Soccer Opens Spring Play Against Arizona

FLAGSTAFF, Ariz. – Just months after winning its first Big Sky Championship in school history, Northern Arizona women’s soccer will open spring play against Arizona at the Reach 11 Sports Complex in Phoenix, Ariz. on Sunday at 1 p.m. NAU will play at least two more spring games next weekend against Arizona State, BYU and possibly Southern Utah.

The Lumberjacks finished the 2008 year 12-7-3 (4-2-1 BSC) earning the conference's automatic bid and a trip to the 2008 NCAA Women’s College Cup. The women faced No. 2 seeded Portland and fell 6-1.

“The most important thing for us this spring season is not to be so result oriented, but to be more development oriented,” said head coach Andre Luciano. “We have a strong nucleus of players coming back. We have a very big roster in terms of numbers for a spring. The key to this spring will be for us to continue building on what we achieved last year.”

NAU loses two players—captains Kayla Bauder and Cee Cee Odorfer, the Big Sky Conference Co-Offensive Player of the Year.

“This spring will answer a lot of questions for us in terms of our player personnel for the fall,” Luciano said. “It also will allow players who did not get a significant amount of playing time last year to showcase themselves and try to make a mark on next year’s roster.”

The spring gives us an opportunity to tinker around with some positions and players and creates a little bit more versatility and depth in different areas that maybe we would not have taken a chance in the fall with. We have an incredibly talented core of players, and it will be fun to actually scrimmage 11 versus 11.”