No goals
Freshman goalie steps into position with three shutouts

By Doug Sharkey
Skiff Staff

Typically in collegiate athletics, freshman don’t make an extraordinary impact in their first season.

The TCU women’s soccer team has evidence to the contrary with freshman goalkeeper Shannon Wagner.

Helping the Frogs to five victories, including three shutouts, so far this season, Wagner has earned a starting position and provided the team with a strong defensive foundation in the goal.

After a severe car accident on July 4 rendered starting junior goalkeeper Keith-Ann Wagner partially paralyzed, the goalkeeping position became a source of great anxiety and many unanswered questions.

Head coach David Rubinson said goalkeeping has always been one of the team’s priorities and was hurt by the loss of Wagner, who was one of the team’s leaders last season.

“Obviously, for the team, what happened to Keith-Ann was very devastating,” Rubinson said. “I felt like we had to be strong in goal and I was still looking for a goalkeeper.”

Although the loss of Keith-Ann struck a monumental blow, Rubinson said he expects her to be strong in her recovery.
“If anybody is going to go through all that, she’s the one to get through it,” Rubinson said. “When we see her she’s unbelievable.”

Although unable to continue at her position, Keith-Ann is still a part of the team, Shannon Wagner said.
“We’ve gone in groups to go see her,” she said. “We’ve got a locker set up, and she’s still got all of her stuff in there.”

The position, however, was not just handed to Shannon Wagner before the start of the season. Rubinson said she had to earn it.

“She’s had every minute of every game and that’s not by choice, that’s by necessity at this point,” Rubinson said. “She’s earned the starting position and so far no one’s taken it from her. She’s continued to get the job done.”

For Shannon Wagner the transition was not easy because she had some big shoes to fill. In two seasons with TCU, Keith-Ann had 157 saves, 51 goals against and a goals-against average of 1.85.

“Coming in, I was very nervous about the whole thing,” Shannon Wagner said. “I didn’t know if it would be hard to adjust with the girls because it would almost be like a ‘ghost watching over you’ type of thing.

“When I got here I had to earn it because (junior Adrianne Labovitz) really stepped up over the summer,” Shannon Wagner said. “I had to go out and win the spot, and it wasn’t until the day before the first game that they made the decision on who would be starting.”

So far the results have been positive.

The Frogs have a 5-3-1 record while Shannon Wagner has contributed 56 saves, three shutouts and a 1.15 goals against average.

Shannon Wagner said she doesn’t consider herself a replacement for Keith-Ann and would have liked to have challenged her for the starting spot.

Despite the absence of Keith-Ann, the team has supported Shannon Wagner in her transition. Senior midfielder Tara Rudiger said she was surprised by the freshman’s poise.

“Our whole team thinks that she’s done really well,” Rudiger said. “Usually freshmen have some jitters and make mistakes, but she’s played awesome.”

Senior defender Christy Filice said the team finds the two goalkeeper’s similarities remarkable.

“Sometimes I do a double-take because I think it’s (Keith-Ann) back there,” Filice said. “Their playing styles are so much the same.”

Rubinson agreed but said there are a few important differences between the two keepers.

“Keith-Ann is very athletic,” he said. “Shannon is obviously bigger and stronger physically, and that’s really been helping us along right now. It would have really been interesting with her and Keith-Ann battling.”

Shannon Wagner has gotten off to a good start for the women’s soccer team, but Rubinson is quick to add she’s just a freshman and there’s always room to improve.

“The goalkeeper’s like the orchestra leader,” Rubinson said. “The goalkeeper sees everything — sees the entire field; she’s getting better at that.”

Doug Sharkey
d.h.sharkey@student.tcu.edu

By Kelly Morris
skiff staff

With its fast greens and difficult pin placements, the 7,250-yard Inverness Country Club lived up to its reputation as being one of the country’s most challenging golf courses during the first Inverness Intercollegiate Invitational Monday and Tuesday in Toledo, Ohio.

“The Inverness Country Club is the hardest golf course we have ever played since I have been the coach here at TCU,” said Bill Montigel, who has been the head coach for 14 years. “It is one of the most challenging and best golf courses you can ever imagine playing.”

After recording the second-lowest score of the final round (299), the men’s golf team placed third in the tournament with a combined score of 898.

South Carolina, ranked No. 16, won the tournament by a 20-stroke margin, with a three-round score of 876 (24-over-par). Last weekend, the Gamecocks finished second behind the Frogs at the Ridges/Bank of Tennessee Intercollegiate Invitational last weekend.

“Although we didn’t play as well as we had hoped, we can’t change the results,” sophomore Adam Rubinson said. “The Inverness is the hardest course we will play all year by far. You really have to play the course many times to find the best places to position your ball.”

Junior Andy Doeden shot a second round even-par 71, one of just 11 par-or-better rounds during the entire tournament. With his 54-hole total of 223, Doeden tied for 10th individually.

With three-round total scores of 224 and 225, senior Aaron Hickman and Rubinson tied for 13th and 19th, respectively. After finishing the first day of play tied for 53rd, senior Scott Volpitto shot a final round 72, the team’s lowest score of the day, to finish the Invitational tied for 37th.

Even though Montigel was encouraged by three of his players finishing in the top 20 at such a difficult course, he said he was more impressed with his team’s ability to bounce back from their first round performance.

“What I like so much about the members of this team is that they all have extreme mental toughness,” Montigel said. “It’s very easy for a team to quit after having a slow start, but performances like Scott Volpitto’s show that they have heart and don’t have any quit in them.”

The team’s next tournament is the NCAA Preview on Monday and Tuesday in Durham, N.C.

Kelly Morris
k.l.morris@student.tcu.edu

As the Volley Frogs enter into the Western Athletic Conference phase of their schedule, they hope to inject a new sense of familiarity and hence, fun into their expected successes.

The team’s playing philosophy doesn’t reach success by winning games, said assistant coach Chris Rudiger.

“We are looking to take the little steps that will make us successful as a whole,” Rudiger said. “This is reliant on the effort of our players, which has so far been phenomenal.”

The team’s effort paid off during the recent shutout victory against Stephen F. Austin in a match Tuesday night that improved the Frogs’ record to 8-6.

“We executed real well,” head coach Sandy Troudt said. “We expected to play successfully and we did.”
Troudt said in order for her team to be successful the players must continue to stay true to their individual roles on the team and stay motivated to improve.

“Although there are some players that want more playing time, they don’t make the team suffer because they are not happy with their current role,” Troudt said. “We don’t have any selfish girls out there on the court.”

Troudt and Rudiger both said the mental focus during games is in need of improvement, as evidenced by the team’s serving during last weekend’s TCU Invitational.

Troudt said steps will be taken to create more aggressive-minded servers. She said strong service is a key aspect to the game and has been significant enough to determine the outcomes of previous games.

The past couple of practices have included defensive adjustments such as hitting, digging, further exposure to passing techniques and maintaining consistency in ball control.

Despite these adjustments, Troudt said she is pleased with the team’s agility and the solid effort her team brings to their game. Troudt said she was impressed by the strength of her players to play sick or under exhausting conditions.

Troudt also lauded junior outside hitter Marci King, the only TCU all-tournament member, and the aggressive defense she provided. In addition to breaking her own dig record by two with 26 digs in the Cal State-Fullerton game, King’s average attack percentage against Montana State was an impressive .467.

Another consistent player was senior outside hitter Amy Atamanczuk, who was one of the only positives in serving-especially during the fifth game of the Cal State-Fullerton match.

Colleen Casey
c.m.casey@student.tcu.edu

By Stephen Hawkins
Associated Press

IRVING — Troy Aikman, who has missed two games after his ninth concussion, will be back in the starting lineup for Dallas against San Francisco.

Cowboys owner Jerry Jones said Wednesday night, based on a post-practice evaluation of Aikman, the quarterback would indeed start Sunday’s game.

“There is no reason at this time to delay him from competing,” Jones said. “Our plans had been all along this week to evaluate Troy when he came into to start this week. He is ready to go.”

Jones and coach Dave Campo both said Aikman was excited about getting the official word about starting again, but the quarterback had already told reporters earlier Wednesday he had been cleared to play and expected to start.

“I feel like enough time has passed and I don’t feel like I’m putting myself at risk,” Aikman said before taking a majority of the snaps during the Cowboys’ two-hour workout.

Right after practice, Campo said team officials were still in an evaluation mode and Aikman’s playing status had not been determined. Two hours later, in a hastily called news conference, it was.

Jones said Aikman was evaluated by team trainers after the practice in pads during the heat of the day. The owner said everyone involved in the decision agreed that Aikman could return to game action.

“Certainly, he’s ready to play and planned to play,” Jones said. “We wanted to make sure it was in the best interest for him and the team.”

Aikman didn’t talk to reporters after practice, a session that wasn’t attended by Jones.

Before practice, Aikman said he had met with team doctors, who told him he was clear to play.

“They say it’s a decision I can make,” Aikman said. “I’m feeling good. The idea is that I will be playing this week. I feel like I’m capable of doing that, and am looking forward to it.”

Aikman has not played since being sacked for the fourth time in the first half of the opening 41-14 loss to Philadelphia on Sept. 3.

Randall Cunningham started at Arizona and Washington. Aikman practiced throughout last week but was held out again against the Redskins. The Cowboys won 27-21, with Cunningham throwing for 185 yards and two touchdowns.

“It was evaluated from a medical standpoint as far as what would be in the best interest for me long term,” Aikman said. “It wasn’t about how I felt following those practices.”

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