Freshmen Start Off on the Right Foot

The Women of Troy had an easy tune-up against Weber State on Friday afternoon thanks to strong performances from their newest additions. "I was really impressed with our freshmen today," raved one of those new faces -- recently hired Coach Ali Khosroshahin. He started five of them in the match.

USC had their way with Weber, firing 22 shots compared with just five for the Wildcats. With little doubt about the outcome, the laid-back crowd had some fun in the hot afternoon sun. A rowdy contingent from USC's swimming team even got the referee to laugh. "I love it," chuckled junior Amy Rodriguez. "The SC atmosphere and the SC attitude is to come together and be one as a family. Having those people support us on the sides is awesome. It gives me a great adrenaline rush."

Freshman Megan Ohai, known as a scorer during her high school days in Utah, netted the first two goals of the match. "In that position, that's what she's supposed to do. She's our finisher," Khosroshahin said.

Rodriguez, a former Gatorade High School Player of the Year, came in as a substitute and was clearly a step quicker than the players marking her. In response, Weber was very physical on defense. When asked about the rough play, Rodriguez shrugged it off. "I don't pay attention to it that much."

Asked if she might have any distractions this season (like last year when she missed several games while playing for the national team), Rodriguez indicated that it was smooth sailing ahead. "In early January this past year I was invited to camp, but I told Greg Ryans (the national team coach) that I was going to take the semester off to focus on school and focus on a little bit of me time. Throughout the summer and the fall, my focus has been 'SC soccer and trying to take us to a championship."