Indiana University Athletics
Lawrence Helps U-19 to Pair of Friendly Victories
11/29/2006 12:00:00 AM | Women's Soccer
Nov. 29, 2006
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. - Freshman defender Kelly Lawrence joined her teammates on the England Under-19 women's team for a pair of friendlies against Iceland on Nov. 21 and 23, and came away with a pair of dominating victories, 4-0 and 3-0. Lawrence, who now has eight caps with the U-19s, was named second team All-Big Ten by the conference's coaches in 2006.
"It's always good to have athletes competing with their national squads," head coach Mick Lyon said. "We're proud to have Kelly representing Indiana University on the international level."
After meeting with the squad in England, Lawrence and the team flew to Iceland on Monday, Nov. 20, to prepare for their first game, scheduled for Tuesday, Nov. 21, in Akranes, Iceland. The team racked up a decisive 4-0 victory in the contest after scoring three first-half goals and topping those off with a fourth in the 72nd minute.
On Thursday, Nov. 23, the two teams met again in the capital city of Reykjavik. England worked on a new formation in preparation for the upcoming Phase 2 European Qualification, and struggled to find offense in the opening half. Seventy minutes in, the squad broke the scoreless deadlock and added two more goals in the following 12 minutes to take a 3-0 tilt.
Lawrence will rejoin the squad in February for a trip to La Manga, Spain, where they will face some of the top teams in the world. Phase 2 will begin in April, and the top seven teams from that draw will travel to Iceland for the UEFA Under-19 Championship from July 18-29, 2007.
In addition to her second-team selection, Lawrence was a unanimous selection to the Big Ten's All-Freshman Team after helping the Hoosiers allow a conference-low 15 goals in 2006. Indiana finished the season with a 9-7-4 mark and a 5-4-1 tally in Big Ten action.
