 (Photo credit: Jeremy Olson) It’s November 2017. The Gophers have just been bumped from the Big Ten Conference Tournament and they’ve been waiting to hear about their season’s fate until the NCAA Tournament selection show. It was a simpler time. I used a New Kids on the Block song to structure my “what can the Gophers do” piece for Fifty Five One. And when the Gopher eventually found out they missed the cut and their season was officially over, I only tweeted once. Oh how times have changed. We journeyed back to 2017 because that season serves as a key root for the Gophers’ struggles in 2019. After a historic double championship (regular season and tournament), and a proverbial sweep of post season awards in 2016, the Gophers came back the following year with a strong team. They posted a generally impressive non-conference performance against a generally winnable slate of opponents. But a few bad losses meant the selection committee was able to dismiss the Gophers as empty calories and keep them on the wrong side of the bubble (we’ll ignore the realities of NCAA selection that *heavily* bias schools that are close to each other because the NCAA pays for all travel costs.)  (Photo credit: Jeremy Olson) Head Coach Stefanie Golan and the coaching staff were already working to beef up their future schedules, but building and finalizing schedules takes years. And we hadn’t really seen the impact of those changes until this season. A tougher schedule alone isn’t really to blame for the Gophers’ 0-4-2 start. The other half of the equation is the natural ebb and flow of college rosters. When you have players like Emily Heslin, Molly Fiedler, April Bockin, and Emily Peterson play big minutes for several years, it means they’re holding space in the lineup that limits opportunities for younger players to develop. To be clear: this isn’t a bad thing. It’s just a weird way to describe having good players. But the four year cycle of college careers means the loss of many top contributors can mean a drop is experienced players in the lineup. Somewhat by coincidence, the biggest impacts of tougher scheduling and a particularly impactful senior class graduating happen to be hitting at the exact same moment. Not only are there many freshmen seeing major minutes (Paige Elliott, Manthy Brady, Katie Duong, Sadie Harper), there are plenty of sophomores, juniors, and seniors having to step into a significantly bigger role than they’ve played previously.  (Photo credit: Jeremy Olson)  (Photo credit: Jeremy Olson) Still, some players have absolutely stepped up. Nikki Albrecht is still very good at playing soccer. Athena Kuehn is an absolutely warrior. Maddie Nielsen is playing confidently. Celina Nummerdor has clearly taken another step. Alana Dressely is quietly earning a big role. Haley Hartkemeyer has decided to be downright fearless. Katie Duong is also very good at playing soccer. The truth is, this team is actually performing ok considering the context. They probably should have been able to battle to a win in their opening tie. A bad giveaway led to dropping a loss against Ole Miss that could have been a tie. But there are stretches where they’ve played better soccer than we’ve seen from much more experienced Gopher teams in the past. The truth is, this team is actually performing ok considering the context. They probably should have been able to battle to a win in their opening tie. A bad giveaway led to dropping a loss against Ole Miss that could have been a tie. But there are stretches where they’ve played better soccer than we’ve seen from much more experienced Gopher teams in the past. The last two games, with Kuehn in the back line, has led to some interesting counter attack opportunities. She or Albrecht sometimes just explode out of the back when they turn the other team over and the potential in those moments is tangible. When certain groups are in the game in the front six the press has looked lethal. But there are other times when the group has some lack of athleticism or hustle - or maybe they’re worn down from playing from behind.  (Photo credit: Jeremy Olson) If someone decides to get a little gutsy as a runner on set pieces (where Duong’s service has been fantastic), or find some space when the Albrecht/Kuehn break is on, or if the team can tighten up the press just a little bit, the results will come. There have been years when the team had the grit to battle through to results week in and week out. And they would put up a pretty impressive record. This team, for now, has been the opposite. They’ve actually played a pretty attractive and fun brand of soccer on the field, but the results haven’t quite been there.
But with two thirds of the season remaining - and mountains of potential on the roster - there’s still plenty of time for them to change that.
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Our first NSIC/MIAC/UMAC feature is really only a UMAC feature because the NSIC only started play this weekend and the MIAC team declined.
The UMAC Player of the Week was Maddie Perry from Bethany Lutheran. After an impressive individual year (9 goals, 10 assists) and an ok year for the team (10 wins, 9 losses), Perry helped them to an opening win with two goals. Since then, she’s upped her tally to four goals on the season. We talked to her about how the team is doing, team goals for this season, how she landed at Bethany Lutheran, and more. You can watch the full video below, listen to the chat on the embedded SoundCloud player below, or listen to it as a podcast on iTunes,Google Play, or Stitcher.  The United States World Cup win pushed their fan support on the field to a whole new level. And because of how they won — as outspoken and fearless champions for equal pay and representation — they also built a groundswell of support off the field. As the World Cup champs return to their club teams in the National Women's Soccer League, they’re bringing record breaking crowds with them. Yet their equal pay dispute with the US Soccer Federation is far from resolved. And even less certain is how or if the benefits of a new contract for national team players will trickle down to the rank and file in the NWSL.
Still, it’s clear that the conversation has shifted. And for a breakout star like Rose Lavelle, part of the battle is using her new platform in a way that brings real progress. “We obviously have a unique platform and us using our voice inspires more people to use theirs. Even just pushing the conversation past just talking and more towards action has helped more female athletes feel like they have the power to do that too.” Can Minnesota be next? At the same time, with only nine NWSL teams across the country, it remains to be seen how much the World Cup bump will impact places like Minnesota. With a brand new stadium and a Major League Soccer ownership group with connections and experience in so many other professional leagues, does Minnesota have the right ingredients to be an expansion team? Carli Lloyd, who has experienced the ups and downs of not only this league but its predecessors, knows it’s not always that simple. But the potential is there. “There’s obviously tricky things, other than just saying ‘it’d be great to have a women’s team here,” Lloyd said. “But a place like Minnesota I think would probably offer an amazing setup for a team.” Minnesotan and NWSL veteran Kassey Kallman agrees. Especially if the investment is there. “I think Minnesota is doing all the right things to have a women’s team at this point. You see the teams that are coming in that are affiliated with MLS teams that are doing so well. The teams that are struggling are the people that are more independent owners that have smaller stadiums. If they put in the resources the same as the do for the men, if they do the marketing the same as the men, it can succeed. People love women’s soccer here.” Early proof of concept The highest level women’s soccer team in the state are the Gophers at the U of M. Since current Head Coach Stefanie Golan started in 2012, they’ve won one regular season Big Ten Championship, two Big Ten tournament championships, and had four trips to the NCAA Tournament. The Gophers worst season in that span has still been over .500. That sustained success has led to some of the best attendance in the country for college soccer. In fact, I’d wager the Gopher Soccer program has sent about as many players into the pro ranks as the football and basketball teams, who receive infinitely more coverage and attention from local media. For more than a decade, Gophers have been going on to have successful careers in Norway (Kelsey Hood) and Germany (Jenni Clark), and while others have made stops in the pro leagues of Sweden, Czech Republic, Iceland, Serbia, Israel, Puerto Rico, and more. Outside the Twin Cities, high quality programs at the DII and DIII levels. The Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference is largely made up of Minnesota state schools and the MIAC and UMAC feature many of the state’s small liberal arts colleges. And players of all levels are featured in the WPSL, a massive semi-pro summer league with six teams in Minnesota and Fargo. Fans can make a difference It’s easy to forget when you watch the national team suit up in red, white, and blue at the immaculate Allianz Field, but the world class soccer we get to experience now is really thanks to years of support for lower level soccer up in Blaine. When finances were tight, and it looked like the Stars (formerly the Thunder) might fold, it was the outstanding fan support and game experience at the National Sports Center that helped convince this ownership group to invest in the Stars, and bring them to MLS as the MN United we cheer for today. So if we want the chance to see these incredible women play soccer week in and week out for a professional team based right here in Minnesota, and not just for one special night, we need to start by showing our support for the fantastic women’s soccer we already have. Check out a Gopher game. Watch a WPSL game online. And tell your friends and family about your experience. Rather than letting the visit from the women’s national team be a one time high that leads to emotional hangover, let’s use this World Cup win as our gateway drug into the wonderful world of Minnesota women’s soccer. |