Aug. 25, 2010

BERKELEY - Despite the fact that the 2009 California field hockey squad boasted 12 freshmen, the Golden Bears still advanced to the final of the NorPac Tournament a year ago. Finishing second overall in the NorPac conference, the Bears fell just short of their goal of a conference title and a berth to the NCAA Play-In game. Considering how young yet how successful the team was, head coach Shellie Onstead is very excited about Cal's chances this season.

Another reason for the Bears to be excited about 2010 is that the team's leading scorer from last season returns for this year's campaign. Junior defender Erin Magill, a 2009 All-NorPac second-team selection, posted nine goals, including three gamewinners, to lead her team. Onstead expects Magill, who was already an excellent striker on penalty corners last year, to be even better this year.

"As far as corner striking and scoring goals, I think Erin's only going to get better just because she's put more time into it and she was that good last year," Onstead said.

Onstead's sentiments towards Magill coincide with how she feels the team overall should be much improved from a year ago.

"I think we've got a good combination of incoming players and returning players," Onstead said. "By the effort I've seen over the summer, I've got every reason to be excited. They've been really enthusiastic over the summer. The majority, if not all, of the returning players have been training here during the summer, which is always a great sign."

Also returning is senior Lisa Lohre, one of the team captains along with fellow senior midfielder Megan Psyllos. Lohre boasted a team-high six defensive saves. Onstead hopes the efforts of Lohre, Magill and sophomore Deanna Kennedy will be strong enough for her to utilize more midfielders and fewer defenders in an effort to boost their attack.

"We're experienced enough in the backfield to go with fewer backs and more midfielders," Onstead said. "I think that's going to really help our attack. Erin, Lisa and Deanna are going to be a big part of that, as far as being able to use another player in the midfield, if they can hold down the backfield."

Onstead is also looking for Kennedy, a 2009 All-NorPac second-teamer, to pick up in 2010 right where she left off in 2009. One of last season's freshmen who started every game and made an immediate impact right away, Kennedy finished the 2009 campaign with a team-high 10 assists and a 0.53 assists per game average that ranked third in the conference.

Lohre, a native of Frankfurt, Germany, is not the only player on this year's squad to be born outside of the United States. Two incoming freshmen, Shannon Elmitt and Rosa Stabler hail from Canada and the Netherlands, respectively. Elmitt, a native of West Vancouver, British Columbia, most recently played for the Canadian National team the past three years, while Stabler racked up numerous district and national championships and also played for the Dutch National U-17 team in 2008.

According to Onstead, it is beneficial to bring in players from other countries because of the experience they have already earned playing in countries where the competition is a little bit stronger.

"It's nice to have a couple international players come in; it's good to mix them in every couple years," Onstead said. "They bring good experience and maturity to the team. Typically, these players have started younger and their game is more mature. The skill level is similar, but they tend to be a little more polished. They've also been playing at a high level longer than the players in the U.S."

One of the domestic incoming freshmen that could make an impact right away is Andrea Earle from San Diego. Earle has three San Diego Section Division II Championships under her belt (2007-2009), as well as a Cal Cup Championship in 2008. She also won the AAU Junior Olympic Team Championship in 2008 and played in three straight USFHA Futures Tournaments (2007-2009).

The Bears open the season with a three-game homestand against nonconference foes Miami of Ohio and Michigan State before the NorPac conference opener against UC Davis. Cal also ends its regular season under the lights of Maxwell Family Field against Stanford in late October. The Bears do a bit of traveling, as usual, with trips to Indiana, Kentucky, North Carolina, Connecticut and Providence on the slate. Onstead calls it a challenging schedule, but she feels her club will fare well against the tough stretch of opponents.

"There are no easy games," Onstead said. "We've made an aggressive nonconference schedule. You do that with the idea of being primed by the end of the season, but I've got every reason to believe we're going to be successful going through. Last year, I was realistic about knowing it would take a couple months for us to really gel as a team."

The 2010 season opener is Friday, Aug. 27, at 5 p.m. against Miami at Maxwell Family Field.