University of Minnesota Athletics
25 Seasons of Minnesota Soccer: Beyond
7/21/2017 12:00:00 AM | Soccer
The University of Minnesota soccer team is set to enter their 25th season in 2017, and the Gophers bring back a talented group of players from their 2016 Big Ten regular season and tournament championships.
To appreciate the accomplishment of 25 seasons of soccer at the University of Minnesota, this three-part series looks back at the timeline of the Gopher Soccer program. Do not forget to read Part One and Part Two.
Continued excellence is something every team strives to attain. The University of Minnesota soccer team had just come off its first Big Ten title in nearly a decade, and lost eight seniors from that squad, including three of their top five scorers. The next challenge was set to begin.
The Gophers finished the 2009 season with an overall record of 12-5-3, and finished fourth in the Big Ten. Minnesota missed the NCAA Tournament, but 2010 the team had 11 starters, and 16 players overall returning, including standout Jennie Clark.
"I think that is what 2009 was a transition period for us," said Clark. "I think it was a great time for us to find out our roles as leaders and by senior year, we just went out and executed those roles."
Boasting one of the most experienced classes in the country, Minnesota started the season 6-1-0, with their only loss coming to No. 4 ranked Notre Dame. The Gophers went on to face six nationally ranked teams in 2010, and finished with a program-best 4-2 record against those teams.
Minnesota reached as high as No. 12 in the national rankings, but 3-4-1 run to end the regular season saw the Gophers fall to just receiving votes. Back in the NCAA Tournament, the Gophers were playing host in harsh conditions.
"We did a pretty good job at clearing off that snow, and at the end of the day that is something you can't control what the weather is going to be like, what the referee is going to be like. So I think winning that game was a testament that we had the mental strength to fight through that adversity."
After the 4-2 victory over Creighton, Minnesota faced No. 9 Texas A&M. After workers and volunteers worked through the night to get the snow off the field, the Gophers knocked off the Aggies 2-0 reaching the Sweet Sixteen for the second time in three years.
"For me, I wasn't just happy with making the NCAA Tournament, we were better than that. We all had that mentality that we were going to do something in the NCAA Tournament, and when you have a collective unit that all believes in one thing, it can be a powerful thing."
For Clark, 2010 was the second Sweet Sixteen of her career, she was one of just 10 players to experience two Sweet Sixteen appearances.
"That was an experience, that even as I have played beyond college and played with very successful people, that was something people were not expecting out of Minnesota. I had to tell them that yes we were there, and we competed well when we got there."
2011 would be the last season for Mikki Denney Wright, the third coach for the Minnesota soccer program. Credited with turning the program around after the struggles of the early 2000s, the Gophers finished 9-10-2, with eight of the Gophers' 10 losses by just a single goal, including six coming at the hands of NCAA Tournament participants.
After a national search, Minnesota administration hired Stefanie Golan as the next leader of the Maroon and Gold. Golan had previously been the head coach with the United States Military Academy at West Point. She led the Black Knights to a record of 33-18-10 during her three seasons, and when she arrived at Minnesota, she went straight to work.
"When I started here, we had moved from New York just two weeks before preseason started," said Golan. "I then got on a plane the next day with Krystle (Seidel), and we went out recruiting and working on keeping our commits. We flew to Chicago, then to Baltimore and ended in Portland before coming back with three days until the start of preseason."
Golan had her work cut out for her with a matchup against a final four team from 2011, Florida State. The Seminoles came into the match ranked No. 4, but the Gophers battled to a close 3-2 defeat. The game was a great lesson for Minnesota, as No. 24 South Carolina came to town just two days later. This time, the Maroon and Gold downed their ranked opponent, upsetting the Gamecocks 2-1 in overtime.
"That South Carolina game, we were fortunate to win that game. We happened to pick something off and put it in the back of the net and win a game against a really good team," Golan said. "That was one of the things I loved about Minnesota, the resolve, fight and drive that these kids had, regardless of the style of play."
Golan's first season ended in penalty kicks against Illinois, but the future was bright for the Gophers with Golan in command. Led by the Big Ten Goalkeeper of the Year, freshman goalkeeper Tarah Hobbs, the 2013 Gophers came down with victories over No. 7 Penn State and No. 13 Michigan, both 1-0 shutouts.
"We talked at halftime (against Penn State), specifically about how we can bend, but we cannot break," Golan said. "We talk in this program about big time players make big time plays. Tarah Hobbs was a perfect example of that against Penn State. She was bombarded and stood on her head and didn't let up."
Minnesota returned the NCAA Tournament in 2013 as a part of a record eight Big Ten programs. After a two-year absence from the tournament, the Gophers were defeated in the first round, but the season showed that the program was back in the right direction.
"That is the thing that absolutely sucks about the sport that we play. You can outshoot a team 27-2 and still lose 2-0; it is just how soccer works. At some point, it just becomes that will to win that is the difference."
2014 was the year the Gophers potential was at an all-time high. With the sophomore class of Simone Kolander, Tarah Hobbs, Josee Stiever, Rashida Beal and Ashley Pafko getting more playing time, the team improved from ninth in the Big Ten, to fifth. The team fell in the semifinals of the Big Ten, but they were well on their way.
That same class continued to move their way up the ranks of Minnesota legends in 2015. Kolander doubled her goal total from five to 10, and Hobbs dropped her goals against average from 1.02 to 0.82. The Maroon and Gold finished sixth in the Big Ten, but obtained the right to host the first round of the NCAA Tournament. The Gophers dominated South Dakota State 5-0 for Stefanie Golan's first NCAA Tournament victory at Minnesota.
"Winning is really important, and it is the ultimate goal, and when you bring in players like we did with that class, that have the character along with the talent, anything is possible," Golan said.
The Gophers fell in the second round of the NCAA Tournament, but the 2016 class was itching for more. Something to cement themselves in Gopher soccer history, a Big Ten Championship.
Led by Kolander, the Gophers led the Big Ten in every statistical offensive category in 2016. Hobbs posted a ridiculous 0.53 goals against average and the Gophers won their first regular season championship since 2008. Yet Coach Golan knew that there was more to be done.
"We as a coaching staff try to model ourselves to not let the highs get too high, and not let the lows get too low," Golan said. "You look at some of our video of our celebrations, we were happy, but our focus was on the next thing."
That next thing came in the form of a Big Ten Tournament Championship game at home against Rutgers. Minnesota struck first, junior Sydney Squires found the back of the net, but Rutgers responded. Golan and the Gophers faced either making history, or breaking under the pressure.
"One of the things I try to drive into everyone is that if your dreams aren't so big they scare you, then you are not dreaming big enough," said Golan.
On a cross, upcoming 2017 captain Emily Heslin found the back of the net, scoring the winning goal. The win brought a sweep of the Big Ten crowns for the first time since 1995. Golan said the team had come a long way, and her vision of the program was coming to be.
WATCH: THAT. JUST. HAPPENED. @EmilyHeslin7 with a goal to bring the #Gophers ahead!https://t.co/jv89Wp6IOb
- Minnesota Soccer (@GopherSoccer) November 6, 2016
"Looking back at this last season, I think we are getting very close to the way I envisioned this team playing on a consistent basis," said Golan. "I think winning the Big Ten in the regular season, and the tournament, I think they will have a little more swagger because it was a first time in 20 plus years."
Entering the 25th season, the Minnesota soccer program is still looking for more never before seen achievements. With the taste of success, Golan believes the team still has to strive to separate itself every day from the rest of the programs in the country.
"One of the things we embrace around here is to embrace the suck," said Golan. "We have to separate our team from all of these other programs, for example those things that are not as fun, like defending or getting on the line for conditioning. If we can go into those things with the same enthusiasm and mentality as the fun things, we have already started to separate ourselves."
The 25th season of Minnesota soccer begins as the first season began, with a game against Creighton. However, this time it will be an exhibition game set for August 6 at 1:00 p.m. (CT). The Maroon and Gold will begin the regular season with a road game against Washington State on August 18 at 9:00 p.m. (CT).
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