Figuring out a proper preparation strategy for game day can be a daunting task for any student athlete. This past week, the Muhlenberg soccer program’s goalies prepared just as usual, and that preparation paid off in the form of a Centennial Conference Player of the Week award. Men’s and Woman’s Muhlenberg keepers, Jordan Schreer ‘19 and Libby Juliano ’20, were recognized by the conference after their stellar play guarding their respective nets.
As for that preparation, the two agreed that consistency is key. “My preparation for each game stays relatively the same,” said Juliano. Schreer concurred. “My preparation heading into these games was just like every other game. I stepped onto the field motivated and ready to do my job, and like always, I trusted the players in front of me to do what they needed to do as well.” And of course, no pregame preparation can be complete without some good tunes for long bus rides to away games. “McDaniel was a long travel day, so on the bus I listened to plenty of music and watched a movie. Nothing out of the usual,” added Juliano.
Schreer and the men’s team finished the week 1-0-1 after tying Dickinson and beating McDaniel. Schreer’s contributions included a nine save effort against Dickinson, which was a career high for the junior. “I am probably most proud of my shot stopping, especially in the game against Dickinson,” Schreer said. “It is fair to say I made a save or two that on another day I may have not saved.” He also made four saves against McDaniel, with two of them coming in the second overtime, the period in which the Mules scored the game winning goal with under a minute left. “I think the part of my game that shined the most was my reaction saves, it is definitely one of the most difficult things to do as a goalkeeper, but when you get it right there is no better feeling,” Schreer added. Overall, he finished the week with a .929 save percentage and 0.41 goal against average.
Juliano played all 220 minutes for the Lady Mules in the net this past week as well totaling two ties, 1-1 against Kean and 0-0 against McDaniel. She totaled 17 saves on the week, stopping seven against Kean and 10 at McDaniel. “I am most proud of staying confident in myself and keeping my head in the game,” said Juliano. Her McDaniel performance also gained Juliano her fourth shutout of the season, and her first shutout against a regionally ranked team this season. “I think my ability to cut off angles on shots and corner kicks really helped in our game against McDaniel.” Both of the womem’s opponents had 10 wins, and Juliano still only allowed one opposing shot to reach the back of the net.
As for the remainder of the season the two look to continue their solid efforts they have put together not only this week, but the whole season. For Schreer, that means continuing to lead the conference in saves and holding the third highest save percentage in league games. Juliano also has some impressive stats to uphold. As of the last update, she was 19th in all of Division III in save percentages (.896), and she leads the Centennial Conference in goals-against average (0.60) among qualifiers.
