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Show Wolverines top preseason poll Photo by Mike Fackrel/UVU Review Senior midfielder Camille Broderick (#2) kicks the ball in last Tuesday's home match against Weber State. The Wolverines suffered their first defeat of the season, losing 1-0. After playing their first four games at home, the Wolverines begin a six-game road trip starting Sunday at Utah. Regan Clifford Regan Clifford is beginning her third season with UVU woman's soccer team. She graduated from Mountain View High School in Mesa, AZ, where she scored 70 goals and had 28 assists in her varsity career. Sports writer Kevin Olsen met with Clifford to find out a little more about the junior forward. Key Performer Jaime Lyons 2 games 1 goal Q. What is your pregame routine? A. I typically have a nap that day, eat a good breakfast. Other than that, I'm not very superstitious. I just say a prayer and hope for the best. 1 assist Q. Who has been your biggest influence as far as soccer goes? 1 game-winner NAPERVILLE, Ill. NAPERVILLE, Ill. -- Utah Valley has been selected by the Great West Conference women's soccer coaches to win the 2011 GWC women's soccer championship. The Wolverines, who won the inaugural GWC championship in 2009, garnered 44 points and four first-place votes in the balloting for the top spot. Defending GWC champion Houston Baptist came in a close second in the poll with 42 points and picked up one first-place vote. Coming in first on two ballots was South Carolina State which tallied 34 points for third place. North Dakota was fourth in the poll with 29 points, followed by NJIT with 22 points. Howard and Delaware State rounded out the preseason rankings with 16 and nine points, respectively. The 2011 Great West women's soccer champion will be determined by a singleround robin. Conference play will begin on September 29, when HBU travels to Howard and Delaware State hosts North Carolina. A postseason champion will be crowned at the 2011 GWC Women's Soccer Tournament, which will be held November 4-7, at Newark, NJ., and hosted by NJIT. Next up... Against: University of Utah When: 1:00 p.m. Sunday Where: Salt Lake City A. Teammates that have helped me through the years and coaches have really been a big influence in my life. Q. How did you get into playing soccer? A. Honestly, just picked it up. My friends we're doing it in elementary school so I started playing during recess and then after that I got into a league. Q. What are you looking forward to most about school starting back up in the fall? A. I'm getting into the education program. I'm just excited for this upcoming season. I think we have a special team this year and even though we're young we have really good potential. Q. What's your most embarrassing soccer moment? A. In high school, my freshmen year, I remember I was trying to get a ball in the sideline and there was a bench on the sideline. I was running so hard that I ran into the bench, hit it with my shin, and did a front flip over the bench. Q. What is your proudest moment throughout your years playing soccer? A. In club we won a lot of really good tournaments that, I would say, are my proudest moments concerning soccer. Q. How do you find a balance between school work, practice and being engaged? A. I have a good support system. I have a good coach who's supporting me, and also family members and my fiancé who's a good help. Q. What is the best advice you have received? A. I would say "learn to be happy," because there are a lot of hard things in life. And if you learn to enjoy them life is a lot easier. Photo courtesy of UVU Athletics New assistant coach Tasha Bell will specialize in helping the Wolverine goalkeeper rotation, which includes sophomore sensation Lauren Sack. Soccer hires new assistant coach By JONATHAN BOLDT Asst. Sports Editor Overall GWC Team WLT WLT North Dakota Houston Baptist Utah Valley NJIT S. Carolina St. Delaware St. Howard 100 110 110 000 010 020 020 000 000 000 000 000 000 000 *as of Friday, Aug. 26 The Wolverines soccer team officially welcomed a new addition to the coaching staff this season. Former goalkeeper Tasha Bell has been a student assistant for the past year, making her a familiar face to a new position. Bell lettered in both soccer and basketball at Davis High in Farmington, UT. She was Academic All-state to go along with her athletic achievements, adding another quality that will help with coaching student athletes at the collegiate level. Bell played in 53 career games at keeper spanning 2004-09. After the 2006 season she served an 18-month LDS mission in the Chicago, IL, area. She returned for her senior season in 2009, which included a run to the Great West Conference champion- ship. "That's a goal of ours this year, to take back the conference championship we won in 2009," Bell said. Another area of expertise that will come in handy is her time spent in the net as keeper. "My main duties this year will be focused on the keepers and helping them develop, along with whatever else coach [Brent] Anderson needs," Bell said. Bell graduated from UVU this spring with a degree in behavioral science and psychology. After graduating, she approached Anderson about making her student assistant job permanent. "She came to me after graduating and asked about coaching," Anderson said. "I thought it would be good for the girls to have someone they already know and get along with. She really is great with the girls." This year's team is headlined by sophomore goalkeeper Lauren Sack, but backup Jessica Duffin is more than capable. "We felt we were set at keeper but then Lauren injured her shoulder, so that's why I went after Jessica," Anderson said. "We didn't know how long she would be out so we wanted to make sure we had somewhere to turn." Duffin, a true freshman, will fill that responsibility for the Wolverines. She played basketball, softball and ran track to go along with soccer, at Sky View High in Smithfield, Utah. Sack returns after being named the GWC Player of the Year in 2010-11, bringing additional experience the Wolverines will need on a very young team. The Wolverines lost nine seniors to graduation last year. |