University of Minnesota Athletics
Senior Becky Dellaria: Tough Enough
9/13/2005 12:00:00 AM | Athletics
Over her Gopher career, Dellaria has played in every game except two and has started in 38 of those contests. In her first season with the Gophers, Dellaria, as a true freshman, played in 16 of the teams 18 games as a sub, then followed by starting in all 18 games as a sophomore. Dellaria continued to show her toughness last season, and despite constant nagging injuries, played in all 18 contests, starting 17.
This year has been no different. Dellaria has played in all six matches (including exhibitions), starting three. “She is so tough and she gets banged up, hammered by backs, she is pretty slight, which shows how mentally tough she is,” head coach Mikki Denney Wright said. “And she is the kind of kid who has gone out and done anything we have asked of her for our program.”
So how has Dellaria been able to stay injury free week after week? What’s her secret? “It feels like I am getting injuries that are just nagging, and not enough to keep me out of competition,” Dellaria said. “Honestly, I don’t really have a secret, I think God has definitely played a role in that. Plus, I think I live a pretty healthy lifestyle allowing for a smoother healing process.”
Staying tough hasn’t kept Dellaria from continuing to improve her already great soccer skills. Under Denney Wright, Dellaria has continued to improve her toughness both mentally and physically, but also as an all around soccer player. “Over the years I’ve improved mentally,” Dellaria said. “My mental toughness has gotten better with things like confidence. Especially under coach Mikki, she has helped me develop those skills along with my foot skills and technical abilities. I used to not be the most technical person because I relied more on my athleticism, so there was a lot of room to improve there, but I am definitely walking out of here a more technical player.”
Dellaria’s stats speak wonders of her improvement over the years. As a freshman, she only scored one point, then as a sophomore she ranked second on the team with 16 points, five goals and six assists. In 2004, she was tied for the team lead with 12 points, and is currently 12th all-time in school history with 29 points. Denney Wright is equally as proud of Dellaria’s improvements.
“She (Dellaria) has improved so much in our program and is a tremendous individual off of the field and a great competitor on the field,” Denney Wright commented. “She is probably one of the best athletes we have ever had here. She is incredibly fast and quick, and really dynamic up top. We feel that she has improved so much as a soccer player over the time spending a lot of the time with the ball and always been very coachable. Becky is a great kid to have in the program.”
With improvements come greater expectations, both individually and as a team. Dellaria and the rest of the Gophers know in their hearts that they are going to be a force to be reckoned with in the Big Ten this year. “We definitely have a lot of potential. We are a young team, but one thing we have been lacking is scoring, so it’s great having 14 girls coming in who are used to scoring in high school or with club (teams). They don’t know what it is to not score,” Dellaria said. “Because of that, we’ve scored a lot of our goals on set pieces and corner kicks, something we haven’t done as well in the past. Now all we have to do is come together as a team and the more games we play the better we are going to get. We are going to do pretty well in the Big Ten this season.”
T his team has a very successful future on the horizon, with a coach that has been able to find great players while turning them into better ones. Dellaria is no exception. However, she leaves the program after this season and she will be missed, both on the field and off.
“I think we will miss her off the field as much as on just because she is such a great person, who is very close to the senior class. She has been a person who was really loyal to this program and has stuck through the good and bad,” Denney Wright said. “She stayed with this program, allowing her to give veteran knowledge to our younger players. I know she is going to have a very successful future after she leaves here and she has been such a great person to get to know and have on this team.”
story by Chris Jensen, athletic communications student assistant There are a lot of things to look forward to this year for the Golden Gopher women’s soccer team after snagging what many have described as the best recruiting class in the school’s history. While those incoming freshmen will undoubtedly be contributors, the backbone of this year’s team will be the seniors, particularly forward Becky Dellaria. Dellaria, also known by her teammates as Buckster, is widely credited as being one of the Big Ten’s fastest and most athletic players. However, it is her toughness that separates her from the rest of the pack, which is great news for a Gopher team that had many injuries last season.
Over her Gopher career, Dellaria has played in every game except two and has started in 38 of those contests. In her first season with the Gophers, Dellaria, as a true freshman, played in 16 of the teams 18 games as a sub, then followed by starting in all 18 games as a sophomore. Dellaria continued to show her toughness last season, and despite constant nagging injuries, played in all 18 contests, starting 17.
This year has been no different. Dellaria has played in all six matches (including exhibitions), starting three. “She is so tough and she gets banged up, hammered by backs, she is pretty slight, which shows how mentally tough she is,” head coach Mikki Denney Wright said. “And she is the kind of kid who has gone out and done anything we have asked of her for our program.”
So how has Dellaria been able to stay injury free week after week? What’s her secret? “It feels like I am getting injuries that are just nagging, and not enough to keep me out of competition,” Dellaria said. “Honestly, I don’t really have a secret, I think God has definitely played a role in that. Plus, I think I live a pretty healthy lifestyle allowing for a smoother healing process.”
Staying tough hasn’t kept Dellaria from continuing to improve her already great soccer skills. Under Denney Wright, Dellaria has continued to improve her toughness both mentally and physically, but also as an all around soccer player. “Over the years I’ve improved mentally,” Dellaria said. “My mental toughness has gotten better with things like confidence. Especially under coach Mikki, she has helped me develop those skills along with my foot skills and technical abilities. I used to not be the most technical person because I relied more on my athleticism, so there was a lot of room to improve there, but I am definitely walking out of here a more technical player.”
Dellaria’s stats speak wonders of her improvement over the years. As a freshman, she only scored one point, then as a sophomore she ranked second on the team with 16 points, five goals and six assists. In 2004, she was tied for the team lead with 12 points, and is currently 12th all-time in school history with 29 points. Denney Wright is equally as proud of Dellaria’s improvements.
“She (Dellaria) has improved so much in our program and is a tremendous individual off of the field and a great competitor on the field,” Denney Wright commented. “She is probably one of the best athletes we have ever had here. She is incredibly fast and quick, and really dynamic up top. We feel that she has improved so much as a soccer player over the time spending a lot of the time with the ball and always been very coachable. Becky is a great kid to have in the program.”
With improvements come greater expectations, both individually and as a team. Dellaria and the rest of the Gophers know in their hearts that they are going to be a force to be reckoned with in the Big Ten this year. “We definitely have a lot of potential. We are a young team, but one thing we have been lacking is scoring, so it’s great having 14 girls coming in who are used to scoring in high school or with club (teams). They don’t know what it is to not score,” Dellaria said. “Because of that, we’ve scored a lot of our goals on set pieces and corner kicks, something we haven’t done as well in the past. Now all we have to do is come together as a team and the more games we play the better we are going to get. We are going to do pretty well in the Big Ten this season.”
T his team has a very successful future on the horizon, with a coach that has been able to find great players while turning them into better ones. Dellaria is no exception. However, she leaves the program after this season and she will be missed, both on the field and off.
“I think we will miss her off the field as much as on just because she is such a great person, who is very close to the senior class. She has been a person who was really loyal to this program and has stuck through the good and bad,” Denney Wright said. “She stayed with this program, allowing her to give veteran knowledge to our younger players. I know she is going to have a very successful future after she leaves here and she has been such a great person to get to know and have on this team.”
story by Chris Jensen, athletic communications student assistant
