Soccer: Rags to Riches

When a small group of women got together in the spring of 1976 at the IAB and played informal games of soccer--receiving occasional help and tips from members of the men's varsity--they had no idea that they were the forerunners of a team that would rise in a few short years to rank seventh among women's teams in the United States.

Right now the Crimson booters are riding high on a wave of success--they just won their third Ivy Championship in the fourth year of the tournament, five freshmen were named to the All Ivy first team, and the squad is hoping to win a spot at the AIAW Nationals in North Carolina in two weeks--a far cry from the inauspicious start of the team five years ago.

Coach Bob Scalise, who has guided the team from its inception, says that the difference between today's squad and the first team is that "now the players have extensive soccer experience whereas before the girls had an interest in soccer but never had had an opportunity to play."

"Those first girls laid the groundwork," he adds.

In the fall of 1976 about 15 to 20 women formed a soccer club and asked freshman soccer coach Scalise to help them out. "The girls practiced frequently and wanted to learn how to play well and have fun at the same time," last year's co-captain, Sue St. Louis remembers.

The following year--bolstered by Title IX's guarantee of equal funding to men's and women's sports, as well as intense lobbying at the Athletic Department--the club rose to Varsity Level II status and compiled a season record of 9-2-1.

"We threw together a strategy through a lack of skills, or skills in the making," St. Louis recalls, adding, "We were so good to each other and it was a pleasure to play together. Our minds clicked together."

The 1978 season saw the booters rise to Varsity Level I status with full Athletic Department support. Rolling to a 13-1 record, and relying upon a quickly-paced kick and run strategy, the Crimson won the first annual Women's Ivy Tournament at Brown.

Scalise had, according to St. Louis, "changed a ragtime bunch of girls into an Ivy League championship team."

The following season was equally successful; with all but one player returning the booters notched a 15-1 season, winning the Ivy Tournament again and tying for first in the Eastern Soccer Championships.

In the fall of 1980--minus many of the original players--the booters experienced their first frustrating year with a 14-7 season, placing third in both the Ivy and Eastern championships. The highly talented teams that had been forming during the booters' first two seasons now offered them a stiff challenge, forcing them to drop several of their key matches. The Crimson did go on, however, to place third in a national tournament in Colorado Springs--a result that restored confidence in their talents.

This year the entire soccer program has been revamped to accomodate incoming freshmen with past experience and ability. "Because of youth programs in junior and senior high schools started a few years ago, the girls are coming in well-versed in the basics," Scalise notes.

"We now are concentrating on tactical considerations," he adds. "These players are fantastic athletes who not only run well and are strong, but who also have a background in the fundamentals."