Coyotes sign seven for women's soccer

Cal State San Bernardino’s women’s soccer team made solid strides in 2007 under interim head coach Diego Bocanegra, posting an 8-8-4 record after three straight losing seasons, and the coach is hoping to continue that upward trend in the fall of 2008.

To do that, Bocanegra, who has since shed the interim tag and is now THE head coach, has recruited seven players that he thinks will bolster the team’s ability to play better than .500 ball but also compete for post-season play in the highly-competitive CCAA conference.

The team’s last post-season appearance was in 2003.

Eighteen members of last year’s team plus redshirts turned out for non-traditional spring season drills, including leading scorer and all-CCAA second team pick Katie Liby,  second-team all-CCAA goalkeeper Leslie Rhodes, and defender Ashley Salas, a CCAA honorable mention.

The seven recruits that have signed to play at CSUSB in 2008 are:

n                          Kristina Gomez, a forward or outside midfielder from Arrowhead Christian Academy in Redlands where she was first team all-CIF Southern Section three times and a member of the 2005 CIF champion team. She was first-team all-league all four years and the league MVP in 2006-07. Her focus of study will be business administration.

n                          Casey Hirsch, a central midfielder from Esperanza High School in Yorba Linda where she was second-team all-CIF Southern Section this past season and first-team all Sunset League on a team that was ranked No. 2 in the nation and No. 2 in the Southern Section. She served as team captain. She was the team’s offensive player of the year in 2006-07, the year the team reached the CIF semifinals. Her team won Sunset League titles in 2005-06 and 2007-08. She plans to major in business.

n                          Mackenzie Dill, an outside midfielder/forward from Los Osos High School in Rancho Cucamonga, member of the 2007-08 Baseline League champion team. She was first-team all-league in 2006-07 and 2007-08 and an honorable mention in 2005-06. She plans to major in nursing. Her team went 17-5-5 in 2007-08.

n                          Jaclyn Clark, a central midfielder-defender from Los Osos High School and teammate of Dill, who also wants to major in nursing. She earned second-team all-Baseline League in 2007-08 scoring two goals and assisting on six others. The team was 9-0-1 in the league under coaches Joe Kulm and Matt Stevenson, both former CSUSB men’s soccer players.

n                          Jalissa Kluz, a defender from Rancho Cucamonga High School who earned first-team all-Baseline League in 2007-08 and second-team honors in 2006-07, was the team’s defensive MVP and captain for two years. She will major in education.

n                          Nina King, a central midfielder from Redlands High School where she was first-team all-Citrus Belt League in 2007-08. She scored nine goals and had three assists during the season. She has not declared a major.

n                          Ashley Cabrera, a defender from St. Lucy’s Priory in Glendora, a soccer travel ball player who did not compete for her high school. She plans to major in kinesiology.

The Coyotes will get an early indication of far they’ve come when they face Seattle Pacific University on Aug. 28 in the season-opener. The Falcons were 23-1 in 2007, losing their bid for a perfect season and a national title in the NCAA semifinals. Coach Chuck Sekyra was named the NCAA Division II Coach of the Year.

CSUSB will face another Great Northwest Athletic Conference team, Saint Martin’s, on Aug. 30 in Seattle.

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FUND-RAISER NOTE – The women’s soccer team will host a benefit golf tournament on Friday, April 18, at Sierra Lakes Golf Course in Fontana. Entry fee is $195 per golfer. A shotgun start is planned for 1 p.m. followed by dinner at 5:30 p.m. For more information, contact Coach Bocanegra at 909-537-7232 or email him at dbocaneg@csusb.edu