Game #2
ART U (0-0-0) vs. Northwest Nazarene University (0-0-0)
Saturday, September 1, 2012 at 3:00 PM
San Francisco, CA -- City College of San Francisco

ON THE APPROACH
Academy of Art is raring to go in the 2012 season after a long off-season and three scrimmages. After graduating eight seniors a year ago, the Knights, led by senior captains Jasmine Sharpe and Tanner McCandlish, who are joined by sophomore captain Sophie Meneses, are looking to continue building on the standard set in the previous years of the program's history.

RAISING THE BAR
The Urban Knights have steadily improved since the creation of the program in 2008, and in 2011 had their best season in many respects. They set program marks in wins, goals, and points. On the defensive side, they also dramatically reduced the number of saves, which translates to allowing less shots on goal. Head coach Aileen Nasypany, entering her fourth year at the helm for the Knights, is pleased with the work done in the pre-season and is looking forward to improving on past accomplishments.

HOW THE OTTER HALF LIVES
Cal State Monterey Bay is coming off a 3-14 season last year, playing a collection of tough opponents in the CCAA. The Otters are welcoming back one of their top scores, Gabriella Bozzo, who had four points last year. They'll also be returning their top goalkeeper from last year in Kendra Gillio, who recorded a 0.73 Goals Against Average over the final 495 minutes of the season. The Knights and Otters have played one previous time, with Cal State Monterey Bay coming away with a 1-0 victory back in 2008.

FOUNTAIN OF YOUTH
The Knights only have two seniors on the team after the departure of last year's large class, and the junior class is also on the small side, with another three girls. The rest of the team is young, as the underclassmen, which include eight freshman and seven sophomores, make up 15 of the 20 players on the ART U active roster.

CONSISTENCY IS KEY
Urban Knights junior midfielder Hannah Emmett has played two years for ART U, and both her freshman and sophomore campaigns have almost identical statistics on the offensive end. In 17 games in 2010, Emmett had five goals, two assists, and 12 total points. In 16 games in 2011, Emmett had five goals, two assists, and 12 total points. 

NORTH BY NORTHWEST NAZARENE
The Crusaders are coming off a 4-14 season in 2011, who return mostly intact after losing only one member of last year's starting squad. Among the returnees are four players who earned All-GNAC honors, including Celina Mortensen, forwards Jenny Field and Autumn Yturbe, and midfielder Sarah Staropoli. Mortensen was named to the All-GNAC Second Team with a goal and an assist last year, while Field, Yturbe, and Staropoli were all All-GNAC Honorable Mentions.

QUOTE OF THE WEEK
"This is our first year eligible for NCAA post-season, and we're not waiting for permission. We're going for it right away." - Head coach Aileen Nasypany.

COMING UP
The Urban Knights have a scheduled game against Mills College on Sep. 6 before making their first ever trip across the border to play Simon Fraser on Sep. 8 in Burnaby, British Columbia (Canada). The ART U men's basketball team was the last team to cross into Canada, coming away with an 84-83 victory in 2011.