Women's Soccer Earns Bid To Big Dance
11/7/2000 12:00:00 AM | Women's Soccer
Nov. 7, 2000
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Wake Forest (10-7-2) received a bid to the NCAA Tournament last Sunday. The Demon Deacons will host Liberty (12-6-1) in the first round, 7:00 p.m., Wednesday, Nov. 8 at Spry Stadium. This is the fifth consecutive year that Wake Forest has played in the NCAA Tournament. Head coach Tony da Luz has led the Deacs to the NCAA Tournament all four years that he has been at the helm. Wake Forest holds a 2-3-1 record in the NCAA Tournament overall.
Six of the eight teams in the ACC received bids to the NCAA Tournament and all six are hosting first or second round sites. Only the Pac-10 has more representatives in the 48-team field, with seven squads in the Big Dance. Nine of the teams in the tournament field appeared on the Deacons? schedule this year and Wake Forest was 3-5-2 against those teams. This is the second time the Deacs have opened NCAA Tournament play at home. Last year, after receiving a first round bye, the Demon Deacons topped Michigan 1-0 in the second round at home. Wake Forest is 1-0-1 at Spry Stadium in the postseason.
Last Time Out
The Demon Deacons, 10-7-2 overall, are coming off a heartbreaking 1-1 tie with Florida State in the quarterfinals of the ACC Tournament on Nov. 4. After two sudden death overtime periods, the game ended in a tie officially, but the Seminoles advanced over the Demon Deacons to the semifinals in the penalty kick sudden victory tie breaker. The Deacs outshot Florida State 16-8, placing 12 shots on goal, but they were obviously missing the deadly accuracy of leading scorer Joline Charlton, who was out with mononucleosis. The ?Noles got on the board early in the match, finding net less than three minutes into the game. Wake evened the score when freshman midfielder Katherine Winstead scored, assisted by Colleen Bradley and Alena Thom. Neither team could find net again though, as the game went into sudden death overtime and then a second overtime - ending deadlocked in a 1-1 tie. In a penalty kick shootout, the Deacons kicked in four and the Seminoles netted five.
Liberty Flames
Liberty, 15-6 overall, is coming off a 1-0 win over Tennessee Tech in a NCAA Play-In Game on Friday night to advance to the first round of the NCAA Tournament. LU captured the Big South Conference Championship on Oct. 28, beating Elon 2-0. The Flames, coached by James Price, are led by junior forward Nancy Davis (13 goals, 7 assists, 4 GWG) and freshman goalkeeper Amy Moxley (0.81 GAA, .779 SV%, 7.0 SHO). Wednesday?s game will be the first-ever meeting between Wake Forest and Liberty. The two teams have had one common opponent this season, Virginia Tech, who Liberty lost to 1-0 Sept. 1 in Blacksburg, Va., and Wake Forest beat 5-1 at home Sept. 17.
In The Rankings
Wake Forest dropped out of the National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA) poll in the final week, but the Deacs remain at 15th in Soccer America?s poll, move up to 21st in the Soccer Times rankings and are 24th according to Soccer Buzz. In the regional standings WFU is listed sixth by both the NSCAA and Soccer Buzz.
All-Conference
Five Deacons made their way to the podium last Wednesday at the ACC Tournament awards banquet to receive all-conference teams honors. Joline Charlton and Emily Taggart were named to the all-ACC first team, Stacy Roeck was selected to the all-ACC second team and A.B. Robbins and Katherine Winstead earned spots on the all-ACC freshman team. Charlton, a sophomore forward who was the ACC Rookie of the Year last season and a all-ACC second team selection, improved to the first team this year after leading the Demon Deacons in scoring for the second straight season. Taggart, a junior forward, becomes a three-time all-ACC selection with two first team certificates. She has moved into second place on the all-time scoring list at Wake. Roeck becomes a two-time all-ACC selection after anchoring the Demon Deacon defense again as the team?s sweeper, but shifting up to striker to provide added punch to the offense periodically. The junior has proven lethal, scoring six goals and assisting three others this season. Robbins and Winstead have both proven to be solid, smart and consistent performers in the Deacon midfield this season.
Holding Down The Fort
Tracy Chao, a reserve defender on last year?s team, took over goaltending duties at the beginning of the season when both Demon Deacon goalkeepers Erin Regan and Kenna Healy suffered season-ending knee injuries during the preseason. Although Chao had never played goalie before, the athletic sophomore learned quick. Rapidly improving throughout the season, Chao was honored for her achievements Oct. 30 when she earned the final ACC Player of the Week honor for her three wins in the previous week, including shutouts over Davidson as well as North Carolina and allowing only one goal versus NC State. Chao, a 5-5 Raleigh, N.C. native, holds a 1.35 goals against average, .760 saves percentage and three shutouts on the year.
Crazy Shootout
As the second and final sudden death overtime period came to an end last Thursday, resulting in a 1-1 tie between Wake Forest and Florida State, the two teams prepared for a tie-breaking penalty kick shootout. After playing 120 minutes in net, Wake Forest goalkeeper Tracy Chao changed out of her goalie jersey and dawned a field jersey, while freshman midfielder Katherine Winstead threw on a goalkeeper jersey for the first time all season. Winstead stopped one of the first five shots taken by the Seminoles and then took one herself against FSU?s keeper - and buried it in the back of the net, knotting the tiebreaker 4-4. Florida State kicked in its next try and Wake Forest missed, allowing the ?Noles to advance to the semifinals and sending the Deacs home. Wake Forest has had bad luck over the years in the rare penalty kick shootouts that have become all to familiar with Coach da Luz and the Demon Deacons. In the 1997 ACC Tournament, the Deacs were ousted in a penalty kick shootout after playing Duke to a 2-2 tie. Last year, Wake?s season ended at Clemson, once again in a penalty kick shootout after playing the Tigers to a scoreless tie in the third round of the NCAA Tournament.
Coming Of Age
When freshman forward Alena Thom checked into the Davidson match during the first half Oct. 25 to add a little spark to the Demon Deacon offense, it only took her 61 seconds to do just that. Thom took a through ball from Katie Johnson and sent it into the corner of the Wildcats? net for her first collegiate goal. Thom, who hails from Jefferson City, Mo., came up even bigger for the Deacs at NC State on Oct. 29 when she slid into the Wolfpack goal box, connecting with a cross from Joline Charlton to score the golden goal. Thom got the starting call against Florida State in the ACC tournament filling in for Charlton, who was out sick.
On The Shelf
For the second game in a row, Wake Forest will be playing without the services of its leading scorer, Joline Charlton. The sophomore forward >from Stone Mountain, Ga., has eight goals and three assists on the year, but has also come down with mononucleosis. Charlton, a two-time all-ACC selection, already ranks third on Wake?s all-time scoring lists with 18 career goals and 46 career points. The Demon Deacon disabled list is becoming increasing long as Charlton joins the pine with a talented foursome that are all recovering from knee surgeries: sophomore forward Lindsey Griffin, junior defender Roxanne Chow, junior goalkeeper Erin Regan and freshman goalkeeper Kenna Healy.
Up Next
The winner of Wednesday?s game between Wake Forest and Liberty will advance to the second round of the NCAA Tournament to play at North Carolina at 1:00 p.m. on Sunday, Nov. 12. The Tar Heels received a first round bye.