MEET THE TEAM | SCHEDULE/RESULTS | NEWS | ALMANAC

Aug. 25, 2008

THIS WEEK: Saint Louis women's soccer travels to West Point, N.Y., this week for two games in Army's BAE Systems Fall Classic. The Bills face Seton Hall on Thursday, Aug. 28, at 4 p.m. (CT). That contest will be SLU's season opener following the postponement of last Friday's contest at Southeast Missouri State. Saint Louis concludes the road trip against host Army on Saturday, Aug. 30. Game time at Clinton Field is 12:30 p.m. (CT).

SEMO MAKEUP DATE PENDING: A makeup date for the Saint Louis-Southeast Missouri State game will be announced soon.

FOLLOWING THE ACTION: Army will make an announcement later this week concerning live stats for the BAE Systems Fall Classic. Check the game entries on the "2008 Schedule" link on the SLU women's soccer Web page for possible live-stats links. All Billiken home games this season will be video streamed live on the Internet via Billiken All-Access at www.slubillikens.com. Subscriptions are available for $79.95 annually or $9.95 a month. In addition to the games, fans can view player interviews, highlights and the Tim Champion Show at no charge. GameTracker will again be available free of charge in 2008.

THE BILLIKEN LODOWN: Senior back Lauren Olson will keep an online journal this season, a feature available only on www.slubillikens.com. The journal will provide a behind-the-scenes look at the women's soccer squad and will be updated periodically throughout the year. Go to the women's soccer page and look for "The Billiken LoDown" button.

TICKET INFORMATION: Tickets for all women's soccer home games at Robert R. Hermann Stadium may be purchased at the gate, by phone at (314) 977-4SLU or online at www.slubillikens.com. Prices for single-game tickets are $7 for adults and $5 for youth. Groups of 20 or more receive discounted tickets for $3 apiece. Students with a valid SLU ID card receive free admission.

BILLIKENS SEEK TO REVERSE TREND: After winning its first eight season openers and earning a tie in its ninth, Saint Louis has dropped three consecutive season debuts. The Bills were edged 1-0 at Penn in last season's opener.

SCOUTING SETON HALL: The Pirates registered an 8-8-2 record last season and placed sixth in the National Division of the Big East Conference with a 4-6-1 league mark. Five starters and two additional letterwinners return from that squad. One of the key returning players is junior defender Megan Mills, a 2007 All-Conference third-team selection who helped Seton Hall post a school-record 0.80 goals against average. Sophomore midfielder Nicki Gross (4G, 1A), junior midfielder/forward Katie Andreski (3G, 2A) and sophomore forward Maddy Kill (2G, 4A) also are among the returning Pirates. SHU also will be playing its season opener. Kazbek Tambi is in his second season at Seton Hall and as a collegiate head coach.

THE SETON HALL SERIES: The Billikens and Pirates are meeting for the first time.

SCOUTING ARMY: Eight starters and 11 additional letterwinners return from an Army team that went 7-8-3 overall and 3-2-2 in the Patriot League (fourth place) a year ago. Army hosts NJIT on Tuesday and Sacred Heart on Thursday before taking on the Billikens. A pair of 2007 second-team All-Conference selections are among the Black Knights' returning group. Senior midfielder Sarah Goss (5G, 1A) led Army in goals and points last season, while senior forward Pia White tallied three goals and two assists. Sophomore goalkeeper Alex Lostetter is back after turning in a 0.92 GAA and five shutouts as a rookie. Now in his 23rd season in the college ranks (all at West Point), head coach Gene Ventriglia owns a 250-158-26 record.

THE ARMY SERIES: All three games in the series have been contested in St. Louis, and the Billikens have captured each of them by one goal. SLU outshot Army 20-5 and directed 11 shots on goal at Hermann Stadium last season, but it took Mary Green's penalty-kick goal in the 108th minute to give the Bills a 1-0 triumph.

PRESEASON HONORS: Junior forward Julia Bradenberg was named to the A-10 preseason All-Conference team, while freshman back Andrea Barklage (Lake St. Louis, Mo./Incarnate Word) earned a spot on the league's All-Rookie team. The Billikens were picked by A-10 head coaches to finish third in the conference. Defending champion Charlotte is the preseason favorite, followed by Dayton.

ASCENDING THE CAREER CHARTS: Junior goalkeeper Hannah Koesterer begins the season in third place on the SLU all-time victories list with 20. Koesterer also is third in career goals-against average (1.18), tied for third in career shutouts (10) and fourth in career saves (103) and career minutes (2,893). On the Bills' career game-winning goals chart, junior forward Julia Bradenberg is tied for seventh with six game-winners, while junior midfielder/forward Kelly Waeckerle is tied for 10th with five.

SEEING DOUBLE: Saint Louis finished the 2007 campaign with a 10-6-2 record, giving the Bills a double-digit victory total for the 10th time in the 12-year history of the program. Included in that record was a 7-2-2 mark in Atlantic 10 Conference play.

HEAD COACH Tim Champion: The only head coach in Saint Louis women's soccer history, Tim Champion begins his 13th season at the helm with a SLU record of 148-73-22 (.654) and a 15-year career mark of 208-87-25 (.689). Champion has led his teams to three conference regular-season championships and two conference tournament titles. He became the first head coach to guide a SLU women's program to the NCAA Tournament when his 2005 Billikens made the first of two consecutive NCAA appearances. Champion's .689 win percentage and 208 victories rank 19th and 27th, respectively, all time among coaches with at least 10 seasons as an NCAA Division I head coach. The win percentage is 21st in the nation and the victory total is 24th among active coaches with at least five years as a Division I head coach. Joining Champion on the sideline are assistant coaches Kelly Ferguson and Rob LaMear and graduate assistant Sarah Schweitzer.

HERMANN STADIUM: Billiken women's soccer has been tough to beat on Robert R. Hermann Stadium's state-of-the-art natural grass. Since the facility re-opened in 1999, the Bills have posted a 69-17-3 (.792) record at home, including a 39-6-2 (.851) mark in league play. SLU was undefeated at home in the 2006 regular season, yielding just one tie to nationally ranked Marquette, before falling to Illinois in the NCAA Tournament second round. Last season yielded a 7-1 Saint Louis ledger on the home pitch. The Bills played 18 straight games without a home loss beginning Sept. 16, 2005, and running through an NCAA Tournament first-round win over Drake on Nov. 10, 2006.

SLU TO HOST 2008 A-10 CHAMPIONSHIP: Robert R. Hermann Stadium will be the site of the 2008 Atlantic 10 Women's Soccer Championship. The top six teams in the final A-10 regular-season standings will gather in St. Louis to compete for the league's tournament championship and automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament. First-round action is scheduled for Thursday, Nov. 6, followed by the semifinals Nov. 7 and the title game Nov. 9.

Saint Louis Billikens Women's Soccer

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