Weekly Release #13

NCAA Run
The 1998 Michigan women's soccer season came to an end Sunday, Nov. 15, in South Bend, Ind., with a 3-0 loss to No. 4 Notre Dame. U-M opened the tournament with a 4-2 win over Xavier on Wednesday, Nov. 11, at the Michigan Soccer Field. This season saw the Wolverines advance to the NCAA Tournament second round for the first time in school history. Michihgan has now played in two NCAA Tournaments (1997, 1998). U-M holds a 1-2 all-time record in the NCAA's and is 1-0 at home.

Shutouts
Over the course of the year, Wolverine keepers posted six shutouts, one short of the season high of seven set in 1996. Michigan was shut out five times, including Sunday at Notre Dame. Last year the Wolverines were only shut out twice. In four of the five seasons, U-M has been shut out at least five times.

On the Year
Here is a brief look at how Michigan fared against its opponents in the major statistical categories:

 Category U-M Opp. Shots 280 231 Goals 41 25 Assists 28 18 Points 110 68 Game-Winning Goals 14 7 Saves 120 148 Goals Against 25 40 Goals-Against Average 1.09 1.74 Shutouts 6 5

Season Leaders
Here is a look at the Wolverines' team leaders in the major statistical categories:

Shots:

Goals:

Assists:

Points:

Game-Winning Goals:

Amber Berendowsky

Saves:

Carissa Stewart

Goals Against:

Jessica Jones

Goals-Against Average:

Carissa Stewart

Shutouts:

Carissa Stewart

Against Ranked Opponents
U-M battled nine ranked opponents this season, including two matches with perennial Final Four participant Notre Dame. The Wolverines posted a 2-6-1 record against the Top 25, including a 1-2-1 mark at the Michigan Soccer Field. Their two victories came against No. 16 Indiana 2-0 at the Michigan Soccer Field on Oct. 9 and 1-0 over No. 16 Northwestern on Nov. 6 in the opening round of the Big Ten Tournament.

Berendowsky and the Record Books
Amber Berendowsky (Brighton, Mich./Brighton HS) continued her assault on the Michigan record book in 1998. The junior forward broke Ruth Poulin's (1994-97) school record of 32 career goals in 1998 and now owns every career and season offensive school record, with career marks for goals (36), assists (28), points (100) and game-winning goals (11) and season records, set in 1997, for goals (18), assists (17), points (53) and game-winning goals (6).

More Berendowsky
With her assist on Jessica Limauro's (Troy, Mich./Troy HS) goal in the Big Ten Tournament semifinal against Penn State, Amber Berendowsky recorded her 100th career point at Michigan.

Frosh Contributions
The future appears bright for Michigan as three freshmen received a good deal of playing time and made significant contributions throughout the year. Laurie Peterson (Del Mar, Calif./Del Mar HS) scored three goals, Nancy Mather (Atlanta, Ga./Westminster HS) recorded one assist and Alissa Shaw (West Carrollton, Ohio/West Carrollton HS) tallied one goal.

14 Wins
The win total of 14 was the second-highest ever by the Michigan women's soccer program. Last year's team totaled 18, which is the school record for wins in a season.

Farewell to Seniors
The Wolverines will look to replace six seniors from this team: Jessica Limauro, Kristin Buckley (Bowie, Md./St. Mary's HS), Carrie Brady (Westlake, Ohio/Magnificat HS), Bethany Greenblatt (Salem, Mass./Salem HS), Vanessa Lewis (Dover, N.J./Morris Catholic) and Jessica Jones (Northville, Mich./Northville HS).

Wolverine Soccer Quick Facts

1998 Record
Overall: 14-7-1 (.659)
Big Ten: 5-3-1
Home: 7-3-1
Away: 6-4-0
Neutral: 1-0-0

Head Coach
Debbie Belkin (Massachusetts, 1988)
Overall Coaching Record (7th year): 78-47-12 (.613)
At U-M (5th year): 60-36-8 (.615)
Big Ten (5th year): 17-18-4 (.487)

Assistant Coaches
Carrie Maier (Wisconsin, 1995)
Scott Forrester (Western Michigan, 1985)

1998 Co-Captains
Jessica Jones (Sr./GK/Northville, Mich.)
Shannon Poole (Jr./MF/Troy, Mich.)

Michigan History
All Time: 60-36-8, (.615) (5 years, 1994-present)
U-M Soccer Field: 24-10-4, (.684) (4 years / 1995 - present)
NCAA Tourney: 1997, 1998 (1-2, .333)

Contact: Jeff Conrad (734) 763-4423