Emporia State Head Soccer Coach Jim Schneiderhahn has decided to leave ESU after completing his fifth season as the

Schneiderhahn

Hornets’ head coach. Schneiderhahn accepted an assistant coaching position with Division I Illinois State University on Tuesday.

“This was a very difficult decision,” Schneiderhahn said. “I believe in what we have been doing here, and I think the Hornet program is poised to move to the next level. The opportunity to be close to where I’m from in St. Louis, with my family there and in Indianapolis, was just too strong to ignore.”

Schneiderhahn, who is originally from St. Louis, Mo., began his career at Benedictine College in Atchison before coaching at Tulane University in New Orleans, La. After Hurricane Katrina moved Schneiderhahn from New Orleans, he accepted an opening at ESU.

In his five years, Schneiderhahn has gone 9-77-9 on the field but provided stability from a program that at one point saw four coaches in four years.

“Our program was in disarray when he arrived,” said Director of Athletics Kent Weiser. “And so he had to somewhat start over from the ground up, and I can just see the kind of student athletes that he has recruited. They are top quality kids, people, and students and athletes. He’s restored that to us.”

Schneiderhahn was also responsible for coaching eight players to All-MIAA status during his five-year tenure including Defender Jessica Decker who has earned second-team honors, a feat that had not been accomplished by a Hornet soccer player in the past four years.

Weiser stated that the search for a new soccer coach will begin immediately, but results will most likely come after the new head basketball coach is named.

“It might be a little bit longer (than basketball)…” Weiser said. “Because this is kind of an unusual time… Soccer usually you’ll see that kind of (coaching) movement a little bit more towards the month of April or May. If we could be done during the end of April with the soccer search, we’ll be good.”

The soccer team currently has six early signees from Schneiderhahn that Weiser stated are remaining with the team. Kristen Arnold, the graduate assistant coach is currently handling the day to day operations of the Hornet soccer program, has touched based with the signees.

Before moving on completely, Schneiderhahn recognized the importance that ESU has played in his life.

“(ESU) will always be a very special place for me as this is where I came following the Hurricane Katrina situation.” Schneiderhahn said. “I really needed a place to land my feet and Kent, Carmen (Leeds) and the whole athletic department allowed me to do that.”

Brandon Schneeberger

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Emporia State concluded their season this Saturday with a 3-0 loss to the Mavs of Nebraska-Omaha. Although the Hornets were unable to come out on top, they fought hard in the contest controlling the shot attempt battle for a large portion of the game.

“I think that we played really well during the first half, and we really did battle the whole game,” said senior defender Lauren Cathey. “It’s just unlucky. We played really hard, and I was happy to play with the team for the last time.”

Nebraska-Omaha wasted no time getting out on top in the game as their first goal came in the third minute of action off a shot by Hilary Horvatic that bounced off the top right cross bar. Emporia State showed grit however outshooting the Mavs 9-5 in the half, despite allowing the early goal.

Nebraska-Omaha would score again in the 32^nd minute giving the Mavs a two goal edge heading into the half.

“One of the things that we’ve been kind of preaching to our girls (is) that stats really don’t mean a thing in soccer,” said Head Coach Jim Schneiderhahn. “We were better stat wise than they were in the first half. And they had the two-nothing leading.”

What may have been Emporia State’s best chance to generate a goal in the game came late in the first half off a cross by Sarah Anderson to Mindi Lozenski. Lozenski would attempt to head the ball in but the shot would prove too high.

The Mavs would put the game away for good on a goal in the 52^nd minute, as freshman goal keeper Natalie Hoernig came out on the shot attempt. Danielle Archuleta of Nebraska-Omaha would score on the empty net.

The loss gives the Hornets a 1-11-6 record for the season, a season that saw a large amount of overtimes, ties and close loses.

“As I kind of told the girls, we were in every game this year except for a couple early ones,” Schneiderhahn said. “We were ahead I think it was six or seven matches during the course of this year. We’ve got to learn to be successful and finish games out and play with leads.”

Hornets Kylee McCullough, Haley Edgar, and Cathey finished their careers for Emporia State on their Senior Day.

“It’s nothing tangible that they you can hang your hat on,” Scheiderhahn said. “But what they did is they brought a really good personality to the program (and) tremendous leadership.”

For Cathey and the rest of the seniors, the hope is that their leadership has helped in the building of a program.

“We went through a lot. We started off my first year not winning any games, and we’ve slowly progressed, and I think next year they’re going to be really well. I’ve just enjoyed playing, and battling through and hoping to hopefully build a program up to be something really good someday.”

Brandon Schneeberger/The Bulletin

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The Emporia State Hornets fell in another hard fought contest to the Washburn Lady Blues this Thursday. After coming up even for 103 minutes of play, the Hornets fell 1-0 in the second overtime on a golden goal. The loss stops a streak of three straight ties.

“I think we’ve lulled ourselves into some sense of security with the draws that we’ve been having lately,” said head coach Jim Schneiderhahn. “As I just told the girls, before what we’ve doing has been good enough, because we’ve been struggling the last couple of years. I think we’re beyond that now.”

The first half saw Washburn control the possession as they outshot the Hornets 6-0. For Emporia State, goal keeper Natalie Hoernig did her job with two saves in the half. She would end with four saves on the day.

Perhaps the best opportunities for Emporia came in succession late in the second half. With six minutes left in regulation, Hannah Carlson collided with Washburn’s goalie Ashley Klone on a breakaway attempt. Carlson would be whistled for the foul as neither player was seriously injured.

“I just saw Catie (Hyde) making the flick and tried to give it my everything to make it there, but I was unfortunately a second too late, and she made a great save,” Carlson said.

Less than two minutes later Holli Schletzbaum had a shot on goal that went off Klone’s hands. Neither team would be able to put one in before regulation.

“We have to be willing to take those psychological, emotional and physical risks,” Schneiderhahn said. “There’s a reason why it gets physical in there in front of the goal because that’s prime real estate. If you’re not willing to battle in there than we’re not going to come out.”

Overtime would prove much of the same as Washburn continued to control possession throughout. After the first ten minutes of extra play, neither team was able to put one in. Not long after the second overtime began, Markie Gallagher would score the golden goal for Washburn with her header in the 104^th minute of action.

“It’s tough, of course, going into overtime and we’ve been there the past four games,” Carlson said. “Unfortunately, this one didn’t go in our favor, but we need to turn these into wins, and it’s just not good enough at this point.”

The Hornets will play two of their last three on the road. They travel to #2 Central Missouri on Oct 30.

Brandon Schneeberger

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The Emporia State women’s soccer team tied for the third straight match Sunday against Truman State University, 1-1. The Hornets scored early in the first half, and TSU was not able to respond until very late in the second half.

“We’re continuing to battle and put ourselves into good positions to win,” said head coach Jim Schneiderhahn. “That’s what we have to take away from every game.”

The Hornets were able to play tough defense lead by freshman goal keeper Natalie Hoernig with four saves and sophomore goal keeper Nikki Schmitz with six saves. The two only allowed one goal of the 30 shots attempted by TSU.

Junior midfielder Jessica Decker scored the Hornets only goal in the 24^th minute, taking the lead relatively early in the game.

“It was my first goal of the season, it felt amazing.” Decker said.

In the second half the Hornets intensity died down between the two teams, and in the 87^th minute TSU scored their first goal, tying the match and sending it into overtime.

“In soccer you can’t go all out (for) 90 minutes,” Schneiderhahn said. “There is a rhythm of play. When the opportunity is on, you need to push the issue, when it’s not you need to hold back.”

In the first overtime both teams were working off responding to the goal by TSU, but neither team scored.

“We tried to hold them at the one goal (lead) but it didn’t work out,” Decker said. “We had a lot of offensive opportunities. We need to work on finishing games.”

Coach Schneiderhahn agreed.

“Sometimes we play too pretty soccer, and sometimes we have to win ugly. Luck favors the bold, and we’re learning to be that way,” Schneiderhahn said.

The second overtime brought about renewed intensity between the Hornets and TSU as they strived for the upper hand. In the overtime neither team was able to put the necessary goal in.

“We got very lucky (with the last shot),” Schmitz said. “A tie is not a win, we’re still not satisfied with that.”

With the Hornets tie match their record is now 1-8-4 for the season and 1-7-3 in the MIAA.

“There is something to be said that we didn’t play very well and Truman is a good team.” Schneiderhahn said. “We just ended their season as far as conference title goes.

The Hornets next home appearance will be Thursday, October 28^th against rival Washburn University at 4 p.m.

Chris Dvorak

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Catie Hyde works to maintain possession against Missouri Western Saturday afternoon at the ESU Pitch. Jon Coffey/ The Bulletin

The ESU Soccer team tied Missouri Western State University this Saturday, playing very well after their 4-1 loss to The University of Central Missouri earlier in the week.

“We all went into this one thinking that it was the one we were going to get,” said Jessica Decker, junior midfielder. ”We’ve been connecting really well as a team lately… If we keep it up we’re going to get a win.”

Despite the tie, the Hornets felt optimistic about their performance and a general team cohesiveness that they have been improving on.

At the beginning the Hornets were playing sluggishly but they picked up their offense and played well for most of the regulation.

“I was worried for the first 25-30 minutes of the match, we weren’t looking like we were in it,” said Head Coach Jim Schneiderhahn. “Eventually we perked it up and started to do some good things.”

The Hornets kept MWSU on the defensive, playing aggressively and keeping control of the pace of the game.

“We did much better in the defending, we didn’t give up any opportunities,” Schneiderhahn said. “We’ve had a bad habit of allowing a goal that shouldn’t have happened.”

In the overtime periods, MWSU picked up their game, and the Hornets stagnated, producing only one shot compared to MWSU’s four.

“The main thing is we need to take on their players,” Decker said. “A lot of times we go to (the) sideline instead of directly to the goal. That’ll get more opportunities for us.”

The Hornets had good opportunities to score, but blocks by the goalie, ball mishandling, and general bad luck prevented the Hornets from making any goals. After opening up the season with a 0-0 tie, the Hornets again played 110 minutes of action with the same result.

“We hit the posts a couple times, their keeper made a couple saves, we fumbled away a couple opportunities,” Schneiderhahn said. “It’s hard when you come so close and battle so hard, but it is something to build on. It’s one match to the next. The goal is for us to get better every day.”

The Hornets also out shot their opponents 18-10, with eight being shots on goal compared to MWSU’s five shots on goal.

“We need to work on getting quality shots on goal,” Decker said. “We need to focus more to make the shots.”

The Hornets next will travel to The University of Nebraska-Omaha today for their next match.

Chris Hopkins

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ESU returned to the pitch this Thursday to take on the #3 ranked Jennies of Central Missouri. After sticking with the Jennies for 70 minutes of play Hornets fell 4-1.

“I thought that we did really well,” said Head Coach Jim Schneiderhahn. “They’re a good team, but we did a lot of things that they struggled against. We gave up a bad goal on number three, and that really kind of took the air out of us.”

The Hornets found themselves down a pair of goals early, but continued to fight hard after a goal by Sarah Anderson in the 30^th minute of play that went over the outstretched hands of the goalie. ESU would enter the half only down a goal to the third ranked team in the nation.

The second half showed a resurgence of energy from the Hornets especially during the initial 20 minutes of the half in which the Hornets controlled possession.

“We knew that they were going to come out and be really strong in the second half because we were really close with them… but our focus in the second half was to come out stronger than they were,” Anderson said.

Though the beginning of the half started strong, the Jennies answered the call with a goal by Alyssa Rhodes in the 70^th minute, followed by a goal five minutes later by Carly Standley.

The Hornets continued to struggle offensively only generating two shots to 15 by the Jennies. Going in the Hornets looked to produce at least one shot per forward but were unable to register many chances.

Schneiderhahn compared the offensive struggles to a baseball player waiting for the perfect pitch.

“It’s like in baseball when you’re pressing at the plate,” Schneiderhahn said. “You’re looking for that perfect pitch to hit, and if you’re looking for the perfect pitch to hit, you ain’t going to get it. It’s very similar in soccer. They’re looking for that perfect opportunity where everything lights up and they got the perfect shot to go into the corner of the net, and that ain’t going to happen.”

Defender Nikki Dittman was the other Hornet able to generate a shot in the second half. ESU was also outplayed in corner kicks, allowing 10 and registering only three.

The Hornets look to regroup and stay at the pitch for their next game against Missouri Western at 1 p.m. Saturday Oct. 2.

Brandon Schneeberger

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In spite of lineup changes and a seven-day break from action, The Emporia State Hornets were unable to come away with a victory in Sunday afternoon’s contest against the Bearcats of Northwest Missouri, 1-0.

The first half saw the results of a team that had an extra few days of practice holding the Bearcats scoreless throughout. Head Coach Jim Schneiderhahn recognized the benefits of having the extra practice time.

“It allowed us to change the system of play, and I liked what we did,” Schneiderhahn said. “I thought we strung some things together pretty well.”

Though for much of the game the Hornets showed significant improvement in terms of maintaining possession, they were unable to capitalize on goal opportunities.

“It’s a game where we don’t get points based on how many passes we string together. We get points by putting the ball in the net, and we need to do better at that right now,” Schneiderhahn said.

The Hornets were able to hold serve until the 77th minute when Emilee Davison of Northwest Missouri scored on a goal that went off of goalie Katrina Goscha’s gloves. The best opportunity for ESU came off a breakaway in the second half in which Amanda Penney’s shot was just a few feet too high.

“I wanted to do anything I could to try to just get a goal in,” Penney said. “I was just hoping that it would go in.”

Penney also noticed the improvement that the lineup change should bring throughout the season.

“I felt like that lineup was good I liked our new formation today. I think it worked really well cause our forwards are a little more dynamic, and we got some new people up top and I think that helped a lot,” Penney said.

The Hornets were led by freshman midfielder Hannah Carlson who had three shots. HolliSchletzbaum and Penney both added two apiece. Overall the Hornets were outshot 15 to nine.

“We made some typical mistakes that you make whenever you start with a new system,” Schneiderhahn said. “I think… we have to be willing to take more risks when the time comes. (The) perfect shot’s not going to happen. We have to be willing to just take a shot on goal and see what happens.”

The Hornets look to improve on the game when they face Truman on Thursday. The next home game is scheduled for 4 p.m. Sept. 30.

Brandon Schneeberger

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The Hornets took on the Bearcats of South West Baptist University despite the rain last Thursday. After falling behind quickly in the first half, ESU lost the match 5-2.

The Hornets spent most of the game battling from behind as the Bearcats opened up with a goal in the first seven minutes by Ashley Creason. Creason would waste no time scoring her second goal three minutes later.

Troubles continued for the Hornets after Marene Gomez of SBU scored only minutes after Creason’s second goal. Jim Schneiderhahn, the head coach for the Hornets, recognized the slow start.

“We were more concerned with other things,” Schneiderhahn said. “I don’t know if it was the fact that this was a school day, or if it was the dreary weather or what the deal was. I didn’t see what we needed to be successful in the first 20 minutes.”

Despite the slow start, the Hornets would battle back with a goal of their own by junior defender Hollie Schletzbaum.

“I had like a foot of space to play the ball in and I just didn’t want to miss,” Schletzbaum said.

ESU had another shot at a goal late in the first after a shot by sophomore forward Ashley Hill went wide off the opposing goalie’s gloves.

The second half started much like the first as SBU scored in the first couple of minutes on a goal by Haley Edgar. Creason would follow with her third goal giving her a hat-trick on the day.

Though the deficit would prove to be too much for the Hornets to comeback against, they were able find the back of the net in the second half after a goal by Ashley Hill.

“Everybody was confused because they thought it was an offsides, but Sarah (Anderson) crossed it and (I) just played it in the goal,” Hill said. “We just need to work on having our mentality coming into the game ready to play and coming out from the very start.”

The Hornets last opportunity to score would come on a shot by Lauren Cathey late in the second half. With this loss ESU drops to 0-2-1 on the season, losing their second in a row.

“We can’t come out here and be flat,” Schneiderhahn said. “That’s two in a row. We have to sort out what is going to get us motivated to play.”

The Hornets will face North West Missouri on Sept. 19 for their next home match.

Brandon Schneeberger

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The Emporia State Hornets came up short in their second outing this season against the East Central Tigers. After falling behind early, the Hornets were unable to catch up, eventually losing the match 2-0.

Head Coach Jim Schneiderhahn noticed the same problems that plagued the Hornets Friday evening. Despite producing more shot attempts, the Hornets continued to lack aggressive play in the attacking third.

“We have to be smarter in the shots we take. We’ve got to be more willing to take risks in the attacking third,”  Schneiderhahn said. “We can work on shooting all day long, but at the end of it, it comes to making the decision to put the ball on frame, and we’re not doing it right now.”

Defensively the Hornets showed improvement throughout the game. In the first half, Sarah Duvall wasted no time scoring the first goal for the Tigers on an assist from Molly Hummel in the first 15 minutes. Later that half Hummel scored the second goal for the Tigers.

The Hornets showed their resiliency on defense allowing only one shot during the second half.

“Defensively… I thought that we started to sort it out. I think that they need to be stronger on the ball. We had too many people picking themselves off the floor for us today,” Schneiderhahn said.

The second half showed more promise for the hornets offensively as well. Although unable to cash in on her opportunities, midfielder Hannah Carlson showed promise in her second career game for the Hornets.

“The pace was so fast. I was trying to get in there and get one for us, but unfortunately it didn’t fall my way but hopefully next time,” Carlson said. “We didn’t show up today, but I know we’re capable of much more. We need to be that team that scores first and set the pace of the game and not let the other team set it for us.”

The Hornets were led on offense by Jessica Decker with four shots. Ashley Hill, Hannah Carlson, Kylie McCullough, and Amanda Penney each added one shot to the total. Although outshot nine to three in the first half, the hornets generated five shots to the Tigers one in the second half.

“(Our) main concerns (would) probably be connecting with our forwards. We haven’t done that so well, so hopefully we’ll do some drills helping us connect with them,” said Decker.

Going forward the Hornets look to improve before playing Southwest Baptist at home Thursday at 4 p.m.

Brandon Schneeberger

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The Emporia State soccer team added another loss against the Washburn Lady Blues on Nov. 1 at the ESU Pitch, 1-2. Now ESU (1-15-1 on the season) is faced with a 12 game losing streak.

ESU has not had a win since they defeated Missouri Western, 1-0, on Sep. 17.

ESU played very aggressively during their first possession. They got a first corner kick chance and missed the shot on the goal. Even though they did not make the goal, the team was still confident. The Lady Blues’ luck was absent – a shot by WU from the middle distance in the first half hit the crossbar.

However, Washburn dominated the game with their good pass work skills. They shot the ball seven times during just eight minutes. It was a one sided game. WU kept the ball nearly the entire match. Junior goalkeeper Katrina Goscha was very busy, while the Washburn goal keeper was doing nothing. Goscha showed great defense; she did not allow any goals in the first half, even though WU tried nine shots. Near the end of the first half, senior forward Tina Commons had many chances to score, but she did not succeed. ESU finished the first half 0-0.

WU kept pushing against ESU in the second half. Finally the tie was broken at minute 73. Washburn forward Keeley Lambeth shot the ball high at the right corner. The ball went into the net over Goscha’s hand.

“It was an unfortunate goal,” Goscha said. “It was a real fluke.”

WU was never satisfied with their first goal. Nine minutes after their first goal, they had a second chance. Washburn forward Tia Stovall made a second score with her right in-step kick assisted by midfielder Ashley Taylor.

The Hornets never gave up. They were trying to keep attacking even though they did not have enough time to upset the Lady Blues. Commons shot the ball in front of the goal area at the 87th minute –the ball hit the left side of the goal net, which brought the score to 1-2, but there was no time to celebrate.

ESU did not have enough fire power for the game. Freshmen forwards Ashley Hill (four goals on the season) and Amanda Penny could not play due to illness and family-related issues.

“I appreciate to the effort of players,” said Head Coach Jim Schneiderhahn. “This game really showed we were lacking who is missing right now. It is a personal concern. We missed some players because of flu and family things. We were just short handed.”

Commons had a good performance by making her second goal of the season. Her first goal of this season was also against Washburn on Oct.15.

“I am definitely not so happy,” Commons said. “I got a lot of chances and enough opportunities. We had to score before first goal.”

Schneiderhahn was satisfied with her Commons’ play.

“Tina is tremendous,” Schneiderhahn said. “She started a little slowly this year comeback from off-season surgery. The last three weeks, she was a one of the most consistent players…she does simple things very well. We should do that more to compete.”

The Hornets now have two more games in the season. The team would like to get their first home game win in front of many ESU students. Schneiderhahn has a strong belief in his players – he does not feel any pressure about the 12-game losing streak

“I think pressure is self imposed,” Schneiderhahn said. “I can not look at that and worry about it. My job is to try and coach the girls to my best ability and hopefully be successful…it is about us trying to succeed.”

Schneiderhahn has a confidence about rest of his season, as well.

“We’ve got two more games,” Schneiderhahn said. “We try to prove to everybody that we are not as bad as we look. We are looking at the big picture. It is lucky that we have more opportunities to prove ourselves.”

JungHwan Seo/The Bulletin

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Midfielder/Forward Lauren Cathey looks to pass Sunday afternoon on the ESU Pitch. The Hornets fell to the Mavericks 1-4. Kellen Jenkins/The Bulletin.

The Emporia State University Hornets soccer team fell short to the University of Nebraska-Omaha Mavericks by 4-1 on Sunday afternoon. The Hornets had seven shots on goal for the day, while holding the Mavericks to only 12.

Freshman midfielder/defender Ashley Hill scored the lone goal for the Hornets from a pass from senior forward Tina Commons during the 44^th minute of the match. The goal was Hill’s fourth of the season, while Commons added her first assist.

The Hornets had a total of nine shots on the day, seven on goal. Commons led the way for the Hornets on the day with three shots, followed closely by senior forward/midfielder Amanda Miano with two. Hill, senior goal keeper Katrina Goscha, senior midfielder/forward Raquel White, and sophomore midfielder/forward Sarah Anderson all had one shot.

Freshman goal keeper Nikki Schmitz had a total of eight saves on the day, allowing four goals.

Although the team fell short on the afternoon, they looked much more physical than in previous outings.

“Our defense especially has been working on being more physical, but as a team in general we’re trying to be more physical,” Commons said. “Sometimes we do get pushed around, and we can’t take that. We’re in college soccer and we can’t get bullied around.”

Injuries also seem to plague the Hornets this year, with three starters already out, and a fourth going down right before the game. Head Coach Jim Schneiderhahn doesn’t seem to be worried about playing his reserve players.

“Hard work is not an option,” Schneiderhahn said. “Regardless, if we had two subs on the sideline or 20, you ask any coach, hard work is not an option – it’s a requirement.”

Forward Amanda Penney works to shoot past a defender Sunday afternoon on the ESU Pitch. The Hornets fell to the Mavericks 1-4. Kellen Jenkins/The Bulletin.

The Hornets were playing the ball and playing defensively stronger than they had in past games.

“It’s our own field, so we have our own little mentality of how the ball is going to be played, and where it’s going to be played,” Commons said. “Especially with your own team, you can see and feel where it’s going to be played at.”

The Hornets still are optimistic about the upcoming games.

“We have to keep working hard, keep our heads up,” Hill said.

“They say losing is character building, we’ve got a lot of character over the past two years,” Schneiderhahn said. “I think losing is certainly a harsher critic, where your mistakes are exposed. I think in the euphoria of wins, you have a tendency to overlook your mistakes or discount them a little bit. We continue to look at film, make adjustments and get better. We still need some other players to give us a hand. The biggest thing I take from it; I like the way that we’re battling. As I told the girls after the game, I have no qualms with the effort in the past matches. I have no disappointment and I’m not ticked off with the lack of effort. It’s nice to see, because sometime we haven’t had that.”

The Hornets will be back in action at 2 p.m. Oct. 22 at the ESU pitch against the Northwest Missouri State University Bearcats.

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