Women’s soccer: Two goalkeepers compete for starting spot

For the last four years, former Pitt soccer goalkeeper Morie Kephart helped make the Panthers… For the last four years, former Pitt soccer goalkeeper Morie Kephart helped make the Panthers one of the most difficult teams to score on in the Big East.

But this year, Kephart will stick to the sidelines as a volunteer assistant coach for the team. Senior Kristina Rioux and redshirt freshman Nicole D’Agostino will compete to fill that void.

Head coach Sue-Moy Chin said she expects both players to welcome the challenge.

“I expect both of them to step up,” she said. “We’re not sure who is going to start yet, but it will be a great battle and exciting competition.”

The biggest challenge facing the two goalkeepers is a lack of playing time. Due to Kephart’s consistency — she led the nation with a .926 save percentage in 2009 and set school career records for shutouts (19) and wins (20) — she was almost always on the field.

“[Consistency in the goal] is something you want and stress for,” Chin said. “Solid and consistent goalkeeping can keep you in games, and it’s a great reassurance to have. In that regard, Morie was very solid and consistent for the past three seasons for us and having her leadership and high level of play in the back was a huge plus.”

Kephart’s success as a goalkeeper didn’t leave many minutes for Rioux or D’Agostino.

“There will be a learning curve for both, but I expect both to be able to adjust quickly and play at a high level,” Chin said.

Rioux, a native of Montreal, Quebec, has been Kephart’s backup for the past three years. D’Agostino redshirted this past season.

Rioux agreed that she can overcome her weaknesses with an increase in playing time.

“I definitely need to work on being more commanding, but that really comes with experience,” she said. “I just need to get a better feel for the play forming in front of me and work on organizing my defenders.”

D’Agostino, however, described herself as loud, with a good presence in the net.

“I do need to build my confidence back up after coming back from surgery and not playing a game in over a year,” she said.

Both goalies are coming back from leg injuries. D’Agostino is returning from ACL surgery while Rioux missed time last season with a broken leg.

“I tore my ACL in the spring of my senior year of high school and had surgery that summer,” D’Agostino said. “I had a second surgery in March just to clean some things up. But rehab has gone really well and I have been getting stronger, and I’m ready to get back out on the field.”

Rioux shared similar feelings.

“I expected to get some playing time last year, but then I broke my leg and it put me out for two months,” she said. “It really threw me off, but now I’m fine and ready for the season.”

Chin said the decision of which player starts will be determined on the field.

“Kristina has quick feet and probably her biggest asset is that she has seen this level of play,” Chin said. “She is a fierce and determined competitor who has trained at the Division I level the past few years backing up Morie. Nicole has great size and great hands. We definitely look for her to be our goalie of the future, but that doesn’t mean she will start this fall.”

Both girls put the success of the team before the hope of earning a starting position, saying that a strong performance in the Big East tournament was their goal. However, both D’Agostino and Rioux said they believed they could earn the starting spot.

“I think we will both get playing time, but we’re going to have to fight for it,” D’Agostino said. “I don’t think there will be a definitive starter, at least not at the beginning of the year.”

Regardless of who starts, Chin said she does not foresee a drop-off in consistency or production from her goalie.

“We don’t want a drop-off in level of play at all,” Chin said. “They are going to need to be able to organize the back four and also to be a calming influence. The expectations are the same but the personnel is different.”