8:23 a.m., Nov. 2, 2010----The University of Delaware men's and women's club soccer teams have both earned spots at nationals, which will take place Nov. 18-20 in Phoenix, Ariz.

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The men's team went undefeated in its regional tournament. Among the highlights were defeating the Harvard University club team in the semifinals on penalty kicks and defeating the University of Connecticut 2-1 in the final.

The team posted a record of 15-3-1 and Ryan Bobik, club president, attributes this year's success to the team having “a lot more chemistry than years in the past. This year's incoming class has brought a lot to the table including hard work, team commitment, and an overall high quality of skill.”

The women's team went 15-2-3, and won the regional tournament after defeating top-seeded Cornell University in penalty kicks and stopping the College of New Jersey 1-0 in the championship game.

Christine Kukich, club president, says that this year's team tried to schedule games against teams that would be competing in the regional tournament, which she believes “really helped us get a good idea of how tough the competition would be.”

“Most of the other teams in the tournament only played five or fewer games against these teams prior to regionals. In years past we also didn't play as many games before the tournament,” she said.

The women's team is self-coached and relies on its officers to do all the scheduling, planning and management of the team's finances.

Article by Adam Thomas
Photo by Doug Baker