Notre Dame keeps in step with 6-0 routing of Detroit
By KEVIN BERCHOU
Sports Writer
The cast of characters has changed dramatically, but the show still opened to rave reviews.
On the heels of last year's national runner-up finish, the Notre Dame women's soccer team, featuring a brand new, much younger corps of players, acted as if nothing had changed as it decimated the University of Detroit 6-0 Sunday.
Hurt by the loss of an outstanding senior class that included the likes of All-Americans LaKeysia Beene and Jenn Grubb, Irish head coach Randy Waldrum was skeptical as to whether or not his freshmen class could jump into the fray.
After watching his troops walk all over the Titans, Waldrum's fears have been eased.
Oddly enough it was group of freshmen that headed the onslaught.
Amanda Guertin and Randi Scheller, both playing in their first collegiate contests, netted goals as the Irish sank the Titans.
"I was very pleased with the way our freshmen played today," Waldrum said, "It was nice to see players like Amanda and Randi score in their first games. It's always good to get the win."
While the newcomers were indeed potent, there were members of the old guard to be heard from as well.
Senior Anne Makinen opened the scoring by converting a pretty feed from classmate Meotis Erikson, and then added two assists in her first game as the real focal point of the re-vamped offense.
"Anne is definitely our go-to player," Waldrum affirmed. "She's just so unselfish with the ball. I think sometimes we just need her to be a bit more selfish."
Undoubtedly, it's a period of adjustment for the Irish as many players are in transition.
While the freshmen prepare to move into starring roles, Waldrum feels compelled to give Makinen the lead.
It is his hope that the squad's veterans can aide the freshmen as they prepare to star on the biggest of stages.
"Certainly players like Anne and Meotis will ease the transition," Waldrum noted. "Anne is sometimes a player that I think we take for granted, but she means so much to the team in a lot of ways."
While the Irish dominated the Titans in every facet of the game, including outshooting them by a total of 49-2, Waldrum was still not entirely pleased with his squad's performance.
"We still have a long way to go," he said. "To have as many shots as we did, it's a bit disappointing that we didn't score more than we did. I also think we gave the ball away too many times. We really need to work on ball control as a team."
After opening to rave reviews, Waldrum hopes his show can continue to satisfy the critics.
All season long, he along with the freshmen will be confronted with one question: can this group of players replace that outstanding senior class of last year?
Waldrum thinks they can.
"They're probably a more talented group athletically," he noted. "They have the tools, but they need experience. Only time will tell if they can do for us what last year's girls did."
Freshmen Amy Warner, who drew high praise in her first game was excited just to be on stage.
"It was great just to be out there at this level," she said. "It's a great team to be a part of."
All Sports Stories for Monday, August 28, 2000
