The William Smith College soccer team is back on the pitch preparing for the 2009 season after earning a 16-2-5 overall record, a Liberty League Championship, and a trip to the national semifinals last fall. The Herons, who are ranked fourth in the National Soccer Coaches Association of America's (NSCAA) preseason poll, return 12 veterans with experience in the starting lineup.

William Smith lost three impact players to graduation; All-American defender Ali Art, midfielder Julia Bernay, and two-time first-team All-Liberty League midfielder Rayza Santiago. The leadership and skill each provided was vital to the team's success. Art headlined a defense that allowed 13 goals and registered 14 shutouts in 2008, while Bernay and Santiago brought stability to the offense. After tallying three goals and four assists last year, Santiago finished her career with 11 goals and nine helpers, while Bernay wrapped her career with three goals and two assists.

“We're working to take form as quickly as we can,” Head Coach Aliceann Wilber said. “Last year is history. We have another new young group and we graduated some big personas, which necessitates an adjustment as we try to get it back together.”

Wilber, the 2008 NSCAA National Coach of the Year, welcomes back 21 veterans, including the top three scorers from 2008—junior BreLynn Nasypany, sophomore Kate Redmond, and senior Katelyn Tyson—who combined for 24 of the squad's 38 goals.

Here's a full position-by-position look at the 2009 Herons:

FORWARD

Nasypany, a 2008 All-American, the reigning Liberty League Player of the Year, and a first-team NSCAA all-region, and first team all-conference selection, led the Liberty League in goals (15), points (35), and game-winning goals (8). She registered at least one point in 13 of William Smith's matches last year, and scored twice in four of those games.

Returning alongside Nasypany is another speedy forward, Redmond. The All-Liberty League honorable mention pick totaled five goals and three helpers last season, including the game-winner in the Herons' 1-0 double-overtime victory vs. Amherst in the NCAA quarterfinal round.

Two first-years look to make an immediate impact up front with Nasypany and Redmond. Renee Jensen and Morgan Gibeault had a productive preseason, and both are expected to see significant time on the pitch.

MIDFIELD

In the midfield, Tyson will lead the charge after starting all 23 games and tallying four goals (2 game-winners), and two assists last fall. Sophomores Chelsea England, Jamie Sawyer, and Mary Jameson will join her. England started five of the 18 games she played in last season, and scored her first collegiate goal in a 3-0 win over RIT. Sawyer played in 22 games with 21 starts, and finished with a goal and an assist on the year. Her tally came in the first match of the season, a 2-0 victory vs. Scranton. Jameson played in 12 games, and is currently working her way back from an injury. All four bring solid experience to the position.

First-year Whitney Frary is also expected to make an immediate impact in the midfield. She's impressed the coaches in preseason with her poise and athleticism, and will look to fill the hole left by Santiago.

Junior Emmy Potter, and sophomores Leslie Carrese and Leah Shatkin, will fill in as needed in the midfield or on the defensive end. All saw considerable time on the pitch last fall, playing in 13, 17, and 18 games, respectively.

DEFENSE

On defense, sophomores Alyse Dicenzo, Sarah Tarantino, and Jessie Tarantino will be the anchors. Dicenzo (1 goal) and Jessie Tarantino (2 goals, 1 assist) both jumped straight into starting roles as rookies, while Sarah Tarantino (3 goals) worked her way into a starting spot in the midfield halfway through the season. Sarah will make the switch to defense this fall, and her twin, Jessie, will join her on the back line when she rebounds from an injury.

Joining the Heron defensive unit will be first-years Emily D'Addario and Claire Criniti. They will battle it out for a starting spot, as Jessie is rehabbing. Additionally, senior Hannah Vaughn will add depth and experience to the position.

GOALIE

Standout sophomore goalkeeper Amanda Davis returns in net for William Smith. Last fall, she collected first-team NSCAA all-region and all-conference honors, and was named to the NCAA All-Tournament Team, after notching nine shutouts and a 10-1-5 mark in goal. Davis finished the year ranked 10th in the nation in both goals against average (0.43) and save percentage (.890).

Backing up Davis will be senior Libby Greene and junior Alexandra Chase. Chase played in 10 matches last fall, started six, and registered a 0.73 goals against average and a .800 save percentage. Greene, a strong leader who attended the NCAA's 2009 National Student-Athlete Development Conference over the summer, saw action in two games. Junior Carly Schwartz will likely join the varsity squad as another back-up keeper after she recovers from an illness that has kept her out of preseason action.

After opening the season at Nazareth, a 2008 NCAA Tournament participant, on Sept. 1, the Herons will head to Baltimore to participate in the highly-competitive Johns Hopkins Tournament. The four teams in the tournament—No. 4 William Smith, No. 6 Johns Hopkins, No. 8 Washington (Mo.), and No. 10 Lynchburg—all reached the second round of the NCAA Tournament and posted a combined 70-8-14 record in 2008, with half of those losses coming in NCAA Tournament play.

All tolled, the Herons' schedule features eight teams that competed in the NCAA tournament last fall. Including the four powerhouses mentioned above, William Smith will also square off against Rochester (Sept. 17), No. 9 Ithaca (Sept. 30), No. 25 Skidmore (Oct. 24), and Union (Oct. 25). The Herons will play their first home game of the year on Sept. 12, when they take on the Blue Jays in the first match of the Heron Cup at 11 a.m.