Female athlete of the week

Name: Ashley Habbel Sport: Women’s soccer Year: Sophomore Major:… Name: Ashley Habbel Sport: Women’s soccer Year: Sophomore Major: Plans on going into education Favorite Oakland Spot: Chipotle Favorite Food: Macaroni and cheese Hobbies: Hanging out with friends Favorite Sports besides Soccer: Football and basketball

Left shin guard sleeve, left sock, left shin guard, right shin guard sleeve, right sock, right shin guard and then the cleats.

Those are the steps that sophomore Ashley Habbel takes every time she puts on her gear before games.

“I don’t know why, but I just have to do it that way,” she said, also adding that she has “that nervous, excited feeling” before games.

Also prior to contests, she likes to listen to music.

“I just take my iPod and put it on shuffle,” Habbel said.

“There’s rap on there, there’s rock, there’s punk, there’s everything on there. It has to be a fast-paced song, though. It can’t be slow. I know some girls on the team like the slower songs, but I can’t do that.”

Habbel, who says her favorite movie is “Dumb and Dumber” and a few of her favorite TV shows are “Grey’s Anatomy” and “The Hills,” is only a sophomore, but has been playing soccer long before coming to Pitt.

She said she started playing in recreational leagues when she was 5.

“I had a knack for it,” Habbel said. “I was better at that than any other sport. I stood with it and succeeded pretty well, so decided to go with it.”

So far, it has paid off for both her and the Panthers.

Last Friday, Habbel assisted Jennifer Kritch on a goal during the Panthers’ 2-1 victory over Syracuse. It was Habbel’s third assist of the year.

With the assist, Habbel now has 24 points in her short time at Pitt. With just five more points, she’ll move onto Pitt’s all-time career points list. In her season and a half as a Panther, she’s scored 10 goals to go with her four assists.

Habbel’s 11 points this season place her ninth in the Big East, and her four goals put her in a tie for eighth. Of those four goals, three have won games for the Panthers and has her tied for first in the Big East in game-winners.

The Panthers are 6-4 so far this year, and Habbel has played a large part in the team’s success. She also figures to be a large part of any future success the team might have.

“We’re making strides, we’re making progress and I think since we’re a young team it’s only going to get better,” Habbel said.