Junior Spartans Team Outlooks
Team outlooks
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FOOTBALL
VOLLEYBALL
MEN'S SOCCER
WOMEN'S SOCCER
GOLF
CROSS COUNTRY
FOOTBALL
San Jose State University hopes the momentum from a pair of 2005 end of season victories serves as a springboard to greater accomplishments in 2006 and the program’s first winning season since 2000. Head coach Dick Tomey, entering his second season with the Spartans, has 38 returning letterwinners and 18 returning redshirts from a team that finished with a 3-8 overall record and a 2-6 mark that tied for sixth place in the Western Athletic Conference standings. “We won the turnover battle 6-1 in the last two games. If we can do that during the season and have a great kicking game, then I like our chances,” says the San Jose State head coach. We are excited about the fall. Our guys were stronger this spring than they were a year ago. I think they’ll be stronger this fall, because our strength and conditioning program has been upgraded enormously.
Though the Spartans return only two starters from a defensive unit that gave up 112 fewer points in 2005 compared to 2004 and its fewest total points since 2000, Tomey believes the defense can show more improvement and continued progress this season. “We will be better on defense because we have been doing the same things for 18 months. We are going to be in better condition, quicker, stronger, more responsible, and more comfortable with the scheme,” says Tomey. Offensively, San Jose State returns four-fifths of its starting line from 2005 that allowed the fewest quarterback sacks in the WAC. The Spartans created more competition at quarterback in the spring by signing Sean Flynn, third in the California Community College system in total offense last year, to compete for the number one job with returning starter Adam Tafralis and redshirt freshmen returnees Chad Bozzo and Myles Eden. “ We are much improved at the quarterback position. Adam is better. Sean Flynn makes the position much more competitive. Myles and Chad will upgrade the position, too. So we are much better at quarterback,” according to the Spartans’ head Coach.
In 2006, San Jose State has an unprecedented seven home games with four against WAC foes. After the season opener at Washington, the Spartans play four home games in a row before returning to the road action. “The schedule is a tremendous schedule for our team, our fans and our football program. We have an opportunity to play at home more than any San Jose team has had, comments Tomey whose team has rivalry games at home with Stanford, San Diego State and Fresno State. “The WAC is getting better all the time. I think it will be much more competitive than it has ever been.”
VOLLEYBALL
The San Jose State volleyball team enters the 2006 season with lots of court experience as all sixstarters and the libero return from last season’s squad. After a youthful 2005 season, this year’s Spartan team should have the court experience to compete among the top teams in the Western AthleticConference. “Last year’s starting lineup was one of the youngest I have had in my coaching career,” said San Jose State head coach Craig Choate. “The experience that our team got on the court playing together last season should be an advantage for us this year.”
Junior Jennifer Senftleben leads the returning class after being named a first team All-WAC selection last season. She led the team in kills with 469, the eighth highest total in a season at San Jose State. She averaged 4.15 kills and 2.32 digs per game. Senior libero Jessie Shull returns for her fourth season to anchor the Spartan defense. The three-time All-WAC selection (first team once, second team twice) is the San Jose State career dig leader with 1,584 in three seasons. Sophomore Colleen Burke played in all 29 matches last season. She led the team in hitting with a .269 percentage. A WAC All-Freshman team selection, Burke averaged 3.03 kills and 0.65 blocks per game. Sophomore Brittany Collet was the Spartans’ starting setter for a majority of the season. She averaged 11.48 assists and 2.00 digs per game and was selected to the WAC All-Freshman team.
Sophomore Niki Clement led San Jose State in blocks with 96 in 108 games played (0.89 pg). She recorded 10 or more blocks in two matches 11 against Fresno State and 10 at San Francisco. Senior Dyana Thompson averaged 1.18 kills and 0.85 blocks per game. She recorded a career high 12 blocks at San Francisco and hit .611 at Santa Clara. Senior Kristina Conrad saw action at outside hitter, the back row and at setter. She averaged 2.48 kills and 1.84 digs per match and had the only 20/20 match last year with 20 kills and 20 digs at UC Davis Junior Nia Freeman played in 83 games and averaged 1.71 kills and 1.24 digs. She hit .625 against Portland with a career high 20 kills. Also returning for the Spartans are Amber Biddle, Sarah Christensen, Courtney Lorusso and Thao Pham. Biddle saw limited action in 13 games and had four kills and four blocks at Idaho. Christensen missed last season due to a knee injury. Lorusso redshirted last season and could see time at outside hitter. Pham joined the team late last season and could see action in the back row.
Three newcomers join the Spartan squad and bring different experiences with them to the court. Junior outside hitter Keri Anglin played in 2004 at Loyola Marymount and last season at Sacramento City College. She was an All-Big 7 selection last year and the Northern Section “Female Athlete of the Year” for the 2003-04 high school year. Sophomore outside hitter Kelly Crow transferred from UC Riverside where she spent the past two seasons. After redshirting in 2004, Crow saw action in 74 games last year for the Highlanders. Crow’s mother, the former Jan Baszak, played at San Jose State in the late 1970s. Freshman defensive specialist Kristal Tsukano was a three-year letterwinner at Kamehameha High School in Honolulu. She helped lead her team to the 2005 Hawaii Division I State Championship and was a two-time second team All-State selection. San Jose State will travel from coast to coast this season for matches. The team travels to Northern Arizona, San Francisco and New Hampshire for tournaments. The Spartans will host Santa Clara, a 2005 NCAA Tournament semifinalist, and the SJSU Hyatt Invitational at Spartan Gym before beginning WAC play.
MEN’S SOCCER
The 2006 San Jose State University men’s soccer team will look to further improve on a 2005 season in which the Spartans went 11-5-3 and fell just short of their first NCAA Tournament berth since 2003. To do this, head coach Gary St. Clair will rely on a number of new players, seeking to replace seven starters. “This is going to be a year of opportunity for our younger players,” says St. Clair. “We are going to have a lot of new faces on the field, and it is going to be on-the-job training for the most part. We have some very good young players, but we are fairly inexperienced in a number of key areas. How well our younger players perform this season, will determine how well we do in the conference. “The (Mountain Pacific Sports Federation) is extremely strong again. I believe this is one of the tougher conferences across the country, it should be so again. Every team in the league has improved themselves. It’s going to be very difficult for us, as it is every year, to win the conference championship, but that’s always what we are interested in doing.”
FORWARDS
The 2006 Spartans will have the tall order of replacing 26 of the 31 goals they produced a year ago. “When I say that this is the year of opportunity for our players, it probably means more for those guys up top than anywhere else,” comments St. Clair. The goal-scoring hopefuls begin with El Shaddai Bent, a redshirt freshman who stood out in the spring. Savio Carrijo, one of three Brazilians on the Spartan roster, is a very creative player who is expected to see an increase in playing time after appearing in six games in 2005. Julio Gonzalez is a junior who also impressed during the spring season. “If this trio plays well, that would solve a lot of our early-season concerns,” adds St. Clair.
MIDFIELDERS The most experienced part of the Spartan lineup in 2006 will be themidfield group, where senior captains Daniel Perez and Diego Soto return. Perez has started on and off for the past three years, while Soto started 18 games in his first season in an SJSU uniform in 2005 and earned All-MPSF Honorable Mention. “Our midfielders are going to have to win the ball and provide an awful lot of attacking as well,” says St. Clair. “It’s going to be a very important line for us.” Hiroki Akiyama is a 2005 walk-on who came on mid-season and started seven games on the right side. The native of Japan can play on either wing or in the middle, and score goals from midfield. Nathan Flowers and Matt Schembri, a pair of 2005 redshirts, will provide pace on the right and left, respectively. Fifth-year senior Patrick Scheufler, limited by injuries over the years, and Guilherme Fadlalla, in his second year in the program, could be keys.
DEFENDERS
The defense will be anchored by the returning sophomore tandem of co-captain Ed Brand, from England, and Gavin Wenyon, who will be switching from the right side to the left in 2006. Both earned all-conference mention a year ago. “He is a very experienced and knowledgeable player. He and Gavin Wenyon have to have a good year for us. We have to be a very tight, very smart back-line, because we don’t know where our goals are going to come from this year.” Brian McGuire, a 2005 redshirt who played extensively in the spring, looks to have the inside track for the right-back position. That leaves a handful of players vying to start alongside Brand in the center of defense, led by Ben Saunders, Keven Azevedo and Sam Shore from Australia.
GOALKEEPERS
Redshirt sophomore Richard Mann returns for his second season as the starting Spartan goalkeeper. Mann posted four shutouts and a goals-against-average of 1.13 to earn All-MPSF Honorable Mention in 2005. Rodrigo Baptista, who played at Foothill College in 2002 and 2003, and is the only other goalkeeper currently on the Spartan roster. “We are thin but experienced,” remarks St. Clair about the goalie position. “Richard Mann has a chance to really prove himself as one of the top goalkeepers on the West Coast this year.The keys for him are staying healthy and continuing the improvement that he has shown the last two years.”
WOMEN’S SOCCER
The 2006 San Jose State University women’s soccer team will be looking to further the improvement the Spartans have shown under head coach Dave Siracusa over his first two years at the helm of the program. San Jose State has posted overall records of 5-13-1 in 2004 and 6-12-3 in 2005, following a 2-16 2003 season prior to Siracusa’s arrival. The Spartans concluded 2005 with a 6-2-1 run and an appearance in the championship game of the Western Athletic Conference Tournament, falling one game short of advancing to the NCAA Tournament. They finished second in the regular-season WAC standings with a 4-2-1 mark. Heading into Siracusa’s third year, San Jose State now has its sights set on a first winning season since 1999, and an NCAA Tournament berth. “Our expectations this year are defined by the second part of our season last year,” says Siracusa. Our team chemistry is one big strength of this team. If we use that, we should do well. The conference is stronger this year, with a solid top-four of Hawai’i Fresno State, Nevada and us.”
FORWARDS
San Jose State increased its number of goals scored from 19 in 2004 to 29 a season ago. The Spartans will look to their sophomore tandem of Jessica Scott and Liz Behlen to lead the charge in 2006. Scott produced five goals in her first collegiate season. Her 55 shots were the most by a Spartan since 1997. Behlen led the team with eight goals, including six in seven WAC games, en route to first-team All-WAC and “Freshman of the Year” recognition. The Spartans have a number of other options up top. Senior tri-captains Cynthia Pinkney and Nicole Martinez will provide much-needed leadership to a young Spartan squad. Junior Heidi Romswinckel-Guise, sophomore Kelly Madej and incoming freshmen Katie Bonadies, Roxy Kamal and Mollyrose McBride, will vie for playing time at the forward positions.
MIDFIELDERS
The midfield area will see one key position change for the Spartans, with junior Jackie Cruz, who anchored the central defense in starting all 21 games in 2005, moving her high technical ability forward into the midfield. “The holding midfield position is a competitive spot this year,” notes Siracusa. “With both starters back in Jennifer Guadagnolo and Jackie Zabek, and Cruz there, it is a strong position and a key spot for us. All three are good in the air.”Nicole Irwin, who received the most votes among midfielders in earning first-team All-WAC selection a year ago, returns as an attacking central midfielder. “She can dominate games,” says Siracusa. Outside midfield also features returning players Kristin Krale, senior tri-captain Cristin Murphy and Martinez. Tasha Van Dixhorn and Angela Dohrmann are coming off of injuries. Lauren Moniz is another returnee in the mix. The group of incoming freshmen includes former Olympic Development Program national-pool player Hallsie Pacheco, Natalie Malone, walk-on Mayra Cruz and Kamal.
DEFENDERS
Like the midfield, the Spartan defense is expected to have a position change heading into the start of the campaign. Brittny Beshore, who started 15 games as a freshman a year ago, is moving from the right to the left side. Junior Heather Oranje has the inside track at a center back position, with the departure of Jackie Cruz into the midfield. Romswinckel-Guise may be another option in the center after getting a look there during the spring. A number of players are vying for the starting spot on the right side, including Erica Ng-Pinkerton, Kaila Waitley and Amanda Villa.
GOALKEEPERS
Siracusa will keep three goalkeepers on the 2006 roster, who between them, have no Division I game experience heading into the campaign. The departures of seniors Adrienne Herbst and Erin Lavey give a pair of redshirt freshmen, Marissa Dayton and Kelsea Scott, an opportunity to battle for the starting role, alongside Nina Butera, an incoming freshman out of nearby Presentation High School. “This is an untested spot,” remarks Siracusa.
GOLF
WOMEN’S GOLF
The San Jose State University women's golf team returns for the 2006-07 season as the defending Western Athletic Conference champion. The Spartans will feature a lineup with three returning all-conference golfers. Jenelle Gomez, a junior from San Jose, won the individual title at last year's WAC Championship. Sirapa Kasemsamran was the 2006 WAC "Freshman of the Year." Erica Moston is the third returning Spartan who earned all-conference recognition last season.
MEN’S GOLF
The 2006-07 San Jose State University men's golf team will feature a blend of capable veterans and talented newcomers. The Spartans finished third at the Western Athletic Conference championship and look forward to a strong season starting in the fall and going through the spring. Aaron Conrad and Matt Montez, a pair of juniors, are the top returning team members.
CROSS COUNTRY
MEN’S CROSS COUNTRY
The 2006 men’s cross country team seeks continued progress after a 2005 season in which the Spartans improved in four races from the previous year. Most significantly, San Jose finished fifth at last year’s Western Athletic Conference Championship. Head coach, Augie Argabright feels that this team is set for a breakout season and has a good chance to be in the top three at the conference championship meet. The Spartans are led by returning team captain, Mobin Ghoury. After recording the best WAC Championship finish by a San Jose State male runner. Ghoury returns as a first team All-WAC selection. Argabright believes that this team will establish a new benchmark of success for future Spartan teams. “This team should get better as the season progresses. This is especially true for the freshmen who will get stronger in running longer distances.”
WOMEN’S CROSS COUNTRY
Coming off one of its most successful seasons in recent years, the team has lofty goals for 2006. With a pair of returning all conference performers, eight more letterwinners and a group of newcomers eager to race regularly, the Spartans are expecting big things in competition and in the classroom. San Jose State had a conference best 10 runners named to the academic All- WAC team. “This should be the best cross country team in Spartan history. This team could be able to overcome schools like Utah State and Idaho, teams with track and field that results in more scholarship runners for them,” said head coach Augie Argabright. “Seeing the entire team compete and trying to make each other better is what makes coaching this team so much fun,” said Argabright.