Ohio State Women’s Soccer Keeps Talent at Home – Ohio State Buckeyes
10/7/1998 12:00:00 AM | Women's Soccer
October 7, 1998
COLUMBUS, Ohio – Home is where the players are.
%^$That’s the battle cry of Ohio State women’s soccer coach Lori Walker as she embarks on her second season in Columbus. Although it may be a secret to many people in the Buckeye state, Ohio is quickly becoming a talent-rich soccer haven. And Walker is committed to keeping that talent close to home.
%^$”Ohio is nationally known as a hotbed of youth soccer,” Walker said. “Cincinnati was recently ranked among the top five cities in the country in terms of the number of girls competing in soccer. The state is definitely producing players. In the last few years, lots of Ohio players have left the state to go to nationally ranked schools. Our goal is to keep them at home and eventually become nationally ranked.”
%^$Nineteen of the 26 players on OSU’s roster entering the 1998 season hail from Ohio. Walker has been forced to fend off recruiters from other schools throughout the nation looking for the next superstar raised on Ohio soil. But she says Ohio State has some distinct advantages that can keep homegrown talent in-state.
%^$”We have an advantage recruiting in-state athletes because they like to stay close to home. Parents also like to see their daughters compete. We are the flagship institution in the state. We have the best facilities, the best athletic environment, and some of the best youth talent in the country, so it just makes sense to bring Ohio’s best to Ohio State.”
%^$To Walker’s delight, OSU’s already superior athletic facilities are getting even better. Next season, the OSU women’s soccer team will call the Jesse Owens Track and Soccer Complex home. The state-of-the-art Complex is being constructed right now behind Bill Davis Stadium, and will feature all the amenities people have grown used to seeing in an OSU facility.
%^$When discussing the plans for the Complex, Walker’s eyes light up and an excited, Christmas-morning tone replaces her usual down-to-business demeanor. She realizes that her underlying plan of recruiting Ohio’s best players will get that much easier with every brick that is laid.
%^$”The tradition of Jesse Owens is really driving the project,” said Walker. “It will give us all kinds of new recruiting opportunities. Even this year with the construction underway, recruits will see it and know it’s going to be there next season. It’s going to be first rate in every way. We’re really creating a great soccer environment.”
%^$The facility will include both grandstand and concourse levels that are elevated above a track that surrounds the soccer field. Concession stands, a working press box, and locker rooms for both home and visiting teams are just a few of the planned elements. Two new soccer practice field are also being installed adjacent to the facility, allowing OSU the versatility of hosting national tournaments and bringing in top-notch competition.
%^$”It will be among the best facilities in the Big Ten,” she added. “We’re expecting bigger crowds, and I’m holding myself personally responsible for increasing our fan base. Winning will bring more people out. We also feel like bringing in Ohio players will lead to the community embracing us.”
%^$With 13 letterwinners returning and just four lost from last year’s 9-9-1 squad, things are headed in the right direction as the 1998 season approaches. However minimal, though, the losses were severe. Jodie Stranges, the only All-American in the five year history of OSU women’s soccer (and an Ohio product by no coincidence), was lost to graduation. Stranges, a three-time first-team all-Big Ten selection, finished second on the team in scoring last year to Tiffany Tisdale – another Buckeye lost to graduation.
%^$Walker is confident, however, that with one full year at OSU now behind her, new key players are ready to emerge.
%^$”I’m very excited about this coming season for lots of reasons,” she said. “Our staff has now been here long enough to implement our own ideas. We were playing extremely well at the end of last season and in the spring. We realize that we’ve lost Jodi Stranges and Tiffany Tisdale, and you don’t replace that caliber of a player overnight, but some upperclassmen have been stepping into their roles.
%^$”I think our team will play more exciting soccer than in the past. We’ll also be sharing the workload. We’ll have different people scoring and we won’t rely on just one or two people. Those are the building blocks for a championship team,” she added.
%^$The development and maturing of a few key players will give OSU a strong midfield this season. Senior Becky Borchers is Ohio State’s leading returning career scorer with 31 points in three years and should be the Buckeyes main scoring threat. Junior Katie Martorella came on strong at the end of last season and impressed the coaching staff even more in spring practice. Katy Traeger, another junior, ranked third on the team in scoring last season despite starting just nine of 19 games. She will take on a bigger role this season and solidify an already experienced midfield.
%^$”Our strength is in the midfield,” Walker noted. “Ironically, that’s where we graduated Jodi Stranges, but Katie Martorella and Becky Borchers were absolutely outstanding late last year and during this spring. Borchers will give us an attacking presence out of the midfield.”
%^$Martorella may also see some time as a defender, joining Maria Jimenez, Ashlee Orr, Amanda Orr, and Tori Moore in the back. Each member of that group started at least 15 games last season, and that experience alone should make of a world of difference.
%^$”Our defense was very green last year. They took a lot of knocks. This year we’ll be much more solid because everyone is returning,” Walker said.
%^$Amber Barnes returns for her second straight season in goal for Ohio State. As only a freshman last year, she played in every game and ranked fifth in the Big Ten with a 1.39 goals against average. Barnes’ future looks bright at OSU, especially with a mentor like Walker to guide her. A graduate of the University of North Carolina in 1994, Walker won an unprecedented three national championships as a goalkeeper with the Tar Heels. She still holds the NCAA Tournament record with a 0.00 goals against average (GAA) and posted a career GAA of 0.41.
%^$”I train the keepers, and I think that can work as both an advantage and a disadvantage,” Walker said. “I am much more critical on them. But they respect my criticism and it helps them develop a level of confidence. Amber and I have really clicked. She understands her role and what I expect out of her – no less than 120 percent all the time.”
%^$Walker came to Ohio State after spending two years at the University of Kansas, where she was the first coach in the program’s history. The transition to OSU has been smooth.
%^$”It is a tremendous athletic department with unlimited and unmatched resources,” she said. “It is also an institution that is extremely strong academically. We have a great relationship on our team with the academic environment. We have all the tools here for a young woman to succeed.”
%^$And make no mistake, young women from the soccer-rich Buckeye state are encouraged to apply.
