The UK women’s soccer team won’t be participating in postseason play this year, but under new head coach, Jon Lipsitz, they made significant strides in rebuilding their program.
The rebuilding began with a change in culture.
“We wanted to institute a new culture,” Lipsitz said. “It’s always a challenge to do that. It’s a challenge on the first day and it’s a challenge on the last day, but I began to see people come into my office with a passion and desire for this team, who were excited about moving forward, and that’s exciting for our program.”
The change began almost immediately. Players quickly bought into Lipsitz’s belief that average was just not OK. Lipsitz, who came to UK from Charlotte, wanted to breed a culture of competitiveness on a daily basis.
Although the 5-10-4 record might not indicate it, the Cats were tougher mentally and physically by season’s end, leading players like sophomore midfielder Taylor Ray to believe that UK is ready to turn the corner next year.
“I know the culture that the coaching staff is trying to instill on us is definitely going to help us move forward next year, as far as the way we practice, our work ethic and even the way we take care of our gear,” said Ray, who will return as one of UK’s key players next year after missing half the 2009 season with an injury. “I definitely think the change is very good and very positive.”
Still, with a new and improved culture, the team has areas that need development. Throughout the season, the team dealt with offensive struggles, scoring only 11 goals to their opponents’ 20.
It’s a concern that must be addressed by next season, Lipsitz said.
“We need goal scorers,” the first-year head coach said. “You always feel like you’re right on the edge with scoring and it takes special players to break through and make those goals.”
He also noted fitness as another area that needs improvement.
“We need to greatly improve our fitness level,” Lipsitz said. “We have to work with student athletes on being fit on a daily basis. To be a good athlete you have to work on a 365-day set. Great athletes never really let their bodies get out of shape.”
While fitness and offense were a work in progress in Lipsitz’s first season, he’s found a foundation to build on with the team’s masterful defense. Kentucky’s defense kept the Cats in just about every game this season, often times posting shutouts when the pressure was solely on the backline to keep UK in the fight.
Spearheaded by senior defender Julie Hull, sophomore defender Jenna Goblirsch and junior goalkeeper Sydney Hiance, the Cats posted seven shutouts on the year.
“There is no secret to our defensive intensity,” Lipsitz said. “Jenna and Julie were great. They certainly led by example on a daily basis. Julie is graduating this year and that’s a huge hit for us, but Jenna is coming back and we will build our defense around her.”
Goblirsch believes the defensive performances were something positive to build off of moving forward into next year.
“We’ve been talking about how we have to defend as a team,” Goblirsch said. “Our backline was strong this year and that helped, but you have to be able to defend to win games. Hopefully next year we can start scoring goals and continue to have a strong backline and win more games.”
A changing culture and strong defense are only part of the recipe for a winning team, but the women’s soccer team will continue to work on areas that need improving and hope for better results next year.
The Cats will begin preparation for next season upon their return from Christmas break in January. They will begin winter conditioning, with strength and conditioning as their main focus.
“Starting in January, we’re going to start working out and trying to improve from where we left off this season,” Goblirsch said. “We’re bringing in a lot of new players for this coming season and hopefully it will help us do what we need to do next fall.”
