Rebuilt not rebuilding

Womenâs soccer team prepared to return  to winning ways

By Michael BeDan
The Metropolitan

But soul searching and even the fleeting notion of giving it all up were among the countless thoughts that entered Montojoâs head after experiencing the frightening plummet from being ranked as high as No. 3 in the nation to losing seven of the final 11 games in 1994 and finishing 2-13-2 in 1995.

ãI didnât like going through that,ä Montojo said. ãIt was real hard because Iâd never experienced anything like it.

ãIt would have been really easy to say ÎI canât do the job anymore, itâs just not there,â but then Iâd be walking out.ä

For all the miserable nights spent watching film and grappling with self-doubt, the monumental collapse of 1994 and ensuing last place finish in 1995 might have been the equivalent of a vaccine. In 1996, two years removed from a run at a No. 1 ranking and forced to rebuild a team that had for a time relied on the skills of All-American Rosie Durbin, Montojoâs Roadrunners rediscovered the formula for success and appear to be primed for what could be a historic season.

Metro finished 11-7-1 in 1996 and narrowly missed a berth in the NCAA Division II Tournament despite fielding a roster with eight freshmen and only three seniors.

ãWe rebuilt everything last year and got back to learning how to win again,ä Montojo said. ãWhen the last half of the season came, we knew weâd have to win all 10 games to even qualify for the NCAA playoffs, and we ended up going 8-1-1.ä

That span included a 3-0 win over Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference champion Regis, a team that made it to the NCAA Tournament and thumped Metro 4-0 earlier in the year.

With all but one starter back from last seasonâs squad and the deepest, youngest base of talent assembled in Montojoâs tenure, the Roadrunners enter 1997 with a legitimate shot at winning the RMAC and gaining an elusive berth into the NCAAs.

ãThe girls realize the opportunity is there,ä Montojo said.

ãThey came in with the attitude that they are going to win the RMAC and go to the national tournament.ä

The last time Metro participated in a post-season tournament, Montojo was a rookie college coach and the Roadrunners played in the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics.

Metro lost in the first round of the NAIA Tournament.

As successful as the program has been, Metro is 112-80-20 since Montojoâs arrival in 1985. The opportunity to compete for an NCAA championship is an experience as familiar to womenâs soccer here as winning a Super Bowl is to the Denver Broncos.

Senior Shannon Wise, one of two players left from the 1994 team (senior Kelly McDougal is the other), said the hunger for an NCAA berth has always been there but sees 1997 as the best chance to feed that desire.

ãThatâs what people play for,ä Wise said. ãThey donât play to lose. They donât play to get third and leave and say Îthatâs cool.â It is the ultimate goal in sports to make it all the way and win the championship.

ãWe have aggressive players, and I think the tournament is a realistic goal.ä

And while no one on the team can fill the shoes left by Durbin (second all-time in career goals with 40), the collective talent on the â97 version might be the best ever assembled at Metro.

ã(Durbin) was such an exceptional player,ä Montojo said. ãWhen things got tough in games and we needed someone, she was the one to step up and say ÎI want the ball, Iâll make something happen.â

ãI think what we have now is the three New Zealanders. They add spark and enthusiasm. I think we have the toughest midfield in the league. We are versatile.ä

The New Zealanders consist of sisters Ariana and Tarena OâNeill and Vicki Chong. Tarena OâNeill and Chong, both sophomores, are second-year players from Auckland High School in Auckland, New Zealand, while junior Ariana OâNeill is a transfer from Missouri Valley College.

The OâNeill sisters combined for five goals and nine assists in 1996, and Montojo said he expects that with a year of playing together, an offense that outscored opponents 39-21 last year will be more explosive in 1997.

ãIâm positive about what we can do,ä Tarena OâNeill said in a rich New Zealand accent. ãWeâve got a lot of options. Iâm really confident about what we can achieve this year.ä

Defense will depend a lot on how well junior goalie Jennifer Pierce has recovered from an Achilles tear in her left leg. Pierce injured the leg in August of 1996 and estimates her recovery at 90 percent.

ãI feel good,ä Pierce said. ãI just fight through (the soreness) and (doctors) will look and see if I need surgery after the season.ä
As for guarding against a collapse of 1994 proportions (9-0 start, 11-7-2 record), Montojo said going through that period taught him as much as any of the earlier success ever could.

ãIt made me more determined not to let it happen again,ä Montojo said. ãWe all had to look down deep and decide if we would quit or bounce back.ä

The season kicks off Saturday at Colorado Christian and the 17th-ranked Roadrunners look to walk the fine line between anguish and glory, all the while eyeing the finish line and a shot at an NCAA title.