DePaul University

Weekly Notes

CHICAGO - The DePaul women’s soccer team travels to New Jersey for a pair of BIG EAST matches this weekend.  The Blue Demons take on Seton Hall on Friday afternoon before a Sunday afternoon match at Rutgers.  Following the road trip, DePaul closes the regular season with four straight home matches at Wish Field.

Looking at the Blue Demons: The 2005 season is the 10th year of women’s soccer as a varsity sport at DePaul University... the back-to-back overtime matches against Cincinnati and USF marked the second time in school history that the Blue Demons have played in back-to-back draws (last, Oct. 16 vs. UNC Charlotte and Oct. 18 vs. South Florida)... the 0-0 tie at Cincinnati was the fifth scoreless draw in program history... the 2-0 win over Central Michigan on Sept. 18 was DePaul’s first multi-goal game of the season and first since a 7-2 loss at UAB on Oct. 29, 2004... Julianne Sitch has scored two of the six Blue Demon goals this season... the Blue Demons have outshot their opponents, 179-155, but have been outscored, 19-6... the six shutouts suffered by the team this season surpasses the total from all of 2004... the 15 returners from last season accounted for 39 of the record-setting 46 goals a year ago... they also accumulated 42 assists and 120 of the team’s 140 points last year... Sitch and Lea Hill are the top returning scorers with 25 points each in 2004... Hill led the team with 10 goals and five assists while Sitch totaled nine goals and seven assists... overall, the top five scorers are back with Hill, Sitch, Erin Walter (4G/10A/18P), Jennifer Dyer (6G/5A/17P) and Lauren Spacht (5G/5A/15P)... that group has totaled three goals, three assists and 110 shots in 2005... head coach John Wilson is in his sixth season at DePaul.

Scouting Seton Hall: Seton Hall enters the weekend at 6-4-2 overall and 2-3-0 in BIG EAST action.  Last weekend, the Pirates split a pair of league matches with a 2-0 win at Pittsburgh and a 3-1 loss at  West Virginia.  Megan Dewan leads the team with 12 points on four goals and four assists while Katie Herr adds three goals and three assists for nine points.  Overall, Seton Hall has outscored their opponents, 22-11, with goalkeeper Amanda Becker totaling a 0.93 goals against average.  Head coach Betty Ann Kempf-Townsley is in her 12th season with the Pirates.  Seton Hall was picked to finish seventh in Division B in the BIG EAST preseason poll.  The Series: Friday is the first meeting between the two programs.

Checking on Rutgers: The Scarlet Knights open the weekend with a Friday evening match against Notre Dame.  Rutgers stands at 4-7-1 overall and 1-4-0 in BIG EAST games.  Last weekend, they dropped a 1-0 decision at West Virginia before a 6-2 win at Pittsburgh.  Kristen Edmonds leads the team with 15 points on five goals and five assists followed by Domenique Esposito with 10 points on four goals and two assists.  Overall, the Scarlet Knights have outscored their opponents, 19-15, with Nora Crawford posting 1.16 goals against average.  Head coach Glenn Crooks is in his 13th season at Rutgers.  Rutgers was picked by the league’s coaches to finish third in Division B.  The Series: Sunday is the first meeting between the Blue Demons and Scarlet Knights.

Preseason Picks:  The Blue Demons were picked to finish sixth in Division B of the BIG EAST Preseason Poll.  The BIG EAST Conference features a pair of eight-team divisions with the top 12 overall teams advancing to the league tournament.  Senior midfielder/forward Julianne Sitch was one of 12 players selected to the Preseason All-BIG EAST Team.

Record Book Update:  With two goals and an assist in the first 11 matches, senior Julianne Sitch has totaled 82 points on 31 goals and 20 assists.  A year ago, she totaled 25 points with nine goals and seven assists after a sophomore year with 31 points on 12 goals and seven assists.  As a freshman, Sitch set a then-record for a single-season with 21 points on eight goals and five assists.

Looking Forward:  Following the final regular-season road trip, DePaul returns to Wish Field on Oct. 14 for the first of four straight home matches.  Providence opens the season-ending homestand followed by Connecticut on Oct. 16.  The final weekend of the regular season has Georgetown and Villanova visiting Wish Field for the first time.

The BIG EAST Tournament starts on Oct. 26 or 27 with the first round on campus sites.  The quarterfinals will also be played on campus site either Oct. 29 or 30 with the semifinals and championship on Nov. 4 and 6 in Milwaukee, Wis.  The top five teams in each division qualify for the league tournament.  The winner earns the BIG EAST’s automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament.