Staci Burt has never been lacking in ability -- she's the record holder in career goals at the University of Utah. Now, however, after a summer of playing nearly constant soccer, the Ute senior is beaming with a new-found confidence that could trivialize her previous collegiate accolades.
"I feel 100 times better," said Burt, who graduated from Cottonwood in 1996. "My shooting could be better, but my speed of play has picked up tremendously. I'm making quicker decisions, and I have a better first touch on the ball."All of this skill honing was a part of Burt's summer in the Windy City.
Burt was a member of the Chicago Cobras semiprofessional team in the W-League. Her team was one of six teams in the league, and the Cobras finished 15-0 in the regular season before bowing out 3-2 in a shootout to Raleigh in the championship.
Burt started on the squad at right wing, even though she only scored one goal and tacked on five assists during the season. "We pretty much had our forwards taken care of. They had a hat trick every game," said Burt.
One of those forwards was Charmaine Hooper, the Canadian national teamer who's regarded as one of the world's top players. Virtually every one of Burt's Cobra teammates were former collegiate all-Americans. Raleigh's lineup included U.S. national teamer Cindy Parlow and Wendy GeBauer, the ABC/ESPN broadcaster.
"At first I was really stressed out, and I was scared," said Burt. "But I felt comfortable after the first three weeks. They demanded a lot out of me."
The summer of fun is over for Burt, and it's time to return to reality. Having the energized and hungry Burt back makes kicking off the season that much more exciting for Utah coach Amy Freeman-Winslow.
"Staci Burt has grown so much this summer playing everyday in Chicago," Freeman-Winslow said.
The Utah coach hopes that growth transpires into immediate success as the Utes open their 1999 season Friday at 5 p.m. against Idaho State at Ute Field. Last year Utah went 12-7 and finished in fourth place in the WAC's Pacific Division.
Freeman-Winslow knows what to expect out of seniors like Burt, Bernie Hogan, Tonya Dansereau and Dana Bolton, but half of Utah's roster remains a mystery.
When the soccer program began in 1995, virtually every one of those 24 players from the opening-season team were freshmen. Each year some of those players lost their rosters spots as new freshmen arrived, but for 10 of them, they comprised the heart of Utah's team last year. They're gone now, and their replacements are a bunch of 18 year olds.
"I don't feel like we're rebuilding. I feel it's another step in the program," said Freeman-Winslow. "We have a couple of freshman starting, and I see a couple more freshman starting as the season goes on. It may or may not happen depending on how the upperclassmen react."
Starting with Burt up top will be sophomore Alli Cerruti and redshirt freshman Shauna Gurr. A knee injury sidelined the Woods Cross graduate last year, but her speed should be a nice addition to the Ute lineup.
Sophomore Amy Kofoed will anchor the midfield, a Ute who participated in the U.S. soccer festival in Portland last month. She will be joined by Dansereau and freshman Katie Tate.
Defense is where the majority of Utah's experience lies with returning starters Mondis Ariazand of Skyline; Bolton, who played summer ball in California's Fila league; and Hogan of West Jordan. Maren Harper a freshman from California will get the nod at the other fullback position.
Goalkeeper duties belong to Courtney Hills, a redshirt freshman keeper who set Mountain View and Utah state records with 33 career shutouts. The scenario could get a little interesting for the Utes if Hills should get injured because she's the team's only keeper.
Last year's starter, Tawni Martineau, graduated, as did the team's primary back-up. Redshirt freshman Amber Royster was supposed to compete with Hills for playing time this fall, but she withdrew from school for a semester. Hills' health could be just as important to Utah's success as molding in new players.
Unlike in past years, Utah's talent doesn't fall off after the starting 11. "It's so exciting to have the depth we have," said Freeman-Winslow. "There's so much speed on the bench."
Some of the players whom the Ute coach envisions cracking the starting lineup sometime this year include Brittany Harlan, a sophomore transfer from BYU, and freshmen Sandi Fouts, Megan Maxwell and Skyline's Cortney Johanson.
Even though Utah will be playing in the Mountain West Conference this year, its goals are the same as are the teams the Utes are pursuing.
"Our ultimate goal is to compete for the top three spots in the conference," said Freeman-Winslow. "And San Diego State and BYU will be the two teams to beat."
With Burt's experience, and perhaps Harlan's inside knowledge of some Cougar idiosyncracies, perhaps Utah can finally get its first win over BYU and make a run at the conference title.