PRESQUE ISLE, Maine — The University of Maine at Presque Isle Owls women’s soccer team faces the difficult task of replacing four of its top five scorers from a year ago. With a veteran presence and some new talent mixed in, early indications are that they are up to the challenge.
Four seniors return from a team that went 6-8-2 a year ago. Janae Libby of Fort Fairfield, Jessy Dickison of Houlton, Abby Deveau of Littleton and Allie Lopez of Kingfield will be tasked as the veteran leaders, and all four made their presence felt in a season-opening win against UM-Machias Sept. 10.
“We’ve had a couple of weeks to prepare for the season now and we have seen lots of good things from this group,” said sixth-year coach Trevor Parent. “Our returning crew has been performing at a better level, and they all are showing tremendous leadership qualities. We feel as though we’ve brought in a solid bunch of women to complement the players we already have. This balance of newcomers with the veterans has made for a very pleasant few weeks of soccer.”
Libby is joined by Jordi Legassie, a junior from Presque Isle, at the forward position. Legassie scored the first goal of the season for the Owls off a Libby assist. Parent said both athletes did a great job of putting pressure on the goal in the first game, as each were credited with three shots.
Dickison and Deveau lead the midfielder group. Dickison scored the team’s other goal against UM-Machias, while Deveau also did her part in the win and was credited with two shots.
Returning midfielder Kendra Gregarczyk, a sophomore from Middletown, Rhode Island, played in 11 of the 16 games last year as a defensive player, but got the start in the opener. She was honored last year with the team’s Most Inspirational Player award. The midfield group will add Emily Ward, a freshman from Peterborough, New Hampshire, to the mix. She was another starter in the opener and has shown promise going forward.
The defensive unit will be led by junior Mikayla Churchill of Washburn and last year’s Rookie of the Year, Laura Sturgeon, a sophomore from Ashland. Churchill started and played in 15 games last season, while Sturgeon played in 13 games, earning a start in five of them. They will be joined by newcomers Briana Fenton, a freshman from Saranac Lake, New York; Taylor Brown, a sophomore from Easton; Leinani Farnsworth, a freshman from Portland; and Megan Seward, a junior from Chapman, who will all help shore up the defensive unit.
Lopez returns as the starting goalkeeper and is coming off All-AD3I Independent selections the past two seasons. Adding depth to the position will be two players from Easton — Taylor Howe, a sophomore, and Casey Lovely, a freshman. Besides their duties as keepers, both Howe and Lovely will spend time working with the defensive backs.
Coach Parent saw some good things in the opener, and is looking forward to his team’s progress this season.
“The really great piece about this team is we can expect everyone is capable of doing something special this season. Everyone is capable of contributing, a coach’s dream really,” he said. “We did lose some talent from last year, both in attack and in defense. We have a choice though, focus on what we lost or focus on the women in the program right now.”
The Owls followed up their win by being shut out at home by Fisher College on Sept. 17. The team will host Farmington Saturday, Sept. 23, Bryant and Stratton on Oct. 1, Unity College on Oct. 7 and SUNY-Canton Oct. 8. The Owls will wrap up their home schedule on Wednesday, Oct. 25, when they play Husson at 7 p.m.
They travel to UM-Fort Kent Oct. 24 and finish the season on the road at Fisher on Oct. 29. The Owls will compete for the first time in the American Collegiate Athletic Conference.
