OSU packs newfound momentum
September 9, 1998
CORVALLIS, Ore. - This week:
FRIDAY, SEPT. 11
Oregon State at Cal State-Sacramento, 4 p.m.
SUNDAY, SEPT. 13
Oregon State at Cal State-Northridge, 4 p.m.
Oregon State (1-1-0 overall, 0-0-0 Pacific-10) is back on the road again as it visits Cal State-Northridge (0-3-0) and Cal State-Sacramento (0-1-0). For the first time in years, the Beavers will pack some momentum after winning their first road game in almost three years last weekend with a 4-1 victory at Cal State-Fullerton.
"Now we need to build on that and continue that momentum," OSU head coach Steve Fennah said. "Obviously, we're excited about our win Monday (4-1 at Cal State-Fullerton). Some of our players had watied a long time for that opportunity."
The victory ended a 14-game winless streak for the Beavers, who had been beaten 5-1 by Cal-Irvine on Saturday. The win over Cal State-Fullerton and also stopped a 15-game winless streak in road games that dated back almost 3 years.
"It's also exciting about the way they showed character to come back in a game where they were down 1-nil," Fennah said of the Beavers, who were outshot 18-5 but found a way to win. "We took our chances well. The two goals late in the game were the result of good buildup - they were good goals that we scored."
OSU's team defensive play, all the way from the forwards through the back line, frustrated the Titans and helped the Beavers regain the ball in the midfield. That's something Oregon State will look to continue this weekend.
"That's an exciting start," Fennah said of the split on the season's first trip. "Now we've got to build and continue to do that. It's exciting that we've had new players come in and they've done well. It points that we're headed in the right direction."
Cal State-Northridge's games have been on the low-scoring side. The Matadors have lost 1-0 to Cal-Santa Barbara at home, then went to Hawaii's Wahine Classic and lost and 2-1 to St. Mary's and 2-0 to Hawaii.
Cal State-Sacramento had played just once through this past weekend, losing at home to Pacific (Calif.) 1-0.
It's history: OSU vs. this week's opponents
OSU leads the all-time series against Cal State-Northridge 1-0-0, having taken a 4-0 win in Corvallis in 1996. OSU leads the all-time series with Cal State-Sacramento 2-1-0; the Hornets took a 1-0 win in Corvallis last season while the Beavers' last win was 3-1 in Corvallis in 1996.
Injuries: Christensen is out again
OSU has just 1 injury of note this week, as sophomore defender Libby Christensen will miss the trip to California due to an Achilles tendon problem. Last week: OSU ends several streaks with a split
Oregon State finished second in the 4-team Cal State-Fullerton Tournament, falling 5-1 to eventual tourney champ Cal-Irvine before beating host Cal State-Fullerton 4-1. OSU's Allison Hamada was named the tournament's outstanding defensive player.
The victory over Cal State-Fullerton ended several streaks that the Beavers were happy to get off their backs. First, it ended a 14-game winless streak; OSU had recorded 13 losses and 1 tie since beating Eastern Washington 6-0 at home on Sept. 27, 1997. Second, it ended a 15-game winless streak in road contests; the Beavers hadn't won on an opponent's home field since a 3-1 victory at Arizona on Sept. 29, 1995 (OSU had managed wins on neutral fields during that time).
OSU made the most of its scoring chances against the Titans. The Beavers were outshot 18-5, but scored on their first 4 shots to overcome a 1-0 deficit.
Nothing could be Fennah
Steve Fennah has a 1-1-0 record in his first season as Oregon State's head coach. He spent the past 5 years at Jesuit High in Beaverton, Ore. Fennah, 33, guided Jesuit to 4 straight Oregon Class 4A state titles in his final four seasons at the school. After leading the Crusaders to an 84-2-6 record and top-eight national rankings in each of his 5 seasons at Jesuit, he was named head coach at OSU on Feb. 6, 1998.
Leading ladies
Oregon State has several players among the Pacific-10's statistical leaders through Sept. 7:
INDIVIDUAL POINTS
Name Gls. Asts. Pts.
4 (tie). Lindy Brown, OSU 2 2 6
8 (tie). Sunny Miller, OSU 2 0 4
INDIVIDUAL GOALS
Name Gls.
6. (tie) Lindy Brown, OSU 2
6. (tie) Sunny Miller, OSU 2
INDIVIDUAL ASSISTS
Name Asts.
2. (tie) Lindy Brown, OSU 2
INDIVIDUAL SAVES
Name Svs.
6. (tie) Elizabeth Pease, OSU 6
TEAM SCORING
Team Gls. Asts. Pts.
6.Oregon State 5 5 14
TEAM GOALKEEPING
Team GAA
9. Oregon State 3.00
Now, introduce yourselves
Besides having a new head coach this fall, Oregon State also has plenty of new players. Of the 23 players on this fall's roster, 11 weren't on the 1997 Beaver roster. The newcomers include 8 freshmen and 3 transfers from 4-year colleges.
That's pretty rank
Oregon State can look ahead to this fall's schedule and find 2 games against teams ranked in the National Soccer Coaches Association of America preseason poll. The Beavers play at 15th-ranked UCLA on Oct. 25 and at 24th-ranked Stanford on Nov. 6.
Taking the local
Oregon State didn't have to look far to fill many of its roster spots. There are 4 Beavers who played at nearby high schools: junior forward Sunny Miller (Crescent Valley), junior midfielder Aubrey Robbins (Philomath), sophomore defender Libby Christensen (Corvallis) and sophomore goalkeeper Wendy Matson (Philomath).
Lindy hops a few spots on OSU career lists
Senior forward Lindy Brown (Tualatin, Ore./Tualatin HS)continues to move up Oregon State's career lists in scoring, goals and assists. After tallying 2 goals and 2 assists in the Cal State-Fullerton Tournament, Brown is now tied for seventh place on OSUs career goals list with 14 and is tied for sixth on the Beaver career assists list with 11. She remains in eighth place on the Oregon State career points list with 40, but the six points she scored in the tournament moved her within two points of seventh place.
Career placement
Where current OSU players stand on the school's career lists through Sept. 7:
CAREER POINTS
Name Gls. Asts. Pts.
1. Jenna Leavitt (1990, 92-94) 31 23 85
2. Val Williams (1994-95) 34 16 84
3. Kela Hinds (1988-90) 26 17 69
4. Jeanette Scotti (1993-96) 21 12 54
5. Brandy Dubois (1989-92) 18 10 46
6. Cacey Zimmer (1990-93) 13 17 43
7. Karey Dyson (1993-96) 17 8 42
8. Lindy Brown (1995-present) 14 12 40
CAREER GOALS
Name Gls.
1. Val Williams (1994-95) 34
2. Jenna Leavitt (1990, 92-94) 31
3. Kela Hinds (1988-90) 26
4. Jeanette Scotti (1993-96) 21
5. Brandy Dubois (1989-92) 18
6. Karey Dyson (1993-96) 17
7. Chellie Kennedy (1988-91) 14
(tie) Lindy Brown (1995-present) 14
CAREER ASSISTS
Name Asts.
1. Jenna Leavitt (1990, 92-94) 23
2. Kela Hinds (1988-90) 17
(tie) Cacey Zimmer (1990-93) 17
4. Val Williams (1994-95) 16
5. Lindsay Allori (1994-97) 14
6. Jeanette Scotti (1993-96) 12
(tie) Lindy Brown (1995-present) 12
Lorenz Field at Valley Stadium: Home improvement
Oregon State's soccer facility, Paul Lorenz Field at Patrick Wayne Valley Stadium, provides soccer enthusiasts with one of the top places to both play and watch the sport on the West Coast.
The main seating section, located on the west sideline, has a capacity of approximately 1,000. It rises well above field level and puts most fans near midfield to get a better picture of what was happening on the pitch.
This fall, the media and statistics crews will also enjoy a better vantage point as they begin using the press box behind the back row of the west sideline seats.
Smaller sections of seats and standing room areas now circle the rest of the field, bringing capacity to approximately 1,500.
OSU is 6-14-0 at Lorenz Field at Valley Stadium, which opened for the 1996 season.
The stadium is located a block southeast of Parker Stadium, just south of the intersection of 17th Street and Western Boulevard.
