The Rocket

Issue date: 9/7/07 Section: Sports

[Click to enlarge]

Media Credit: Nate Daymut Slippery Rock junior midfielder Meggie Howard ( No. 22) shakes off an Edinboro defender during second half action in Thursday's 2-1 victory. Edinboro came into the game undefeated and ranked No. 3 in the region and No. 20 nationally. [Click to enlarge]

As the September temperatures continue to get hotter, so does the SRU women's soccer team.

The Rock continued its brilliant start to the season, knocking off Shippensburg, Clarion and nationally ranked Edinboro to move to 5-0 overall and 3-0 in Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference-West play.

The Rock also moved atop the National Soccer Coaches' Association of America Northeast Regional Poll and climbed to No. 7 in the NSCAA's Division II national poll, its highest national rank since the Oct. 5, 2004, when SRU held the No. 3 spot.

SRU coach Noreen Herlihy said that while it is great exposure for the program, a national ranking means nothing at this point.

"We have not accomplished anything yet, and I keep reminding the girls of that," Herlihy said. "It is still early in the season and we have a long way to go. Rankings won't win you games."

Last Saturday SRU knocked off PSAC-East foe Shippensburg 5-3, a game in which the young Rock defense made a few mental errors.

"We made some mistakes in the back, but we never really felt like we were going to lose," Herlihy said. "Again we have to remember that we have an entirely new defensive back four with the exception of Alexis Chiani, so it is just going to take a little time to find our groove, but we are improving every game."

In the victory over Shippensburg, Danielle Cooper scored two goals and Meghan McGrath added a pair of assists, as the scoring tandem once again came up big for the Rock, but Herlihy pointed to her role players and her bench as the key to the game.

"It just shows the level of talent and depth that we have on this team," Herlihy said. "We are getting great efforts from everybody. Mallory (Neubert) is coming in and playing strong, so is Shelly Regner. It is great to see that I can put anyone in and nothing changes, and as a coach, that is what you want."

The Rock then took out Clarion, 2-0, in Monday's PSAC-West clash, which set the stage for yesterday's showdown with Edinboro.

"We certainly played a lot better defensively at Clarion," Herlihy said. "Clarion is a solid team and it was good for us to come out with a win."

The Rock's 2-1 victory over Edinboro may very well become the benchmark for the season. The Rock and Edinboro have become fierce rivals over that past few seasons and last night's game was nothing different.

"This is not a friendly rivalry, there is definitely no love lost between the two teams," Herlihy said. "We don't really like each other and both sides know that."

The Rock entered Thursday's game without goalie Jen McCormick, who fractured her hand late in the second half of Saturday's win over Shippensburg.

"That is a big loss because Jen is such a good player," Herlihy said. "She will be out for a while, but Lauren (McManus) and Sarah Lacy have both played well this year and will do a fine job back there. It is a great asset that we have three excellent keepers on this team."

McGrath once again was the star, scoring both goals in Thursday's win. Her two tallies brought her team-leading total to five, to go along with three assists.

"Every time Meg steps out on to the field, we know great things are going to happen," Herlihy said. "She just knows what to do with the ball whenever she gets it at her feet."

The Rock will look to remain undefeated on the year when it travels to Kutztown for a PSAC crossover game Saturday at noon before returning home to face PSAC-West foe Lock Haven on Wednesday.

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