Section B · Page 10
The University Daily Kansan
Friday, September 10, 1999
Members of the KU women's club soccer team, Katharine Stroupe, Olathe junior, and Lauren Heyward, Leavard senior, practice their ball-handling skills in Tuesday's practice. The team is looking forward to its upcoming season and the help that new members can provide. Photo by Nick Krug/KANSAN
Women's soccer fame boosts KU club team
Players compete have good time
By Jason Walker sports@kansan.com Kansan sportswriter
After the U.S. women's soccer team won the World Cup this summer, the sport of women's soccer was thrust into the lime-light for the first time. Little girls all across the country began booting soccer balls around in their backyards, and participation in youth leagues is bigger than ever.
For women's soccer fans at Kansas, they have two choices of teams to watch play: the varsity team and the club team. While the varsity team gets most of the attention, the club team has been successful the last few years.
"Last year we went 8-1-1 in our area," said Lauren Heyward, Leawood senior and midfielder. "We were invited to the national tournament at Georgia Southern."
The Kansas club team doesn't belong to a set league but plays teams from schools around the area such as Kansas State, Missouri, Nebraska, Wichita State and Drake. They also don't have a coach, so the players have to set up dates and sites for their games. While this leads to a more laid-back atmosphere, these women still come ready to play.
"It's relaxed but still very competitive," said Heyward. "We sure want to win, and we have won a lot around this area."
Carlisle Bell, Wichita senior and midfielder, said the team was looking forward to this season.
"We want to have fun," she said. "But at the same time continue to get better and be a challenging team to play."
Last year, the women played in a tournament at Clemson and found out there was some pretty stiff competition out there.
"It was an invite-only tournament," said Katherine Stroupe, Olathe senior and midfielder. "And the competition was really tough."
Bell said the teams they faced from the East Coast tend to be better because of the intensity level with which they approach the game.
"They are so dedicated," she said. "Some of those teams practice every day. Plus, some of the schools we played don't have a varsity team, so the top players from that school have to play on the club team."
The Kansas club team is expecting about 40 women to try out this year, and Heyward said the experience level of the team members usually varies.
"We get some girls that have varsity experience," she said. "And some who have played for a long time. Usually they played varsity before and wanted a more relaxed atmosphere, or played in high school and just didn't want to give it up."
Stroupe said that she couldn't imagine not being able to play soccer anymore.
"I've been playing since second grade," she said. "When it's a part of your life for so long, you just can't quit."
Heyward said she had been
playing since she was in kindergarten, or the better part of 18 years.
"I don't know if I could just quit cold turkey," she said.
While the Kansas women's team has had its share of success, that success does come with a price tag. Recreation Services gives the team a certain amount of money, but the rest of their money for travel expenses and equipment has to come from fund raisers.
Stroupe said the team was hoping to have a fund raiser that would help women's soccer grow in the Lawrence area.
"We are thinking about holding a camp for young girls this fall," she said. "We'd probably have one for (grades) K-3 and then 4-7."
Bell said that she wanted to teach young girls that soccer is a lot of fun.
"I want them more than anything to have a good time," she said. "And that it can be really worthwhile to put time and effort into getting better."
The team also is planning to go see the U.S. women's team play Finland at Arrowhead Stadium in Kansas City on Oct. 7. Stroupe said that the success and popularity of the U.S. team has done so much for the women's game.
"it's phenomenal," she said. "They've been so good for all these years but now are finally getting noticed."
Bell said watching the U.S. Women's World Cup team was one of the highlights of her summer.
"It it was the most amazing thing that could have happened for women's sports," she said. "I definitely want to see them play and hopefully get to meet them."
Extreme sports growing quickly
Edited by Katrina Hull
Continued from page 1B
Both DeVictor and ice made it clear that their desire was to provide Lawrence with facilities that would suit not only today's minority, but have the capacity also to be used by a new majority of skateboarders and in-line skaters in the future.
Ice said that this trend of improving and expanding on facilities wasn't about to slow down.
"One thing that we would like to see accomplished is the building of an indoor roller hockey facility." he said.
Other projects being considered included a competitive aspect to the existing facilities.
"That would be one advantage of the roller hockey facility, we could use an alternative sport that is becoming popular, and add to it teamwork and maybe park district-sponsored teams." Ice said.
It is the lack of competitiveness that keeps some athletes from becoming too involved and keeps them content with playing an alternative sport as a hobby.
Sean Mongey, St. Louis sophomore, lettered in three sports throughout high school. Mongey said that he would never give up a team sport in exchange for skating.
"I enjoyed the competitive aspects and the teamwork," he said. "Roller blading
and biking don't offer that, they're more of a hobby."
Wazienski used to play soccer and skateboard, but he quit soccer because he liked the individual aspect of skating.
"It's all my fault if I mess up, but if I do good, it's more rewarding," he said.
Whatever the individual's motive is, alternative sports have become more popular, as evidenced by such events as the X-Games and Lawrence's construction of new sports facilities
Lawrence Parks and Recreation hired an outside firm to conduct a comprehensive study of the city's sports facilities within the next month or two. The findings of the firm would be made available to the public during town meetings.
"We urge the people to come out and speak for what they want." Ice said. "If we only are going to get conventional people to come out and voice their opinion then we will only get conventional results — like more ball-fields."
Edited by Chris Hopkins
"We urge the people to come out and speak for what they want. If we only are going to get conventional people to come out and voice their opinion then we will only get conventional results like more ball fields."
Lee Ice Lawrence youth sports director
Marques Shadden, 16-year-old Shawnee resident, attempts to nosegrind down the handrail. Marques and his friends are pleased with the set-up of the Lawrence skate park.
Photo by Jay Soldern/KANSAN
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