Women´s Soccer Seniors Shine on Senior Day

Leia Kirch found the back of the net on Senior Day. (Photo by Antonio Morano Photography)

SAN ANTONIO — On the day honoring their achievements throughout their Rattler careers, St. Mary’s seniors put on their best Saturday as two seniors connected in a 3-0 shutout over the University of Texas-Permian Basin.

Saturday’s game was a perfect showing for St. Mary’s four honored seniors, as the shutout complemented the work of senior defenders Annia Olivares (El Paso, Texas) and Carolyn Martin (San Antonio), who held the Falcons (1-13, 0-6 in conference) to just three shots for the game. It also highlighted the work of senior midfielders Leia Kirch (Carrollton, Texas) and Emilie Snelson (Fairview, Texas), who both connected in the win.

Amy Adkins (So., El Paso, Texas), who is midway through her Rattler career, was the first Rattler to put up a goal Saturday. Ten minutes into the game, Adkins found the rebound off the blocked shot from Jamey Coronado (Jr., San Antonio) for a close-range goal that brought the Rattlers to a quick 1-0 lead.

Halfway through the first half, the stats of Kirch that were to be read during the halftime ceremony had to be changed.

The senior expertly beat out several Falcon defenders in a race toward the net to find her open shot — a diagonal angle that sailed past the Falcon keeper to the bottom-left corner to mark her eighth goal on the season. Kirch’s goal Saturday officially surpassed her total goal count for last season, which the midfielder achieved in St. Mary’s last home game of the season.

“It’s incredible,” says Kirch, who leads the Rattlers in both scoring and assists. “Last year I got seven with my ACL brace, which I thought was great. I just wanted to beat it this year in my senior year. It’s been everything and more that I hoped it would be.”

Kirch’s prowess this season around the net has her as the top scorer for the Rattlers as well as among the top five scorers in the Heartland Conference, currently tied for fourth place. Kirch is also currently second in the conference for assists with five on the season.

After Snelson’s halftime congratulations, she put up her first season goal four minutes before her last-ever St. Mary’s home game was complete.

The midfielder saw her opportunity when the Falconss keeper was drawn from the box. Snelson sliced in a close-range goal off a rebound, sealing the Rattlers’ (8-6, 2-5 in conference) victory on Senior Day.

Just as the Rattlers outshined the Falcons in goals, St. Mary’s also topped in shots, outshooting the Falcons 19-3 with 13 shot on goal. Kirch led the day with five shots and four shot on goal, followed by fellow goal-scorer Adkins with two shots, both on goal. All recording one shot on goal for St. Mary’s last home game were Rattlers Snelson, Leah Snelson (Jr., Dallas), Claire Etter (Jr., Boerne, Texas), Amanda Cardoza (Jr., El Paso, Texas), Coronado, Sam Lara (Fr., San Antonio) and Ashleigh Wells (Jr., Dallas).

Senior Day signaled St. Mary’s last home game on the season. The Rattlers will play their last four games on the road, where the outcome of three of these games will determine the Rattlers’ shot at the conference title. St. Mary’s will face St. Edward’s, Dallas Baptist and Newman University in the upcoming weeks — teams that hold the No.1, 2 and 4 ranks in conference, respectively. In order to make the tournament, St. Mary’s must defeat at the least Newman University, which holds the same conference record after today’s win. The Rattlers fell to each of these competitors in their first look earlier this season — stats that Kirch and the rest of the Rattlers are well aware of.

“We came out slow in the beginning which is hurting us now,” says Kirch, who has 21 points on the season. “But the chemistry we have as a team is there; we just have to keep finishing and performing every game. On the road is going to be a big challenge for us, but I know we can pull it out.”

St. Mary’s first of its final four games will be against provisional Heartland Conference contender Oklahoma Christian University Thursday in Edmond, Okla. at 5 p.m.

St. Mary’s University, as a Catholic Marianist University, fosters the formation of people in faith and educates leaders for the common good through community service, integrated liberal arts and professional education, and academic excellence. The University has six athletic national titles: men’s basketball (1989–NAIA), baseball (2001–NCAA Div. II), softball (1986–NAIA and 2002–NCAA Div. II) and an individual national champion in men’s golf (2006–NCAA Div. II) and a national academic championship in men’s golf (2009–NCAA Div. II). St. Mary’s also had more than 40 percent of its athletes named to conference, regional and/or national honor rolls this past year. St. Mary’s student–athletes graduation rate is 65 percent, higher than the NCAA Division II average of 55 percent. To learn more about St. Mary's, visit www.stmarytx.edu/athletics.

    

Coaching Staff

Head Coach Corwyn Ritch

Corwyn Ritch enters his 12th year as the head coach of the St. Mary's women's soccer team needing just one more victory to reach career win No. 100.

Last season, Ritch coached a prominent team that made its way into the Heartland Conference Tournament as the third seed after an 8-8-2 record that included the berth of a star in the making in freshman Kaitie Kasperitis. Kasperitis scored a team-high 11 goals and 26 points on the season that earned her a chance to represent the Rattlers and the U.S. on the American National Soccer Team in Italy over the 2012 summer.

Along with Kasperitis' success, the Rattlers had five players receive All-Conference honors last season that included two players making First Team in returning forward Leah Snelson. Returning players Kasperitis, defender Ashlyn Leighton and midfielder Amanda Cardoza made the Second Team.

And Ritch did that after coming off one of the best coaching performances of his career in the 2010 season.

Taking an unheralded team that few outside of St. Mary's expected much from, Ritch led the 2010 Lady Rattlers team to double-digit victories, countless postseason honors, a victory over the nation's sixth-ranked team and a near berth in the regional tournament.

The Rattlers, boasting a squad heavy on freshmen, finished second in the Heartland Conference with an overall record of 10-6-2 on the season. It was their first 10-win season since 2006, and nearly enough to qualify for the South Central Region tournament.

Gaining confidence and rhythm as the season progressed, St. Mary's finished the year 9-2-2 over its final 13 games.

Ritch saw senior Carolina Hernandez make the Daktronics All-Region team, while Hernandez and fellow senior Melinda Gentry both made first-team All-Heartland Conference. Annia Olivares, Ashley Condrin and Andrea Gregg each were voted onto the second team. In addition, the Rattlers garnered eight Heartland Conference Player of the Week awards (five defensive, three offensive).

Ritch has helped the St. Mary's women's soccer program become one of the top programs in the Heartland Conference, posting a record of 99-92-19 (including the Heartland Conference title in 2002) since taking over the team in 2001. He has posted six winning seasons, all of which with double-digit win totals.

During his time in San Antonio, Ritch has helped to produce 44 All-Heartland Conference honorees, including one Player of the Year and one Goalkeeper of the Year.

Ritch earned Heartland Conference Coach of the Year honors in 2002 after his team went 13-7-1 and won the Heartland Conference Championship. In his first season as coach, he led the Rattlers to a 10-6-2 record and an appearance in the Heartland Tournament Championship. The team ranked as high as 23rd in the nation in the National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA) polls and placed second in the Heartland Conference.

In 2007, Ritch enjoyed one of his best coaching jobs, leading the team to a 9-10-1 record, overcoming injuries that nearly crippled his team. The Rattlers lost seven starters over the course of the season and had both goalkeepers injured. Even so the Rattlers were still able to compete with the best in the South Central Region. They posted wins over Texas A&M-Commerce, Angelo State and nearly scored an upset of Division I Texas-El Paso, falling by just a 2-1 count. The Rattlers had five players earn All-Heartland recognition.

In 2005, the Rattlers went 13-6-1 and finished runner-up in the Heartland race. Kyle Hyslop, Kennie Boxill and Deann Lopez all earned All-Heartland Conference for their play.

In 2004, the Rattlers won the Heartland Conference regular season title and advanced to the tournament championship game thanks to a 10-8-2 overall record.

During the 2001 and 2002 seasons, Ritch also served as head coach for the Rattler men's soccer team and posted a 22-15-3 record during that time, including a pair of Heartland Conference finals appearances.

Ritch played for St. Mary's from 1990-1994. He earned a bachelor's degree in psychology at St. Mary's with a minor in chemistry. He has since acquired his United States Soccer Federation (USSF) National Coaching License.

Following his graduation, Ritch coached the men's club team at Our Lady of the Lake University and the boy's varsity team at Southwest High School in San Antonio. He has trained players in various age groups and settings including individual sessions, camps, and club teams. Ritch was the trainer for the San Antonio Strikers Soccer Club '84 and '85 teams as well as the Lady Lions '86 Club team. He was the assistant men's and women's soccer coach at St. Mary's for 2000 and is currently director of the Total Soccer Camp.

2012 St. Mary's Women's Soccer Roster