After a disappointing first-round loss in the Big Ten Championships last season, a younger Spartans field hockey squad is looking to make a statement this fall and cement its legacy under new head coach Rolf van de Kerkhof.
The team, which established itself as one of the best in the country under former coach Michele Madison, will take the field this year minus its two All-American starters — goalkeeper Christina Kirkaldy and forward Michelle Huynh-Ba. The team also said goodbye to its entire starting lineup, including defensive powerhouse Breanna Harpstead and all-regional team member Jessica Miller.
But that's the past, and this year's team will settle for nothing less than some postseason success.
"There is excitement — the team is not satisfied with last year's result," van de Kerkhof said. "The seniors want to go out with a big win."
In order for the team to compete in a championship game, however, its freshmen talent will have to start hot and stay strong for a punishing fall season that begins Saturday with the Champions Invitational in Durham, N.C., and continues with 10 matches in September alone — including a road game against old nemesis Wake Forest on Sept. 16.
"This season, we face a very challenging schedule," van de Kerkhof said. "Both in our region and our conference."
Van de Kerkhof said the Spartans will be tested against NCAA heavyweights like Wake Forest and Duke, but he likes to be realistic — no program should be underestimated, including MSU.
The Spartans should not be discounted because of their relative inexperience this season, van de Kerkhof said, because despite a lack of collegiate experience, every player on the green and white team earned their way on to the team with impressive junior tournament play.
"We are going to be young, but although we are young, we still have some upperclassmen who were part of our recent success," van de Kerkhof said. "The freshmen we are bringing in come from strong high school and club programs.
"So we may be young on paper, but we have a lot of experience."
Van de Kerkhof said what he has seen so far is reassuring — both in ability and attitude — but for now all the players, including nine freshmen, will be competing for starting positions in a relatively wide open field.
One competition returning fans will be watching carefully is the battle for the now-vacant goaltending spot.
The loss of Kirkaldy is a serious setback for a team that relied on her unshakable prowess to shut down offenses across the Big Ten. Kirkaldy is only the sixth player in MSU history to garner second-team All-American honors. She started every game of her Spartans career and was second-best in the Big Ten for goals against with a 1.53 average for the 2005-06 season.
"With the departure of our All-American goalie, we have a new situation in front of the goalie case," van de Kerkhof said. "We're bringing in a fifth-year senior and a couple of freshmen. They'll all have to compete for that top spot."
Senior Stephanie Yuhasz should have an edge in the contest because of her experience in the program, van de Kerkhof said, but she'll face serious competition from incoming-freshmen Elissa Unger and Melissa Katz.
"Right now everybody is in the same boat, competing for the starting spot," van de Kerkhof said. "They all have to show the coaches who should earn that playing time."
To help bring stability to the Spartans' goal-keeping, van de Kerkhof recently welcomed assistant coach Ashley Egland to the team. Egland, who will be overseeing the goal-keeping unit, recorded a commanding 0.43 goals average while guarding the net at UMass in 2001 and most recently served as an assistant coach at St. Lawrence.
A very successful goalie, Egland will be responsible for keeping the goalie transition as smooth as possible, van de Kerkhof said.
For the rest of the team, van de Kerkhof will rely on a new training program that combines intense scrimmage play and individual instruction to get his team ready for the new season.
Van de Kerkhof said the new season gives him the opportunity to build a Spartans program even better than the one he inherited from coach Madison. He said it is about building a certain level of play and establishing Spartans field hockey as a force to be reckoned with on a national level.
"A lot of times when you play a good team, you play up to their level," van de Kerkhof said. "When you play a bad team, you play down to them. I want us to establish a level of play that does not change. They'll play to us."
For a new coach on the edge of his first season at MSU, van de Kerkhof's task is simple.
"I want to create an environment where people see us and say, 'Those Michigan State Spartans, they're awesome!'"
