Summer of 2010 is filled with many opportunities for players of all ages to learn and play the game of soccer. Immigrant children have the chance to participate in the Minnesota Thunder Plus program where they learn valuable skills on and off the playing field. Youth players can sign up for day camps this summer through the Minnesota Thunder Academy in order to sharpen their abilities for upcoming soccer seasons. Plus, young girls have the opportunity to practice, perform, and perfect their talents with the University of Minnesota women's soccer team.
Minnesota is the place to be for soccer this summer, especially since Buzz Lagos' son, Manny Lagos, is coaching the NSC Minnesota Stars (Minnesota's new professional soccer team). With events like the World Cup, soccer is the most popular sport in the world, and there is no better way to spend a hot summer day playing, learning, or watching soccer.
In Minnesota, summer is about at its half way point through the season. The State Fair is at the end of August, and then, school starts back up in September for most kids. However, it is not too late to attend some sporting events. The University of Minnesota women's soccer schedule is now available online. Looking at who they play, this could be their toughest season. The Gophers will play twelve games on the road compared to only eight at Elizabeth Lyle Robbie Stadium in St. Paul, Minnesota.
Their toughest test will be the beginning of the season when they play four non-conference teams on the road including Notre Dame (season opener) on August 20, Vanderbilt, Western Kentucky, and Belmont. Notre Dame reached the national semifinal, but they lost to national champion North Carolina. The fighting Irish have nine of their starters from last season. Vanderbilt, from the SEC, has ten starters coming back and had a record of 11-8-1 in 2009. Western Kentucky, from the Sun Belt Conference, will play Minnesota on August 29. They finished second in their conference with 14 wins, 4 losses, and 2 draws. The Gophers will finish the six day road trip in Nashville, Tennessee, facing Belmont out of the Atlantic Sun conference where they finished second with ten wins and only allowing sixteen goals last season.
Minnesota has little to worry about because all eleven starters from 2009 are returning from a phenomenal season. They finished fourth in the Big Ten with a record of 12-5-3, but they just missed the NCAA tournament having the best RPI of any team that did not make it.
The Gophers' home opener in St. Paul will be Friday, September 3, against the UC-Santa Barbara Gauchos (Big West Champion) in the Minnesota Gold Classic. Their second game at home will be two days later on Sunday versus the San Diego Toreros who finished second in the West Coast conference.
After the Minnesota Gold Classic, the women's team heads to Ohio where they will play Bowling Green and Toledo. Before coming back home to finish the non-conference schedule against Missouri Valley winner, Illinois State, they will play the 2009 SEC Tournament winner, South Carolina Gamecocks, on September 16.
The conference part of the season will start for the Gophers on the road. They begin Big Ten conference play against Iowa on September 23. They will also play Penn State (winner of 2009 Big Ten Conference), Ohio State (finished secon in conference), Northwestern, and Indiana away from St. Paul as well. Big Ten teams that make their way to Elizabeth Lyle Robbie Stadium include Illinois, Wisconsin, Purdue, Michigan, and Michigan State.
If the Gophers have a good year, their season may continue into the NCAA tournament, which starts on November 13 and goes through December 6. The National Championship game is in Cary, North Carolina.
The preseason starts on Tuesday, August 3. The Minnesota Gophers have their hands full as they try to prepare for one of the toughest, biggest soccer seasons in team history. Come cheer on and support the Gophers to victory this fall. For a copy of the schedule, click here.
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