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Owens Community College is expanding its intercollegiate athletic programs by announcing the creation of a new women’s soccer team. The Express program will officially begin NJCAA competition during the 2011 fall season and serve as a club sport this upcoming 2010 fall semester.
The recommendation for the new women’s soccer program was officially approved during the regularly scheduled Owens Board of Trustees meeting.
“Owens Community College intercollegiate athletics and our student-athletes are committed to excellence both within the classroom and on the athletic playing field,” said Michael Rickard, Owens Director of Athletics. “The Northwest Ohio region is known statewide and beyond for its exceptional soccer programs both at the high school and college levels. Owens is proud to build upon that tradition with the establishment of a new intercollegiate women’s soccer program. Our ultimate goal for women’s soccer is to become one of the elite programs in the country.”
The Express women’s soccer program will become a Division II member of the NJCAA. Owens will primarily compete against other colleges and universities from Ohio, Michigan and Pennsylvania, including Cincinnati State, Lorain County, Jackson, Schoolcraft, Delta and Ohio Northern University and Mercyhurst North East, among others. Matches will be scheduled from late August through October.
Owens new women’s soccer club team is currently under the leadership of Art Johnson, the veteran coach of the men’s soccer team, and his assistants Jeremiah McNutt and Keith Closson. During his tenure at Owens, Johnson-led teams have compiled a 128-100-15 overall record. Express men’s soccer finished with a 12-7-1 overall record during the 2009 fall campaign.
According to Rickard, Owens plans to begin a search for a permanent coach to lead the new women’s soccer program in the near future.
The Express women’s soccer program becomes the eighth intercollegiate athletic program offered at Owens. The seven other sports include men’s baseball, women’s softball, men’s golf, men’s basketball, women’s basketball, men’s soccer and women’s volleyball.
An information meeting was held last week to begin both men’s and women’s cross country teams. Conditioning begins Aug. 16 with Owens’ Findlay campus being the practice venue. Both cross country teams will still be considered club teams this year.
Teams the Owens harriers expect to compete against include Defiance, Tiffin, Bluffton, Adrian, and Bowling Green, among others.
Established in 2007, the Owens cross country club team is led by Owens Professor of Math Michael Senour. Senour is an avid runner and ran intercollegiate cross country and track at Tri-State University and Miami University. Additionally, he regularly competes in marathons and is an ultra runner. For more info about the cross country team, call 567-429-3629 or 1-800-GO-OWENS, ext. 3629
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