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Soccer
team out of the dark with new coach, televised
matches
By
Michael Bower
Online Forty-Niner
Sports Editor
Their
cover has been blown. The secret is out.
It is time to cut down those hideous bushes,
which keep George Allen Field a mystery
to students who never walk around to the
other side.
Let
the students glance over and see what we
have been rebuilding since 1998. Let them
see a new leader who brings a 55-match win
streak and five state titles from Long Beach
City College to Long Beach State.
Let
them see a team that is returning 19 lettermen
and three seniors, who started on last year's
squad, which had the best season since the
program re-started in 1998.
It
is time to unveil to the Long Beach community
just what we have been hiding back there
all these years.
Charter
Cable decided to venture to the other side
of the bushes and set up their cameras for
Friday and Sunday's matches to help the
community get a glance at the team that
is itching to cause some buzz in the Big
West Conference.
The
soccer team did not disappoint with a 2-1
victory over Sacramento State Friday, and
a hard-fought 0-0 tie against the University
of San Francisco Sunday.
Three
more games are scheduled to be televised
in the Long Beach community this season.
It is the first time ever that the Long
Beach State women's soccer team will appear
on television.
Yes,
the gates have always been open to women's
soccer games, but this year could be the
year the team makes a run at a Big West
Conference championship.
All
the pieces are in place. Head Coach Mauricio
Ingrassia shows a resume that has taken
teams from a mediocre level to a championship
level.
Defender
Natalia Messina returns to the starting
lineup after being out for the majority
of last season, which means the team's defense
that set records for the least amount of
shots given up and goals scored on last
season, has gotten even stronger.
The
leadership on the field is amazing with
nine starters from last year's squad returning;
including three seniors who are confident
and up to the challenge of taking the Big
West Conference by surprise.
And
it would be by surprise.
The
coaches' poll showed them no respect by
picking them to finish in sixth place in
the 10-team conference.
The
players and coaches will never say it, but
that has to be a slap in the face to a team
that finished in fourth place last year
and has only gotten stronger this season.
Guess
there is only one thing left to do for the
women's soccer team now — prove them
all wrong.
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