Sept. 23, 1997
No. 13 Deacons Play Host to No. 3 Virgina
No. 13 Wake Forest returns home this weekend to host third-ranked Virginia in an important Atlantic Coast Conference matchup on Sunday at 1 p.m. at Spry Stadium.
The Deacons (7-1, 1-1 ACC) are off to a fast start, and last weekend won the Stanford/Nike Invitational behind the efforts of Stefanie Mathews (Tucson, AZ). The junior midfielder scored both Wake Forest goals in a 2-0 victory over San Francisco and then scored two more goals as the Deacons upset No. 11 Stanford, 2-1.
The Deacons have struggled in three previous meetings with Virginia. In 1994, the program's first year of existence, the Cavaliers won by a score of 9-0 in Charlottesville. In 1995 in Winston-Salem, Virginia escaped with a 1-0 victory, while the Cavs won last year by a final of 2-1.
The Demon Deacons, now in their fourth year of varsity soccer, are ranked No. 13 this week in the NSCAA/Umbro coaches poll.
DEACS WIN AWARDS AT STANFORD/NIKE INVITATIONAL
By defeating San Francisco and Stanford and finisheing the tournament with a 2-0 record, Wake Forest emerged as the victor at the Stanford/NIke Invitational. Several players earned individual recognition and were named to the all-tournament team.
Junior forward Stefanie Mathews (Tucson, AZ) scored all four Wake Forest goals to lead the Deacons to both victories.
Sophomore midfielder Karli Schilling (Doylestown, PA) assisted one of Mathews' goals against Stanford and was also named all-tournament. Freshman Rachael Lewis (Mathews, NC), who has played both the defender and midield positions this season, was also named to the squad.
Sophomore goalkeeper Beth Klein (Rockville, Centre, NY) recorded a shutout against USF and allowed only one goal to Stanford and was named to the all-tournament team.
MATHEWS LIGHTS UP THE SCOREBOARD
Junior forward Stefanie Mathews (Tucson, AZ) started slowly in her first five games at Wake Forest, but has suddenly turned it on over the last three games.
Mathews, a transfer from San Diego State, did not score a goal in the first five games of 1997 and had only one assist. Over the last three games however, the forward has scored five goals and assisted another.
In the final game of the Puma Tournament against Loyola, Mathews scored her first goal of the season in the first half and then assisted a goal later in the game in a 4-0 Wake Forest victory.
Mathews turned it up another notch at the Stanford/Nike Invitational, scoring all four Deacon goals in the tournament. She scored two goals in a 2-0 win over San Francisco and then scored two more goals in a 2-1 win over No. 11 Stanford.
Mathews was named the Atlantic Coast Conference's Player of the Week following her performance.
HONORS AT WF/NIKE INVITATIONAL
Four Deacons earned all-tournament honors in the 1997 Wake Forest/Nike Invitational, including sophomore midfielder Anne Shropshire (Lexington, KY) who was named the tournament's MVP. Shropshire scored three goals and assisted another in the two-game event, leading the Deacs to victories over Villanova and Maine.
Sophomore goalkeeper Beth Klein also earned all-tournament honors, recording a shutout against Villanova and holding Maine scoreless for 21 minutes before she gave way to substitutes.
Junior forward Meghan Suddes (Dublin, OH) scored a goal against Villanova and then assisted a goal against Maine and was named to the all-tournament team.
Junior sweeper Meredith Lester (Charlotte, NC) anchored the Wake Forest defense, making several outstanding plays to earn all-tournament honors.
SHROPSHIRE LEAVES HER MARK
Sophomore midfielder Anne Shropshire (Lexington, KY) has made her presence felt over the first eight games of the season. Shropshire leads the team in scoring with 13 points, scoring four goals to go along with five assists, and had a part in each of the first eight Deacon goals this season.
Shropshire scored the first goal of the season against Florida State to tie the score and then assisted on the game winner when Karli Schilling found the back of the net off her corner kick.
Against UNC Charlotte, Shropshire assisted both goals. The Schilling-Shropshire combo connected in the first half and Shropshire assisted Meghan Suddes in the second half.
Shropshire turned in an impressive performance in the Wake Forest/Nike Invitational. Against Villanova, she scored one goal and assisted another, and against Maine she put two balls into the net directly off her own corner kicks.
SCHILLING SCORES TWO GAME-WINNERS
Sophomore midfielder Karli Schilling (Doylestown, PA) scored two goals in the first two games of 1997, and both were game-winners.
With Wake Forest and Florida State tied at one in the season opener, Schilling found the back of the net with a header at 32:11. The goal gave the Deacons a 2-1 lead and secured the first win of the season.
Two days later against UNC Charlotte, Schilling scored at the 20:37 mark to put the Deacons on the board, 1-0. Wake Forest would go on to win the game by a final of 2-0.
Schilling was named ACC Player of the Week for the Week of Aug. 25 and now has 10 goals and seven assists for a total of 27 points in her career.
KLEIN SHUTS 'EM OUT
Goalkeeper Beth Klein (Rockville Centre, NY), recorded the sixth shutout of her career and third of the season in a 2-0 victory over San Francisco on Sept. 19. The sophomore also recorded shutouts in 2-0 victories over Maine on Sept. 6 and UNC Charlotte on Aug. 31 and shared a shutout with senior Jacki Ball (Fairfax, VA) against Loyola on Sept. 14.
In eight games in 1997, she has made 36 saves, allowing six goals, posting an impressive 0.89 goals allowed average. In 22 career games at Wake Forest, Klein has a solid 1.49 GAA.
DA LUZ MAKES A SUCCESSFUL DEBUT
Tony da Luz made his debut as the head coach of the Demon Deacons with a 2-1 win over Florida State in the 1997 season opener on Aug. 29. He has directed the Demon Deacons to an impressive 7-1 start and in six seasons as a head coach, da Luz has compiled a 53-43-3 record.
He came to Wake Forest after a successful five-year stint at the University of San Diego, where he led his team to the NCAA playoffs in 1996. His success at San Diego earned him West Coast Conference Coach of the Year honors as well as NSCAA West Region Coach of the Year accolades in 1996.
INSIDE THE STATISTICS
With her fast start to the season, sophomore Anne Shropshire ranks among the regional statistical leaders. Her total of 13 points through four games ranks 15th in the southeast region, while five assists places her tied for 8th place.
Sophomore Karli Schilling and junior Stefanie Mathews are tied for fifth in the region with two game-winning goals.
Sophomore goalkeeper Beth Klein ranks 8th in the southeast region with a 0.89 goals against average.
As a team, Wake Forest ranks sixth in the region in average home attendance, drawing 2,632 fans through four games for an average of 658 per contest.
THIS WEEK IN THE RANKINGS
Wake Forest is ranked No. 13 this week in the NSCAA/Umbro Top 25, No. 12 by Soccer America, and No. 16 by Soccer News.
Noted by many as the premier women's soccer conference in the country, six Atlantic Coast Conference teams are represented in the Umbro Top 25, including No. 1 North Carolina, No. 3 Virginia, No. 7 Duke, No. 11 Maryland, and No. 14 Clemson.
A LOOK AT THE DEACON RECORD BOOK
Senior Cheryl Zimmermann (Alexandria, VA) is Wake Forest's career scoring leader with 41 points. Zimmermann also ranks first with 14 career assists, while her 13 goals ties for second place on the career list.
Junior Julie Scott (Kernersville, NC), second on the career scoring list with 35 points, is Wake Forest's leader with 15 career goals. Junior Norine Fernbach (Westlake, OH) is tied for second place with Zimmermann with 13 goals and ranks third with 33 points.
Sophomore Liz Burnette (Raleigh, NC) set school records with 12 goals and 27 points in 1996. Sophomore Karli Schilling totalled 23 points a year ago, the second highest mark in school history.
PROBABLE STARTING LINEUP
Pos No Name Cl Notes
GK 0 Beth Klein So. Shutouts vs. UNCC, Villanova, Loyola and USF; 0.89 GAA in 1997
F 10 Meghan Suddes Jr. Goals vs. Villanova, Loyola; WF/Nike Invit. all-tournament team
F 14 Liz Burnette So. Team leader in 1996 with 12 goals
MF 23 Stefanie Mathews Jr. Four goals in Stanford/Nike Invit.; all-Tournament team
MF 5 Karli Schilling So. Game-winning goals vs. FSU, UNCC; ACC Player of Week (Sept. 1)
MF 19 Anne Shropshire So. MVP of WF/Nike Invitational; Team leader with 13 points
MF 7 Jessen Snyder Jr. Team MVP in '96; goal vs. Loyola, assist vs. Florida State
MF 24 Rachael Lewis Fr. All-tournament team at Stanford/Nike Invitational
D 13 Vanessa Slatterly Sr. Eight career goals in 64 games
D 8 Meredith Lester Jr. Named to WF/Nike Invitational all-tournament team
D 16 Cheryl Zimmermann Sr. Wake Forest career leader with 41 points
TOP RESERVES
F 22 Christie Melby Fr. Assisted game-winning goal vs. Florida State
MF 20 Alison McPheely So. Team high seven assists in 1996
D 15 Kate Crowley Sr. Veteran who has played in 65 of 66 WFU games
MF 28 Colleen Bradley Fr. Seen action in six of eight games in 1997
F 21 Lauren Hook So. Scored first career goal against Maine
MF 9 Norine Fernbach Jr. Scored 13 career goals at Wake Forest
D 4 Rachael Thomas Jr. Five goals and three career assists
GK 1 Jacki Ball Sr. Teamed with Beth Klein for shutout against Loyola
NSCAA/Umbro Top 25 (as of Sept. 22)
Rank Team Record LW
1 North Carolina 7-0-1 1
2 Notre Dame 7-0-1 2
3 Virginia 6-0-1 3
4 Texas A&M 8-0-0 4
5 Portland 4-3-0 6
6 Santa Clara 6-0-1 7
7 Duke 5-2-0 5
8 William & Mary 6-2-0 9
9 Hartford 4-1-0 12
10 Nebraska 6-2-0 11
11 Connecticut 6-1-0 16
11 Maryland 6-1-1 14
13 WAKE FOREST 7-1-0 23
14 Clemson 5-2-0 10
15 Michigan 7-1-0 17
16 Southern Methodist 6-2-0 8
17 BYU 8-0-0 15
18 Harvard 4-1-0 13
19 Florida 4-2-1 19
20 Massachusetts 6-0-0 20
21 Minnesota 6-1-1 NR
22 George Mason 4-1-3 22
23 UCLA 6-1-0 20
24 Penn State 5-2-0 NR
25 Cal Poly SLO 6-2-0 NR
WAKE FOREST vs. RANKED OPPONENTS IN 1997 (1-1)
Date Opponent (NSCAA/SA/SN Rank) Result
Sept. 12 at Maryland (13/13/11) L, 4-0
Sept. 21 at Stanford (22/11/17) W, 2-0
Sept. 28 VIRGINIA (3/4/4)
Oct. 12 FLORIDA (19/13/17)
Oct. 16 CLEMSON (14/10/21)
Oct. 22 at North Carolina (1/1/1)
Nov. 2 at Duke (7/6/12)
*Ranking is at time of game
WEEKLY RANKINGS
Week of: Soccer America NSCAA Soccer News
Preseason 15 23 NR
Sept. 1 15 23 21
Sept. 8 15 22 18
Sept. 15 17 23 18
Sept. 22 12 13 16
