SEASON OPENER: After a handful of early season scrimmages, The Evergreen State College officially kicks off its 2017 women's soccer season this weekend with a pair of home contests. The Geoducks host Pacific (Ore.) at 1 p.m. Friday and Linfield at noon on Saturday. Both games will be played at Geoduck Pitch (Field #4).
FOLLOW THE GEODUCKS: Even if you can't make it out to the field, you can still catch Evergreen women's soccer action via live stats at https://portal.stretchinternet.com/evergreen/.
REMATCH OF 2016 GAME: Evergreen and Pacific will play a rematch of the 2016 contest won by the Geoducks, 5-3, in Forest Grove, Ore. A pair of Evergreen midfielders, senior Haleigh Ryneski and sophomore Delaney Rice, scored goals in that contest.
ABOUT THE GEODUCKS: The 2017 season opens with a lot of questions to be answered by what is by any measure a very young team. With several players still needing to be cleared on the eligibility list, the 18-player roster consists of one senior, one junior and a combination of 16 sophomores and freshmen. On the very positive side, Evergreen returns three full-time starters and several part-time starters from the 2016 team that finished with a 3-8-3 overall record, including a 1-7-3 mark in the Cascade Collegiate Conference. The three returning starters are midfielders Haleigh Ryneski, Delaney Rice and Maddie Lockwood, and that trio should give the team strength in the center of the field. Ana Vigil, a reserve midfielder as a freshman, should add even more talent to that group. Defensively, Melyssa Nocis, Lexi Asher and Sarah Boucher all saw playing time as outside defenders last season, though Nocis looks to be a strong candidate to start at center back. Goal scoring, as always, will be at a premium as the Geoducks managed just 14 goals in 14 matches in 2016.
NEW HEAD COACH: David Morris, who has more than a decade of collegiate soccer head coaching experience, was named women's soccer head coach at The Evergreen State College on June 27, 2017. Morris comes to Evergreen most recently from Green Mountain College in Vermont where he coached the women's team for one season. Prior to his stint at Green Mountain, he coached the Oxford College of Emory University women's soccer team, compiling a two-year record of 29-3-3 and leading the 2015 squad to the National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) national championship match. Other coaching stops for Morris include head coaching roles at University of Wisconsin-Stout, Colorado State-Pueblo, Culver-Stockton College and Oakland City University, in addition to serving as an assistant coach at the University of Wisconsin-Green Bay. He has compiled an overall record of 149-128-27 as a collegiate women's soccer head coach.
ABOUT THE OPPONENTS: Both Pacific and Linfield are NCAA Division III institutions and members of the Northwest Conference. Pacific finished 7-10-3 overall last year and placed sixth in the nine-team NWC, while Linfield was 8-9-3 for the year and placed third in the NWC. Like Evergreen, Pacific will be playing its season opener, while Linfield opens its year on Friday at Northwest University in Kirkland before driving down the interstate to play the Geoducks on Saturday.
