Hall also has shown an uncanny knack for playing bigger than her 5-foot-3 frame, mixing speed with physicality and an acute understanding defensive positioning. She can add national team experience to her resume as well, having spent time in the U.S. Under-23 National Team camp during this past offseason. With 61 matches under her belt (including 34 starts), Hall will be one of the true veteran leaders on the Fighting Irish roster this season, making it easy to see why her teammates selected Hall as a tri-captain for 2012. “Jaz really started to come into her own last year,” Waldrum said. “The game that immediately comes to mind is Stanford, where she was doing an excellent job of shutting down (Lindsey) Taylor and Chioma (Ubogagu) in the first half until she got hurt, and then as soon as she came out, we lose the game. I really believe that if we had kept her healthy, we would have won that game, so she’s such a key player for us, particularly on such a young back line.” Much like her front-line classmate Bohaboy, sophomore Sammy Scofield got off to a slow start as a rookie, but began to blossom during the second half of last season. After spending some early time as a holding midfielder, Scofield found her niche as a center back, starting 12 times while playing in all 21 matches and leading all Fighting Irish freshmen in minutes played (1,344). Hailing from Geneva, Ill., Scofield has an extensive understanding of defensive concepts, enhanced by her career with the powerhouse Eclipse Select club program, as well as her stints the past two summers with the Chicago Red Stars, the two-time defending runners-up in the Women’s Premier Soccer League (WPSL). Scofield offers size and an ability to be a threat in the air, both in defensive situations and on set pieces in the final third. She also bring a calm demeanor on the ball, which will be vital to Notre Dame’s success in the possession game. “Things really started to click for Sammy with that Marquette game in the middle of last season,” Waldrum said. “We had to throw her into the mix a little early due to injury and there were some growing pains, but she took ownership of the situation and ran with it the rest of the way. She’s one who can hold down the fort for us in central defense and someone I think you’ll be able to pencil in for us early on.” While Schneider could see some time at outside back when not competing in the midfield, three freshmen are likely to be among the main competitors for Notre Dame’s remaining two back line positions this fall. Katie Naughton is a prototypical center back, blending size, physicality, patience on the ball and a strong delivery. A product of Elk Grove Village, Ill., Naughton has been a constant in the U.S. youth national team system since 2009, rising to her current role as a prominent member of the
U-18 squad, and giving her a great deal of international experience. She also was a team captain all four seasons at Elk Grove High School and a threetime all-state selection, collecting 10 goals and 30 assists while pacing the defense to 22 shutouts in her final three seasons. Playing with a maturity well beyond her years and possessing many of the intangibles that usually take a long time to develop (if at all) on the college level, it’s easy to see why Naughton would appear to be an early candidate to fill the other spot as Scofield’s tag-team partner in central defense. “Katie has been such a consistent figure on the U-18s, and we actually had a bit of a scare because the U-20s brought her into camp late because they had some injuries, but they missed the deadline with FIFA and weren’t able to get her on the World Cup roster,”Waldrum said. “As it turns out, it might have been an even better opportunity for her, getting all of the experience and added preparation of playing in the U-20 camp, which should put her a bit ahead of the curve. She’s a fantastic player with a good head on her shoulders and a lot of size, which is one of the characteristics that really seems to run through this entire freshman class.” Size is something Notre Dame also could benefit from at the outside back positions with two other rookies. Brittany Von Rueden is a five-year veteran of the U.S. youth national team program, playing alongside many of her current Fighting Irish teammates such as Naughton, Roccaro, Schneider and Simonian. Standing 5-foot-11 and hailing from Mequon, Wis., Von Rueden has been used mainly in the center back spot, but with her athleticism and ability to strike a great cross from the wing, she could easily make the transition outside if the situation warrants. “Brittany gives us a number of options in the back with her size and strength,” Waldrum said. “She’s traditionally more of a central player, but she adapts well and is eager to learn, and I think she’ll be ready to go for us no matter what position we put her at.” Stephanie Campo will challenge for playing time at both outside back spots. A native of Basking Ridge, N.J., Campo has a skill set ideally suited for the Fighting Irish 4-3-3 system, between her pace on the wing, technical prowess and ability to serve a great cross. She also is a physical, ballhawking nature and an innate competitiveness that will make it difficult to keep her off the field. “It may sound like a broken record, but Stephanie is another player who could be a difference maker for us this year,”Waldrum said. “She’s a completely different kind of player than someone like Jaz (Hall) because of her size and strength, plus she has a tenacious quality that is especially valuable on the defensive end.”
GOALKEEPERS For the first time in the Waldrum era, Notre Dame has a large stable of goalkeepers on the roster, with five different players competing to land the starting role in the Fighting Irish net on opening day. Senior Maddie Fox was the lone returnee with any experience last season, but got off to a tough start and didn’t seize control of the starting goalkeeper position until the start of conference play. Once she returned to the lineup in midSeptember, the San Jose, Calif., native didn’t let the opportunity get away, starting 16 times and posting an 8-5-3 record with an 0.83 goals-against average (GAA), a BIG EAST-best .818 save percentage (just outside the top 10 on Notre Dame’s single-season chart) and four solo shutouts, plus two shared clean sheets. A gifted shot stopper with quick reflexes, Fox also has worked to improve her distribution skills out of the back, as well as her ability to handle crosses and other high balls. With the most experience of any of the five goalkeepers on this year’s roster, Fox will have the chance to hold down that starting role again, but not without a significant challenge from the younger players on the roster. “Maddie wasn’t totally prepared and didn’t get the (offseason) work done when she came in last year, and it showed early on,” Waldrum said. “When we put her back in later and she played the rest of the year, she was more consistent. What it did was give her a little bit of the kick in the rear end she needed. We don’t want to go through the back-and-forth we had with our goalkeepers last year, but it still remains to be seen if someone, whether it’s Maddie or one of the others, will step up, take the starting spot and say ‘it’s mine, don’t
Jazmin Hall
2012 WoMen’s soccer
9