Lady Bison Hungry to Begin 2018 Season

SHAWNEE – One year removed from the first regular season Great American Conference championship in program history, Oklahoma Baptist is poised to once again compete for the conference crown.
 
The Lady Bison finished the 2017 season with a 15-2-3 overall record, matching the program record for wins in a season and setting a new high-water mark with a .825 winning percentage. OBU won the outright regular-season GAC title with a 9-0-3 mark, finishing with the second unbeaten mark in conference history.
 
That 2017 squad earned the right to host the GAC Tournament and fell in the championship match in the first trip to the postseason since Oklahoma Baptist became full members of NCAA Division II. Youth played a major role in the team's success as OBU graduated only two seniors and didn't lose any starters heading into 2018. Head Coach Mike White earned GAC Coach of the Year for the first time and enters the season with a 97-64-12 career record in eight seasons on Bison Hill.
 
"I think having all the starters back and only losing two seniors, you couldn't ask for a better situation. I think that everyone has bought into the system that we've already established and they know the steps that need to be taken to make it an even better season," said White.
 
Falling short of making the NCAA Regional last season has served as motivation while preparing for the upcoming schedule. OBU finished the year No. 7 in the final Central Region rankings, and the top six teams in each region advance to the NCAA National Tournament. Despite a first-place finish in the GAC last season, while not losing any starters, the Lady Bison were picked to finish second in the conference preseason poll.
 
"It made them hungry because we fell short in the championship game, and on our home turf," said White. "I think it kept them hungry, it kept them chomping at the bit to make that mark and go to the national tournament. And us being ranked preseason number two only helps it."
 
A stellar 10-1-1 home record and a 15-match unbeaten streak propelled the Lady Bison to their third 15-win season in the last four years, all with White at the helm. He feels that his squad is poised to have another successful year due to the upperclassmen on the roster.
 
"I've got a good group of girls that don't care where they are, they just want to win and they've bought into the fitness aspect of it," said White. "[The seniors] really wanted to make an impact on the history books. That's something that we discussed a lot and they put in the work to do it. When you have that kind of leadership, it makes my job a whole lot easier."
 
Redshirt-sophomore Emily Griffith returns after earning GAC Goalkeeper of the Year honors in 2017. Griffith registered nine shutouts on a .759 save percentage to go with a 0.91 goals-allowed average last season. She is backed up by experienced senior Sam Engles.
 
"I feel like the goalkeeper position is really good. Emily still has three more years to play and we feel good about that and feel like we will have another solid year," remarked White.
 
The Lady Bison defense limited opponents to 0.95 goals per match while posting a conference-best nine clean sheets on just 8.6 shots per match. Defender of the Year and All-American Jennifer Goethe anchored the back line and will look to duplicate the success in her senior season. Competition for the other center back position is fierce between senior Dely Chavez and freshmen Keely Hampton and Hannah Evans.
 
Juniors Lara Haring-Lovett, a First Team All-GAC defender, and Kelsey Bumgarner return as outside backs to round out the stingiest back line in the conference.
 
"Our junior phenoms, our workhorses Lara and Kelsey, both play just about every minute of every game and will just run and work all day long," said White.
 
Senior Kerregan Edwards and junior Reagan Mann return as defensive midfielders after starting every game last season. Freshman Kelsi Mensen has also made a strong showing in preseason workouts.
 
"[Edwards and Mann] are phenomenal and both are extremely hard working, extremely strong and fit athletes and they bring a ton of experience there. [Mensen] is also pushing that position, she's a very skillful player that can play that position and fill that role really well as well."
 
OBU averaged 2.20 goals scored per match on 22.3 shots last season. The Lady Bison scored 44 total goals on 30 assists and finished with .444 shots on goal percentage.
 
Emmily Infante was named All-American and was a unanimous First Team All-GAC member and returns for her senior season after scoring four goals and collecting five assists. She is joined in the middle by last year's GAC Freshman of the Year Hannah White, who finished second on the team with seven goals scored. Adding depth to the midfield are freshmen Tori Kitchel and Morgan Krispense along with junior Madison Hill, who returns from a hip injury.
 
"We've got lots of choices in the midfield, lots of good choices that will make us very deep and it's going to be a decision deciding on who starts," said White.
 
Junior forward Ruth King earned First-Team All-GAC honors for the second straight season after leading the Lady Bison with 33 points, including 13 goals and seven assists. Abigail Parker started 17 games last season and Abigail Hicks had four starts for OBU. Sophomore Halle Hill is now two seasons removed from a knee surgery and has had a fruitful preseason along with freshman Sarah Bryant.
 
"There's lots of choices up top and I'm excited about it," said White.
 
Repeating the success of last season won't be an easy task, but White feels that his squad is up to the challenge.
 
"I think the conference overall gets a lot tougher," said White. "I think it's going to be a battle this year. Everyone knows who we are, not a whole lot changes, and that makes it a little tougher. The target's square on our backs and that makes it a little tougher. We're not comfortable at all and that's a good place to be."
 
Oklahoma Baptist opens the season with a neutral site contest against Bemidji State in Minot, North Dakota, on Aug. 30 at noon. The Lady Bison home opener against Midwestern State is scheduled for a 7 p.m. start on Sept. 13 at the OBU Soccer Complex.