Wasatch Back

LOCK AND LOAD

Yes, believe it, the BYU Soccer Crew decided to run the Wasatch Back! It was awesome! Jen Rockwood, Coach Watkins, Karen (Coach's wife), Carolyn Billings, Tom Mullen, Bug, Chris Smith, his sister Heather, Matt Nix, our friends Ashley Henderson, Greg Danklef, and Ken, decided that it would be a great idea to get up at 6:15 AM, and start the 188 mile race from Logan to Park City. The race team is made up of 12 runners, and they rotate through 3 different legs. The atmosphere is amazing, thousands of people, some dressed up in crazy costumes, like super heroes, or bunnies. We started early in the morning, and make our way to Park City, finishing just under 30 hours, 20 hours and 55 minutes to be exact. We placed 181st out of 600 teams, not too bad! It was so fun, running, then eating, a little bit of sleeping, and then doing it all over again. Everyone did a great job, running up and down big hills, and cheering each other on. It was a great experience, and I think I even heard Jen yell on her last hill, which was 7.9 miles long, "I am a runner", and I think I heard her say, that she really enjoyed running. Some of the best moments were Jen cheering as she ran up the hill, the sprinklers coming on while Carolyn was sleeping on the grass, Coach's face after he ran straight up a mountain for 4 miles, Tom killing his run, he might not have broken a sweat, and the panic on Van 1's face when they realized they were at the wrong exchange! Good work team "Lock And Load", can't wait to do it all over again next year, or maybe in Key West, Florida :)

Van 1 - Lock And Load

Jen running her first leg

Matt running his first leg

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Coach after his LONG Hill - The "Ragnar"

Ashley at 3:00 AM, ready to run :)

Coach and Jen, about 3:00 AM

The crew, almost finished

Jen, Ashley, and Bug . . . So happy to be finished :)

Spring Season Comes To An End

The Cougs recently finished their spring season with wins against Utah, 3-0, and Idaho Stated, 3-0. They will now start to prepare for their 2010 season. The new schedule has recently been released, and BYU will begin their games in California against Long Beach, and Cal State Fullerton. They will then play 5 games at home against Weber State, Northwestern, Washington State, LSU and Marquette. They will also play Texas and Santa Clara. The girls are looking forward to taking a break, and then preparing for the fall season. They have recently finished school, and will start working soccer camps in June.

Lindsi Lisonbee recently returned from training with the U-20 National Team. She headed out to California to attend the training camp. Lindsi was one of seven defenders invited to the training camp. There will 26 players at camp until April 18th. They are preparing for the 2010 FIFA U-20 Women's World Cup in Germany.

A special shout out to our players that graduated today, Alyssa VanderVeur, Andrea Willis, Katie Fellows and Kelsea Kakadelas. Congratulations Seniors! Also, congratulations to our newlyweds, all getting married on April 24, 2010. Simone Seymour and Auna Janis.

Check back to see what the girls are up to this summer :)

Spring Soccer = Vegas = Pirate Ship = Awesome

The Cougs just returned from their spring trip in Las Vegas. They get on the bus every year with the BYU Men's team and head to Vegas and play UNLV. They headed down on Friday afternoon, stopped in St. George to practice, then finished the trip to Vegas. They had to opportunity to stop at the "Pirate Ship" and enjoy the hot tub that overlooked Lake Mead, the soft serve ice cream, and the water-slide that was so scary you thought you might die. The men's and women's team had a great time at the pirate ship. There were some crazy moments going down the water-slide, and a lot of laughs. It was an awesome experience, and everyone was grateful they had the opportunity.

The girls at the bottom of the water-slide

Carlee on the rope swing

The girls also brought home two wins. Their first game was against UNLV, and they won 2-0. Jessica Ringwood scored off an assist from Merc Koning, and Carlee Payne scored the second goal. BYU also won their second game 2-0, and Auna Janis put one away, and so did Carlee Payne off an assist from Jennie Marshall. The girls played good, and it was a quick trip to Vegas. The girls will head to College Station, Texas this week play Texas A&M and Stephen F. Austin. Check back to see when the Cougs head home to wrap up their spring season!

Spring Season Has Begun

The Cougs have started their spring season. They just finished their indoor tournament where they played Weber State, Westminister, and Utah State. The Cougs won their first game against Weber 3 - 0, with goals from Kassidy Shumway, Amber Wadsworth and Lindsi Lisonbee. The Cougs won their second game against Westminister 1 - 0 with a goal from Amber Wadsworth, and they lost their last game against Utah State 0 - 1. The girls played great, and they are looking forward to the rest of their spring season.

The girls are headed to Arizona this weekend to play Arizona State and Nebraska.

BYU Falls To Stanford

The Cougs have just returned home from the NCAA Tournament, in Palo Alto, California. They headed out on Wednesday to Stanford after they heard they were scheduled to play UC Santa Barbara in the first round. They Cougs pulled off the victory against UCSB, 2 - 0, with an own goal, and a sick goal from Alyssa Vander Veur. They were set to face the number one seed in the nation, undefeated Stanford, in the second round. The Cougs had done everything to prepare for the game, and were excited to have a chance to upset the number one team in the nation. Stanford came out strong, and scored a goal in the first minute of the game. But, that was not enough to shake the Cougs, and they kept battling until the final minute of the game. Carlee Payne had a shot bounce off the cross bar in the first half, and Lauren Anderson had a shot that was on it's way in the goal, until a Stanford defender got a head on it. The girls played with so much effort and heart. They got off 15 shots, and it was only the third time all year that Stanford had given up double digit shots. The Cougar defense was awesome, Nicole Urry-Gilliam, Mercede Koning, Andrea Willis, Lindsi Lisonbee, Stacy Bartholomew, and McKinzie Olson, held Stanford to just 22 shots. The Cougs end the season at 18-4-2, and will graduate 5 seniors. Thank you seniors for all that you have done for the program, and for the legacy you have left behind, we will miss you!

Andrea Willis

Simone Seymore

Kelsea Kakadelas

Alyssa Vander Veur

Ashleigh Jameson

Cougs Battled Hard

The Cougs battled hard in a disappointing loss in Provo on Saturday afternoon. They were matched up against San Diego State for the championship game of the Mountain West Conference. They had beaten New Mexico, 1-0, earlier in the week to advance to the finals. The Cougs played hard, and had some good looks at the goal. San Diego had some looks as well, and they were able to knock one in at the 28 minute mark. The Cougs fought hard to the end, and were unable to capitalize on their opportunities. They had 3 girls named to the 2009-All-Conference Tournament Team, Kassidy Shumway, Carlee Payne, and Lindsi Lisonbee. The Cougs will now wait to see if they get an at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament, which will be announced Monday night.

The Cougs also had players recognized at the MWC banquet that was held before the tournament. Andrea Wills was named MWC Defensive Player of the Year, and Carlee Payne was named MWC Freshman of the Year. They also had 4 girls named to the 2009 All Mountain West Conference First Team, Andrea Willis, Kassidy Shumway, McKinzie Olson, and Carlee Payne. Lindsi Lisonbee was named to the 2009 All Mountain West Conference Second Team.

Good work Cougs, and make sure to check back to see if the girls have an at-large bid, and where they are headed!

Cougs Clinch MWC Regular Season

The Cougars secured their second regular season Mountain West Conference Championship. They knocked off Wyoming 2-0 yesterday, and will now head into the tournament next week as the number one seed. Carlee Payne, and Andrea Willis put two goals away to secure the win. The MWC Championships will be help in Provo, on South Field. The Cougs went 6-0-1 in the conference, with their only tie to San Diego State. They now have an overall record of 16-2-2, and are on a 14 game unbeaten, 6 game winning streak.

The girls also had a great time dressing up for Halloween, the costumes get more creative every year. Keep up the awesome work Cougs! Make sure and get your tickets to the MWC Championships, they start on November 4-7!