Women's Soccer Opens Practice
August 09, 2006 | Soccer
Aug. 9, 2006
GREENVILLE, N.C. - The 2006 East Carolina women's soccer team opened practice today under Rob Donnenwirth, who is now in his eighth year as head coach. The 2005 squad finished with a record of 8-12-1 and 4-5-0 in Conference USA. After being seeded 7th in the C-USA tournament, the women's soccer team went on to defeat SMU in a first round upset before eventually falling in the second round to Rice.
Joining the squad this year will be 14 incoming freshmen. In addition, Kelly Hennessy who red-shirted last season after suffering a knee injury, gained valuable experience from the sidelines and will be a welcoming sight to coach Donnenwirth.
With five returning seniors (Carmen Calpo, Rachel Hils, Anastasia Nikas, Mary Puckett and Tara Shaw) on the 2006 squad, Donnenwirth expects his seniors to lead the way for the rest of the team.
"All of our seniors have a freshman that they look after and make sure everything is going well for them", said Donnenwirth. "Today we did a fitness test and some one-on-ones to see where each player fits into our system. It's going to be a very competitive season."
The Pirates will open the 2006 season Aug. 25 against Old Dominion at 8:30 p.m. in Norfolk, Va. After three consecutive road games, the Lady Pirates will return home to Bunting field on Sept. 3 to host Charlotte at 1:00 p.m.
