The freshmen on Steve Ballard’s women’s soccer team don’t really fill the role that usual freshmen do.

While many who enter their first year of college level athletics may not see much of the field or the court, women soccer players who are recruited by Ballard have the confidence of the coach to go out and play without lowering the level of play for the team.

Especially early in the season when the coaching staff is trying to figure out who plays where and for how long, this year’s Panther team has been giving plenty of opportunity to the younger players on the team.

Such has been the case for the freshmen class this year as players such as Michelle Steinhaus, Meghan Ryon, Kathleen Hayes and Kellie Floyd all saw time in the team’s first two games.

The first game, against Evansville, was a logical game to play the younger players considering it was so early in the season and also against a team the Panthers were handling in near dominating fashion.

But the fact that Ballard feels that his team should not lose anything when the youth steps on the field, is a luxury the coach is sure to take full advantage of.

He has proven this especially with Hayes who has started both games, even Sunday’s game against Notre Dame.

“These are players who we shouldn’t lose anything from,” Ballard said. “We critique them and help them learn and go through the process of learning, but we hope they come away learning something new every time we try and teach them.”

As far as the players are concerned the opportunity to play this early in their college career is something they are soaking up as the season has started.

In the first game of her young career against Evansville, freshman forward Michelle Steinhaus came off the bench and scored her first goal of her career.

A moment, the first goal of one’s career, is one many will remember forever because of the nervousness and emotion of the situation. In response to that, all Steinhaus could do was smile.

“I just remember being really excited at the time I realized it was in,” Steinhaus said. “The biggest smile came across my face but overall I was just glad to help the team in any way I could.”

It turned out the goal was important to the team as well as being a personal accolade for Steinhaus. On the goal Steinhaus put the Panthers up 2-0 and gave the team the flexibility to play the way they wanted to the rest of the game.

In that sense the freshmen also got a major role in the team’s second game of the season against Notre Dame.

Playing against the number two team in the country, the freshmen may have been a little overwhelmed but still took a lot from the game at South Bend.

“It was very intimidating (going to Notre Dame),” Steinhaus said. “And while their goal to our shot ratio may have been a little lopsided still there is no doubt that the trip helped us out and during the game there were times when we felt we really could have come back.”

The game did end 3-0 in favor of the Irish but the experience gained by many of the younger players could go a long way in building their confidence and skills for the rest of the year.

“As a coach my main goal is to give the girls a chance to play the highest competition,” Ballard said. “I thought we would do well, but more than that take something out of the game as far as building the team for the rest of the year.”