University of Minnesota Athletics
Season In Review: Soccer Caps Off Dream Season
12/22/2008 12:00:00 AM | Soccer
Minnesota Finishes Season Ranked 15th Nationally
The University of Minnesota women’s soccer program finished its record-breaking season ranked No. 15 in the final NSCAA/adidas coaches' poll of 2008. The No. 15 ranking is the Gophers' highest of the season. The Gophers made their debut in the national rankings at No. 23 on Oct. 17 and remained among the ranks of the top-25 for the remainder of the season. Minnesota's appearance in the NCAA/adidas rankings on Oct. 17 was its first since 1999. Minnesota's stay in the rankings for the last six polls of the season marked it's longest tenure among the nation's elite since the program spent the majority of the 1997 season in the top-25.
Minnesota was also ranked 15th in the final SoccerBuzz poll of the season released earlier this month. SoccerBuzz also ranked Minnesota No. 2 among the 61 teams in the Great Lakes region.
Gophers Cap Off Dream Season
Minnesota capped off its most successful season in school history with a trip to the NCAA Sweet Sixteen. A 1-0 overtime loss at the hands of No. 1 Notre Dame capped off a season in which the Gophers set multiple program records in including total wins (22) and winning percentage (.846).
The Gophers secured the third regular season Big Ten Conference title when they defeated Iowa by a 1-0 score on Oct. 31. Minnesota tied for the regular season crown with Penn State, which captured its 11th consecutive conference title when both teams finished the Big Ten regular season with identical 8-2-0 league records.
Home Sweet Home
The Gophers were 12-0 at Elizabeth Lyle Robbie Stadium this year, including victories in the first and second round of the NCAA Tournament over Marquette (2-1) and South Dakota State (2-0).
The 2008 campaign marked the first time in program history that the Gophers have won all their home matches. The 1995 Big Ten Championship team was also unbeaten on its home turf.
Year Home Record (Pct.)
2008 12-0-0 (1.000)
1995 8-0-1 (.944)
1997 11-1-0 (.917)
1993 6-1-0 (.857)
1999 8-2-0 (.800)
Rockin' the Robbie
More than 10,000 fans packed Elizabeth Lyle Robbie Stadium this year to watch the Gophers. Minnesota Soccer welcomed a program-record 9,218 Gophers fans to their home pitch this fall to take in their 10 regular season home games. The 2008 season attendance broke the all-time record set in 1999, which was the inaugural season for Minnesota Soccer at Elizabeth Lyle Robbie and also marked the last time the Gophers had been to the NCAA Tournament prior to this season.
Balanced Attack
Minnesota featured a balanced scoring attack in 2008 with its 43 goals coming from 13 different players. Every regular Gophers’ starter tallied a goal this season and eight different players scored game-winning goals. Lindsey Schwartz had a team-high eight goals with six of them being game-winners.
Five Gophers Receive All-Big Ten Honors
Following their first Big Ten regular season title since 1997, five Gophers recieved All-Big Ten accolades. Kelsey Hood led the list of honorees, collecting Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year honors as well as first-team laurels as a midfielder. Hood has been named to the All-Big Ten list each of her four seasons as a Gopher.
Sophomore defender Jennie Clark joins Hood on the first team. Clark, a Norwalk, Iowa native, was a key cog in the Gophers’ stifling defensive efforts this season that helped the team tie an all-time Big Ten record with 17 season shutouts.
Lindsey Schwartz and Lindsey Dare were named second-team All-Big Ten following solid performances during their senior seasons.
With five game-winning goals and 13 points this season, forward Tamara Strahota (Burnsville, Minn.) was named to the Big Ten’s All-Freshman team.
