Oklahoma State women's soccer has "arrived" - Examiner.com

The Oklahoma State women's soccer team opens the preseason ranked No. 5 nationally and is the coaches choice as preseason favorite to win the Big-12. They were 22-2 last year and lost half their starting lineup to graduation. That usually means a rebuilding year, but for Oklahoma State it just means reloading.

Coach Colin Carmichael has built a winner in Stillwater and he plans for the team to compete on the national stage.

"The goals are the same â€" to compete for a Big 12 championship, and if you’re doing that, you’re competing for a national championship. That’s our goal every year,” Carmichael said. “To maintain that is very difficult, and we know that. We’ve been there the last two years and know it will be difficult to keep it going, but that’s our goal. The program is established to where every year we have to have the same goals.”

OSU returns six starters in 2012, including two-time All-American goalkeeper AD Franch and All-Big 12 Conference performers Carson Michalowsi and Megan Marchesano. Franch and Michalowski anchor a defense that was the nation’s best a year ago, while in Marchesano and Taylor Mathews, the Cowgirls return two of their top three leading scorers and a duo that combined for 14 goals and 17 assists in 2011.

“This season, we’re going to be younger and less experienced than we have been over the last couple, but that just means some new ideas, some new players, some new approaches and maybe a little bit different style of play depending on how our freshmen adapt,” Carmichael said. “We certainly have the talent to get to where we want to be.”

Franch has been an All-Big 12 First Team honoree in each of her three seasons with the Cowgirls. A two-time All-American, Franch has led the conference in shutouts for three-straight years and owns OSU’s career record with 32 shutouts. She also sports a 0.58 goals against average for her career, which ranks third all time in the Big 12.

Michalowski was an All-Big 12 First Team selection a year ago after helping anchor an OSU defense that led the NCAA with 18 shutouts and a 0.34 goals-against average. An All-Big 12 Second Team pick in 2010, Michalowski has started 72 games in her Cowgirl career.

Marchesano earned All-Big 12 honors for the first time as a junior as she was named to the league’s second team as a utility player after recording five goals and 10 assists. She enters her final collegiate season on the verge of cracking OSU’s top 10 career list in goals (17) and assists (14).

Mathews was OSU’s leading scorer in 2011, recording 25 points and nine goals and seven assists. She ranked in the top 10 in the league in all three categories, and her 71 shots placed her fifth.

Franch has been an All-Big 12 First Team honoree in each of her three seasons with the Cowgirls. A two-time All-American, Franch has led the conference in shutouts for three-straight years and owns OSU’s career record with 32 shutouts. She also sports a 0.58 goals against average for her career, which ranks third all time in the Big 12.

Michalowski was an All-Big 12 First Team selection a year ago after helping anchor an OSU defense that led the NCAA with 18 shutouts and a 0.34 goals-against average. An All-Big 12 Second Team pick in 2010, Michalowski has started 72 games in her Cowgirl career.

Marchesano earned All-Big 12 honors for the first time as a junior as she was named to the league’s second team as a utility player after recording five goals and 10 assists. She enters her final collegiate season on the verge of cracking OSU’s top 10 career list in goals (17) and assists (14).

Mathews was OSU’s leading scorer in 2011, recording 25 points and nine goals and seven assists. She ranked in the top 10 in the league in all three categories, and her 71 shots placed her fifth.