University of Minnesota Athletics
Gopher Soccer Senior Spotlight: Kaitlin Wagner
7/3/2008 12:00:00 AM | Soccer
In an eight-part series this summer, Gophersports.com will correspond with each of the eight Gopher soccer seniors to catch up and chat about everything from their favorite munchies to their most poignant Minnesota soccer memories. The 2008 seniors are the first group to play their entire careers under head coach Mikki Denney Wright.
This year’s senior class, which includes six players from Minnesota and two more from the state of Iowa, are a prime example of the focus that Denney Wright and her coaching staff have put on keeping the best home-grown Midwestern and Minnesotan talent at the U’ and sporting Maroon and Gold.
* * *
Kaitlin Wagner (Plymouth, Minn.) has been a staple of the Minnesota midfield throughout her three seasons in Maroon and Gold. Wagner has played in 54 games and has made 49 starts in the center of the soccer pitch during her time at Minnesota. Along with fellow seniors Clare Grimwood and Kelsey Hood, Wagner will round out a midfield group this fall that is among the most experienced in the country. The three seniors have combined to make 159 starts in their Minnesota Soccer careers.
Aside from her on-field accomplishments, Wagner is on track to complete her bachelor degree in kinesiology next spring and hopes to start a graduate degree program in physical therapy within the next year. Wagner has been a team captain and has served on Minnesota Soccer’s leadership council for three years.
The recipient of the Gophers’ 2007 Coalminer Award, which recognizes outstanding work ethic, Wagner has carved out a reputation as an offensively savvy player who possesses a remarkable ability to make her teammates better. Wagner’s 20 points in 2007 included game-winning goals against Providence (Sept. 7), Dartmouth (Sept. 9) and Penn State (Oct. 21).
“Kaitlin Wagner has invested every fiber of her being in this program. She has taught her teammates what it means to work hard and has been an inspiration for our team and for our coaching staff,” Denney Wright said. “Kaitlin is a courageous leader and a talented soccer player. She demonstrates on a daily basis the standard for Minnesota Soccer. We feel blessed that she has been part of our program.”
Wagner’s free kick goal in double-overtime last fall against then eighth-ranked Penn State delivered one of the signature moments in Minnesota Soccer history. Wagner’s goal, which gave Minnesota a win over the highest ranked opponent in school history and began a stretch that solidified the Gophers’ second top five Big Ten finish in three years is just one of a number of topics Gophersports.com covered with Wagner this week.
* * *
Gophersports.com: What are you up to this summer?
Kaitlin Wagner: My summer has actually been kind of busy. I am taking a class that meets for two hours every day, so that takes up a bunch of my time. I decided to take the summer off from playing with the Minnesota Lightning, which I had been a part of for two years, and have been training a lot with my younger sister’s U-18 club team. It has been a great experience to learn from different players. A few of the incoming freshmen this year are on that team so its been fun to get to know them better! I am also spending a lot of time volunteering at the Courage Center in Golden Valley - a rehabilitation facility for people with disabilities. I have really enjoyed spending my time there! Other than that, I am getting ready to apply to Physical Therapy School, which is a three-year grad program that would begin next July.
GS: What has been your favorite memory during your career thus far as a Gopher?
KW: I have a ton of memories that I could list here, but the most recent would have to be scoring in the Penn State game last fall, and not only that but the play leading up to the free kick. Sara Clancy worked so hard to pressure the goalkeeper on a pass back and blocked the keeper’s kick right to Schwartz who took a shot that hit the crossbar and then was fouled. It was an unbelievable effort by those two to create the opportunity that became the goal.
GS: Your game-winning goal against Penn State stands out as one of the greatest moments in Gopher soccer history. What was your mindset as you prepared to take the free kick and what was it like when the ball found the back of the net?
KW: It was kind of an unusual feeling. A couple of us had been working on free kicks after practice for pretty much the whole season. I walked up to the ball and felt confident that I could hit it so I told Clare that I would take it. I spotted the upper left corner, which I had been practicing. I honestly don’t remember kicking it, I only remember watching it hit the net. I was elated! I had been telling Elena throughout the season that if I scored I was going to have a sweet celebration. Instead, I just jumped up into the air and collapsed from excitement and relief. Penn State is always our biggest competition and we always play so well against them but we hadn’t come out with a result in our favor. It was an amazing feeling to finally get a result from the entire team’s hard work and never give up’ attitude.
GS: This year’s seniors are the first group to play their entire careers under Coach Mikki Denney Wright. What has your experience with Coach Mikki and your senior class meant to you?
KW: I absolutely love the senior class! They are some of my closest friends and I really feel that we have grown together into a tight knit unit. We were Coach’s first full recruiting class and as freshmen, we were getting a lot of time on the field. The senior class during our freshman year definitely impacted us. They showed us what it looks like to lead a team through adversity. Now that we are seniors, we can use what we learned from them and apply it to our last season. We have also spent numerous hours with Coach learning and growing as leaders. I think through that open communication and mentoring we have grown together as a class and our team is going to be a force to be reckoned with this season.
GS: What non-Gopher sports team do you root for the hardest?
KW: Any Detroit team! Also Chelsea FC in the English Premier League.
GS: Do you have any guilty pleasures?
KW: Ice Cream. You don’t have to ask me twice if there is ice cream involved. You know it’s a guilty pleasure when at each different ice cream parlor you have a usual order.
GS: What is your favorite on-campus restaurant?
KW: Chipotle. I get cravings that need to be satisfied so I drag my roommate (teammate Elena Fruci) with me.
GS: Have you seen a movie recently that you would recommend?
KW: I’m not a huge movie buff, but I recently saw The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian’ and really enjoyed it.
GS: Your senior class features six girls from Minnesota and two more from Iowa. What do you think is the coolest thing about playing on a team that is so homegrown?
KW: We are like one giant family. Our parents are always supporting us, and they are our biggest fans. They even travel to support us; sometimes we have more fans than the home team.
GS: What are you looking forward to most for this 2008 soccer season?
KW: Going all out. I am so excited to leave it all on the table. This is our last hurrah - I will never get a chance to compete at this level with this team again. I want to make the most of that opportunity. We are going to be a very good team this year - the best yet - and I am excited to see where it will take us!
This year’s senior class, which includes six players from Minnesota and two more from the state of Iowa, are a prime example of the focus that Denney Wright and her coaching staff have put on keeping the best home-grown Midwestern and Minnesotan talent at the U’ and sporting Maroon and Gold.
* * *
Kaitlin Wagner (Plymouth, Minn.) has been a staple of the Minnesota midfield throughout her three seasons in Maroon and Gold. Wagner has played in 54 games and has made 49 starts in the center of the soccer pitch during her time at Minnesota. Along with fellow seniors Clare Grimwood and Kelsey Hood, Wagner will round out a midfield group this fall that is among the most experienced in the country. The three seniors have combined to make 159 starts in their Minnesota Soccer careers.
Aside from her on-field accomplishments, Wagner is on track to complete her bachelor degree in kinesiology next spring and hopes to start a graduate degree program in physical therapy within the next year. Wagner has been a team captain and has served on Minnesota Soccer’s leadership council for three years.
The recipient of the Gophers’ 2007 Coalminer Award, which recognizes outstanding work ethic, Wagner has carved out a reputation as an offensively savvy player who possesses a remarkable ability to make her teammates better. Wagner’s 20 points in 2007 included game-winning goals against Providence (Sept. 7), Dartmouth (Sept. 9) and Penn State (Oct. 21).
“Kaitlin Wagner has invested every fiber of her being in this program. She has taught her teammates what it means to work hard and has been an inspiration for our team and for our coaching staff,” Denney Wright said. “Kaitlin is a courageous leader and a talented soccer player. She demonstrates on a daily basis the standard for Minnesota Soccer. We feel blessed that she has been part of our program.”
Wagner’s free kick goal in double-overtime last fall against then eighth-ranked Penn State delivered one of the signature moments in Minnesota Soccer history. Wagner’s goal, which gave Minnesota a win over the highest ranked opponent in school history and began a stretch that solidified the Gophers’ second top five Big Ten finish in three years is just one of a number of topics Gophersports.com covered with Wagner this week.
* * *
Gophersports.com: What are you up to this summer?
Kaitlin Wagner: My summer has actually been kind of busy. I am taking a class that meets for two hours every day, so that takes up a bunch of my time. I decided to take the summer off from playing with the Minnesota Lightning, which I had been a part of for two years, and have been training a lot with my younger sister’s U-18 club team. It has been a great experience to learn from different players. A few of the incoming freshmen this year are on that team so its been fun to get to know them better! I am also spending a lot of time volunteering at the Courage Center in Golden Valley - a rehabilitation facility for people with disabilities. I have really enjoyed spending my time there! Other than that, I am getting ready to apply to Physical Therapy School, which is a three-year grad program that would begin next July.
GS: What has been your favorite memory during your career thus far as a Gopher?
KW: I have a ton of memories that I could list here, but the most recent would have to be scoring in the Penn State game last fall, and not only that but the play leading up to the free kick. Sara Clancy worked so hard to pressure the goalkeeper on a pass back and blocked the keeper’s kick right to Schwartz who took a shot that hit the crossbar and then was fouled. It was an unbelievable effort by those two to create the opportunity that became the goal.
GS: Your game-winning goal against Penn State stands out as one of the greatest moments in Gopher soccer history. What was your mindset as you prepared to take the free kick and what was it like when the ball found the back of the net?
KW: It was kind of an unusual feeling. A couple of us had been working on free kicks after practice for pretty much the whole season. I walked up to the ball and felt confident that I could hit it so I told Clare that I would take it. I spotted the upper left corner, which I had been practicing. I honestly don’t remember kicking it, I only remember watching it hit the net. I was elated! I had been telling Elena throughout the season that if I scored I was going to have a sweet celebration. Instead, I just jumped up into the air and collapsed from excitement and relief. Penn State is always our biggest competition and we always play so well against them but we hadn’t come out with a result in our favor. It was an amazing feeling to finally get a result from the entire team’s hard work and never give up’ attitude.
GS: This year’s seniors are the first group to play their entire careers under Coach Mikki Denney Wright. What has your experience with Coach Mikki and your senior class meant to you?
KW: I absolutely love the senior class! They are some of my closest friends and I really feel that we have grown together into a tight knit unit. We were Coach’s first full recruiting class and as freshmen, we were getting a lot of time on the field. The senior class during our freshman year definitely impacted us. They showed us what it looks like to lead a team through adversity. Now that we are seniors, we can use what we learned from them and apply it to our last season. We have also spent numerous hours with Coach learning and growing as leaders. I think through that open communication and mentoring we have grown together as a class and our team is going to be a force to be reckoned with this season.
GS: What non-Gopher sports team do you root for the hardest?
KW: Any Detroit team! Also Chelsea FC in the English Premier League.
GS: Do you have any guilty pleasures?
KW: Ice Cream. You don’t have to ask me twice if there is ice cream involved. You know it’s a guilty pleasure when at each different ice cream parlor you have a usual order.
GS: What is your favorite on-campus restaurant?
KW: Chipotle. I get cravings that need to be satisfied so I drag my roommate (teammate Elena Fruci) with me.
GS: Have you seen a movie recently that you would recommend?
KW: I’m not a huge movie buff, but I recently saw The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian’ and really enjoyed it.
GS: Your senior class features six girls from Minnesota and two more from Iowa. What do you think is the coolest thing about playing on a team that is so homegrown?
KW: We are like one giant family. Our parents are always supporting us, and they are our biggest fans. They even travel to support us; sometimes we have more fans than the home team.
GS: What are you looking forward to most for this 2008 soccer season?
KW: Going all out. I am so excited to leave it all on the table. This is our last hurrah - I will never get a chance to compete at this level with this team again. I want to make the most of that opportunity. We are going to be a very good team this year - the best yet - and I am excited to see where it will take us!
Players Mentioned
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