Ninth-year head coach Diane Drake took some time to preview the 2012 season and talk about some changes to the lineup after losing players to graduation last season. The women's soccer team kicks off the new campaign on Friday, August 17 at St. John's at 7 p.m.

Lyndse Hokanson returns as the Patriot's primary goalkeeper having earned a lot of playing time last season. What do you expect to see from Lyndse this season and who will help her out in net?
"Lyndse has come back with a very determined position - she is fearless, committed and has really impressed the coaching staff in preseason. She has an extreme dedication to leadership and is striving to be the best that she can be. One of the biggest areas that she has excelled in is her voice - her communication in the back. She recognizes that our backline graduated a lot of players and that she has to step up and lead them as they grow as a defensive unit.

"Briana Kottler had a strong, breakout spring playing in some really big games and getting some solid playing time. She really demonstrated to the coaching staff her ability to come out, make big decisions and organize her backline in different situations. She still needs to be a little cleaner in catching the ball and her positioning and that's what's going to land her more playing time this fall. We also recruited a strong goalkeeper in Laura Glew, unfortunately, right now she is sidelined with an injury until further examination."   

What changes will there be in the backline this season after losing a few players to graduation?
"I think our backline is going to be a little bit younger, but probably more intelligent top to bottom and more disciplined this year. The way we play is going to be a little different than the way we played in the past. We've successfully recruited two very talented Southern California defenders and as they continue to understand the demands of the college game, we think their contribution will continually grow.

"Liz Agiato will see additional playing time on the backline. She played there all spring based on our need and has handled the position very well. Nicole Clark also spent time on the back. So we've moved athletic, technical players that know the game of soccer and have moved them into the back. We also have Dani O'Brien in the back. She was out all spring with an injury, but she is recovering very nicely and we expect her to see some playing time."

The team's leading scorer from last year returns in Tiana Kallenberger. However, the team lost its second leading scorer in Zoe Doherty. Who will the team look to on the front line to step up?
"I think we had an incredible spring out of Emily Harvey. I think between the combination of Emily Harvey and Liz Hodges, coupled with Tiana, who is playing better than I've ever seen her play, those three will be largely responsible for the bulk of our goals up front. I think freshmen Sydney Mitchell and Emma Starr combined with Kelly Pizzingrilli, Liz Agiato and Jazmin Cardoso, will be very large contributors to our goals. I think if those girls can score four or five goals apiece, and we can get six-to-seven goals out of the others up front, I think we are going to have a fantastic season."

How will the return of a strong core of players help the team reach postseason play?
"I think we had one of the most rewarding spring seasons I've ever had as a coach this past spring. Our returning core of players is a really hard-working, blue collar and disciplined group of athletes. To be honest, I feel that they are the most pleasurable group that I have coached in a long time and that's going to go so far. We are going to play hard and play as a team.

"So for us, we have a really challenging schedule ahead of us. It's just going to be a matter of which players rise out of their comfort zone and take the game, or even season, on their backs. That's going to be the difference between getting to the tournament or not - meaning the CAA Tournament and even the NCAA Tournament. We have the schedule in place, now we just have to be able to win the games needed and gel as a unit much earlier in the season than in the past."

What will be the primary goal of preseason camp?
"We have a great group of players returning and even though we aren't dealing with such a large turnover as we did last year, we still have a 15 player changeup to work on. But I think the understanding of what we have is pretty strong. It's not going to be too difficult for us to figure out what we have and it's really going to depend on what type of shape these kids come back in. They left here in fantastic shape and if they can come back here in good shape, we're going to concentrate on putting pieces of the puzzle together quickly as opposed to fitness and conditioning. Instead, we can concentrate on our system."