Horned Frogs have successful 2007 campaign
11/28/2007 12:00:00 AM | Women's Soccer
Nov. 28, 2007
The 2007 season for the TCU Horned Frog soccer program was a season in which a young Horned Frog squad accomplished many program first and came together as one unit.
Overall, TCU shutout a top-25 ranked opponent, appeared on national television for the first time in program history, finished with the most win's overall and in conference play under head coach Dan Abdalla and placed two players on the all-conference squad for the first time in Mountain West play. The Horned Frogs also competed in post-season play for the second time in three years under Abdalla by squaring off against nationally ranked BYU in the first round of the Mountain West Conference tournament on Nov. 7.
TCU played a total of 19 games during the 2007 season, including nine matches where the opponent was either ranked nationally or regionally entering the contest: Texas, Missouri, Colorado College, Arizona State, SMU, Rice, Utah, UNLV and BYU. The Horned Frogs finished the season with an 8-11-0 record and 3-4-0 conference mark.
Throughout out the year, TCU players picked up many honors, including Michelle Nguyen being named to Top Drawer Soccer's Team of the Week for her two-goal outing against Air Force on Oct. 6. Following the Utah win, both Lizzy Karoly and freshman goalkeeper Kelsey Walters collected weekly honors by being named Mountain West Players of the Week. Karoly also was named to Soccer America's team of the week, while Walters was named to Soccer Buzz's Elite Team of the Week following her shutout against the Utes. The selection for Walters marked the first time in program history that a TCU player had been selected to the prestigious weekly team. Finally, senior Angie Nickens and Karoly both picked up second-team all-conference honors at the year-end MWC banquet in Provo, Utah.
TCU collected its first win of the season against Utah State to open the month of September. In the match, Nguyen, Karoly and Jackie Torda all netted goals as the Horned Frogs upended the Aggies, 3-1.
After dropping a double overtime contest to Rice, TCU got right back to winning by downing UT-San Antonio and Big 12 Conference member Texas Tech. Against the Red Raiders, who closed out the year finishing fifth overall in the Big 12, sophomore Michelle Nguyen and freshman Jackie Torda netted both of TCU's goals in a 2-1 victory. Overall, 1,558 spectators watched at Garvey-Rosenthal Soccer Stadium as TCU dominated the Red Raiders from start to finish.
The Horned Frogs would close out the month of September with an overtime win at Houston. The match against the Cougars was broadcast nationally on CSTV marking the first ever women's soccer broadcast to be televised. TCU traveled back home the following week and collected a 5-2 victory over Prairie View A&M. In the 5-2 victory, Torda posted her first career hat trick and finished the day tied for third all-time in TCU history in goals scored by an individual in a single contest.
TCU opened Mountain West play by winning two of its first three contests, including a 1-0 victory over New Mexico in Albuquerque, N.M. on Oct. 14.
Finally, the Horned Frogs closed out play at Garvey-Rosenthal Soccer Stadium with a 3-0 victory over nationally ranked Utah. The win against the Utes' snapped their 13-match unbeaten streak and marked the first time in the program's history under Abdalla that TCU had defeated a ranked opponent.
The 2007 season also ushered in a couple of new features to the TCU soccer program. When the Horned Frogs opened their home slate against Utah State on Sept. 2 they showed off a brand new video scoreboard at Garvey-Rosenthal Soccer Stadium. The video portion of the board, which was mainly utilized this fall for video highlights of previous games as well as player introductions, is equipped to show game highlights as well as coaches shows and fan interaction during live contests. TCU also unveiled this fall for the first time in program history live conference audio of all away MWC contests and will look to utilize that feature more in the upcoming year.
The end of the 2007 season marked the conclusion to the careers of a TCU senior class that included forward KJ Brozena, midfielder Angie Nickens, forward Lesley Parkinson and midfielder Lauren Pope. This quartet of seniors collected a total of 41 wins from 2003 to 2007.
The future is bright for TCU as it returns 10 of 11 starters and 92% of its scoring in 2008.
