Saint Mary's (1-0-0), coming off its first win of the season over Holy Cross on Tuesday, will travel to Danville, Ky. to play in Centre College's tournament.
"I am looking for a good competitive attitude from all of our players, regardless of their role on the field," Belles coach Ryan Crabbe said. "Our energy level when we defend will be important. Finally, we need our attacking players to take greater responsibility in front of goal this year. In 2008 we spent too much time waiting for one player to score all of our goals. This year we have quite a few players capable of contributing on the score sheet."
Sophomore Katelyn Tondo-Steele scored a goal for the Belles in their game against Holy Cross, and Crabbe said he is looking to her to be a force for the team this season.
"From an attacking perspective I have high expectations from Micki Hedinger, Sam Smogor and Katelyn Tondo-Steele," Crabbe said. "In addition, Colleen Ferguson, Jess Slean and Keely Noonan bring a full season of playing together in the midfield this year. On our backline we see two new faces, Corissa Hart and Taylor Paton, joining Ronanyne and Michelle Marshall. Also, we get Katie Wehrli back in 2009 after she missed much of 2008. I expect every player on our roster to contribute this fall."
Senior Katy Durkin also scored a goal for the Belles in the game against Holy Cross.
Crabbe noted that he wants to see his players take more responsibility for their goals in each game. The Belles dropped eight of their contests last season that were decided by only one goal.
The Belles are also counting on seven freshmen to fill in the gaps on this year's roster.
"We have players coming from Georgia, Kentucky, Ohio, Illinois, Missouri and Indiana," Crabbe said. "They have done quite well so far. There are two in particular who will be called upon to start and contribute right away. We have added depth at goalkeeper as well which was by far our biggest priority coming into 2009."
The Belles will turn to senior Bridget Ronayne to lead the defensive squad this season.
"Bridget is a very mature player on the field," Crabbe said. "She is a good leader and her teammates respect her. Her success playing in the back for us comes from her ability to read the game and make good decisions under pressure. She is very good at minimizing mistakes which is key as a defender."
The Belles will face Centre College on Saturday at 7 p.m., and then face Transylvania on Sunday at noon.
