Then-junior forward Laura Heyboer fights for possession of the ball with Northwestern defenseman Ally Arca on Oct. 17 of last year. In a 3-2 loss Friday, Heyboer became the Spartans’ all-time leading scorer with her goal in the second half.
With one of the deepest teams in the history of the program, MSU women’s soccer will look to start its season off strongly this weekend.
The Spartans open their season with an exhibition match against Eastern Michigan at 5 p.m., Saturday in Ypsilanti, Mich. With the season home opener fast approaching — Aug. 19 at DeMartin Stadium at Old College Field against UW-Milwaukee — the exhibition will serve as an important preseason tune-up for MSU.
“(We’ll) start to figure out a playing group going into the home opener against Wisconsin-Milwaukee, and also it’s almost two games within a game,” said women’s soccer head coach Tom Saxton, who’s going into his 21st year in the position. “I think in any sport, more preseasons are like this, where we’re going to look at what our newcomers can do in game situations.”
The Spartans will look to build on their 2010 season, where the team finished 9-6-4 overall including a record of 3-4-3 in the Big Ten. The team also found success against Eastern Michigan in 2010, coming away with an early-season 4-0 victory at DeMartin Stadium at Old College Field.
Leading the way on the offensive side of the ball will be senior forward Laura Heyboer, junior forward Olivia Stander and sophomore defender Annie Steinlage.
The three-time All-American Heyboer notched a team-best 10 goals in 2010 and comes into the new season tied for first in program history for all-time scoring (39). Stander also was impressive recording eight goals in 2010, including two game-winners on the season.
Heyboer and Stander along with senior midfielder Mikki Dennis and junior defensive midfielder Kelsey Kassab each netted goals in MSU’s last matchup against the Eagles.
“We have been scrimmaging a lot so far, and things are looking good so far,” Heyboer said. “As for myself personally, I’m just looking forward to going out and playing again. It feels good to be back here with my teammates and best friends.”
Despite losing key defenders Courtney Shegos and Sam Cook to graduation, the team is confident with the lineup it has and has insurance in the net with experienced senior goalkeeper Jill Flietstra. In her three seasons at MSU, Flietstra has been a staple between the pipes, ranking first in program history in career GAA (.74) and third in career shutouts (18).
In 2010, Flietstra faced few shots against Eastern Michigan, having to make just three saves in 90 minutes of play.
“I expect a lot out of this team,” Flietstra said. “We have a lot of experience coming back and some new kids coming in. So far, they’ve shown that they can handle themselves on the field.”
The Spartans will open up Big Ten play near the end of September and will look to best rivals Michigan (Oct. 12), No. 13 Penn State (Oct. 21) and Ohio State (Oct. 23) in route to competing for a Big Ten championship. The program’s last Big Ten title came after a 12-5-2 season in 1994.
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