKE FOREST FALL CLASSIC TO OPEN FALL SEASON - The Wake Forest men's tennis team gets the 1998-99 season underway with a bang by hosting the annual Wake Forest Fall Classic this weekend. The three-day tournament, which includes teams from Appalachian State, Davidson and Elon, will take place at Leighton Stadium on Campus. Play begins at 3 p.m. on Friday and 1 p.m. on Saturday and Sunday. The squad, under the direction of 2nd-year head coach Jeff Zinn, is led by senior All-ACC performer Myles Clouston (Durban, South Africa). The squad returns seven veterans from last season, including junior Michael Berger (Greensboro, NC), sophomore Raul Munoz (Mexico City, Mex.) and junior Johan Hanson (Vsters, Sweden).
WOMEN'S TENNIS OPENS FALL SEASON AT WILLIAM & MARY INVITATIONAL - The Wake Forest women's tennis squad, ranked among the nation's top 10 teams, opens play for the fall season this weekend at the William & Mary Invitational. The tournament runs Friday through Sunday. The team, under the direction of 12th-year head coach Lew Gerrard, is paced by sophomore Mariel Verban (Bloomington, IL). The 1998 ACC Rookie of the Year, Verban will be the anchor of a young but talented lineup. Joining her is junior Annemarie Milton (Palm Beach Gardens, FL) and a trio of highly touted freshmen - Janet Bergman (Pinehurst, NC), Maren Haus (Brielle, NJ), and Leigh Miller (Gainesville, GA).
WOMEN'S GOLF OPENS 1998 AT LADY SEMINOLE TOURNAMENT - The Wake Forest women's golf team opens up the 1998-99 season this coming weekend, as the Demon Deacons travel to Tallahassee, Fla., to compete in the Lady Seminole Tournament at Florida State University. Eleventh-year head coach Dianne Dailey returns four starters from last year's squad, including sophomore Marta Prieto (Sevilla, Spain), the reigning ACC Individual Champion. Also returning are senior Kristen Wagner (Martinsville, IN) and juniors Kelly Kirwin (Grand Rapids, MN) and Kerri Murphy (Amsterdam, NY).
The one starter the Deacons did lose, however, is significant. The departure of two-time All-American Alexandra Armas, who ranked among the top five golfers in the nation in 1997-98, leaves Dailey with some large shoes to fill.
WAKE FOREST THIS WEEK Men's Soccer: Tue. at Radford 7 p.m. Sat. VIRGINIA 7 p.m.Volleyball: Sat. vs. East Carolina (at Radford) 12 p.m. Sat. at Radford 5 p.m. Sun. APPALACHIAN STATE 2 p.m.
Women's Soccer: Fri. at Florida State 7 p.m. Sun. at Clemson 2 p.m.
Field Hockey: Wed. at Duke 7 p.m. Fri. WILLIAM & MARY 3 p.m. Sun. KENT 1 p.m.
Men's Cross Country: Sat. at Tennessee Invitational
Men's Tennis: WAKE FOREST FALL CLASSIC Fri. Play Begins at 3 p.m. Sat. Play Begins at 1 p.m. Sun. Play Begins at 1 p.m.
Women's Tennis: Fri.-Sun. at William & Mary Invitational
Women's Golf: Fri.-Sun. at Lady Seminole, Tallahassee, FL