Oct. 7, 2005

One of the youngest squads in the nation, the University of Dayton women's soccer team is in the midst of defending its eighth Atlantic 10 Conference regular season title. The Flyers are 6-3-2 overall, 2-1-0 in the A-10 and are in action this weekend at George Washington and La Salle. The team returns home next weekend for key conference match-ups against Richmond (Friday, Oct. 14 at 7:30 p.m.) and Charlotte (Sunday, Oct. 16 at 1 p.m.) on Senior Day.

The Flyers, who have 10 freshmen and 10 sophomores on the roster of 29, began the season in the national polls and made significant strides to bolster their postseason resume. UD posted ties against No. 6 Virginia and No. 25 William & Mary, while going 4-2-2 in their pre-conference schedule.

It's a senior though who paces the Flyers' offense - defending A-10 Offensive Player of the Year Reba Sedlacek. The forward from Badin High School in Hamilton, Ohio has four goals and two assists for 10 points and struck for game-winning goals against Ohio and Furman. Sophomore defender Courtney Sirmans (Centerville, Ohio/Centerville) has a goal and three assists and was named to the Soccer Buzz National Team of the Week earlier this season.

The four-time A-10 tournament champions were again picked to defend their title in the A-10 preseason coaches' poll. UD has made four-straight NCAA tournament appearances under 11th-year head coach Mike Tucker. Winning nearly 75 percent of his games all-time, Tucker is the 11th-winningest active NCAA Division I head coach.

On such a youthful team, ups and downs are to be expected. But for a a team coming off a 20-2-0 season in 2004, the bumps in the road aren't common. Although UD has a pair of good-looking draws against nationally ranked opposition to its credit, the Flyers have to bounce back from 1-0 upsets to Butler and Saint Joseph's. The loss to the Hawks on Oct. 1 snapped a 15-match home winning streak and marked the first time UD had been held scoreless at home in conference play since 1997.

Regarded as one of college soccer's best atmospheres, UD's Baujan Field will host the 2005 A-10 Women's Soccer Championship Nov. 3-6. For A-10 Championship ticket information, call 937-229-4433 or visit www.DaytonFlyers.com.