MANHATTAN, Kan. (8/13/21) — The University of Wyoming soccer team opens its season Sunday on the road. The Cowgirls travel to Kansas State for a 12 p.m. exhibition match at Buser Family Park.
The game represents a new chapter of Cowgirl soccer. It marks head coach
Colleen Corbin's first as a head coach after she made her way to Laramie this summer following a three-year stint as the associate head coach at James Madison University.
Corbin and her coaching staff have utilized the last week and a half of official practices to instill their philosophies and mentalities. Sunday affords the Cowgirls the opportunity to implement all that hard work against a foe.
"It's an opportunity for us to learn, and it's an opportunity for the girls to put into action all the things we've been talking about the last week and a half," Corbin said. "We are 100 percent focusing on us and our group and our team and what we need to focus on because win lose or draw, we will learn something and come back and adjust and then look forward."
The Cowgirls are coming off an abbreviated spring season due to COVID-19. They went 2-7 in a Mountain West Conference-only schedule.
The season began well with a 1-0 home victory over Utah State. The back half of the schedule was highlighted by a dominant 3-0 win at Colorado State.
Wyoming will look to sprinkle in a few more wins this fall. That effort will be aided by the fact that the Cowgirls return nine starters to go alongside its talented batch of newcomers.
Senior defender
Savannah Warner comes back as the leading goal scorer. She had a team-high two goals on three shots a season ago.
Warner's 813 minutes played in the spring were the most by any player. Junior midfielder
Jamie Tatum and sophomore defender
Ashley Bahr return to round out the top three in minutes played, as they participated in 665 and 645 minutes, respectively.
Tatum found the back of the net once in the spring to go with her one assist. Sophomore forward
Nikayla Copenhaver also had a score and an assist, while fellow sophomore forward
Alyssa Bedard registered a one-goal season as well.
Kansas State competed in the fall and spring last season. The Wildcats went 3-9-2 overall and 0-3-2 during the spring slate.
Brooklynn Entz returns for the Wildcats after tallying a team-high seven goals. Three different players started at goalie for Kansas State, led by Alaina Werremeyer who made eight starts and allowed 18 goals with 42 saves.
"It's exciting. There's definitely differences between the Big 12 and the Mountain West, and it's not good or bad, it's just different," Corbin said. "It's always good to experience different. Adversity is what grows you as an individual and as a team and as a staff. We want to seek those opportunities and invite them because we don't get better unless we put ourselves in those situations."
Following the match in Manhattan, Wyoming will return home and open the regular season with three straight matches at the Madrid Sports Complex. The home stand begins with Colorado School of Mines on Aug. 20 before games against University of Nebraska at Omaha on Aug. 26 and the University of South Dakota on Aug. 29.
