The University of Wisconsin soccer teams will be back on the field in just more than a month.

Both Badgers teams released their spring exhibition season schedules this week, with games starting in mid- to late March.

The UW men have two home matches, opening their six-game spring slate March 25 against UW-Green Bay and closing against DePaul on May 4.

Lauren Sesselmann (Green Bay Notre Dame) is headed to the Olympics this summer.

Sesselmann returned from a knee injury to start and played 63 minutes at left back as Canada beat Mexico 3-1 in the semifinals of the CONCACAF Women's Olympic Qualifying Tournament on Friday night in Vancouver to earn a berth in the London Games.

For the second time in three years, Lakeland is looking for a new soccer coach.

Tony Pierce, the former Milwaukee Wave standout goalkeeper who coached the Muskies' men's and women's teams for the past two seasons, resigned from the Sheboygan college earlier this month.

A news release from the school indicated Pierce was leaving to pursue opportunities closer to his home in Green Bay.

Canada rolled past Haiti 6-0 in its opening match Thursday night at the CONCACAF Women's Olympic Qualifying tournament in Vancouver, B.C., but starting left back Lauren Sesselmann (Green Bay Notre Dame) was forced to leave the game at halftime due to a knee injury.

The 28-year-old Sesselmann was injured in a collision with Haiti's Samantha Brand.

Lauren Sesselmann (Green Bay Notre Dame) will start the new year in California, and she hopes her 2012 will include a summer trip to England.

The Atlanta Beat defender was one of 20 players named to the Canadian national team roster for next month's CONCACAF Women's Olympic Qualifying Tournament.

Three players with state ties are on the initial list of players invited to participate in next month's Major League Soccer Player Combine.

UW-Green Bay midfielder Tony Walls (Wauwatosa East), Marquette midfielder Calum Mallace and Creighton forward Ethan Finlay (Marshfield) are among the 52 college seniors selected to attend the combine, which is Jan.

Lauren Sesselmann (Green Bay Notre Dame) already has a gold medal from the Pan American Games.

Now she and her teammates on the Canadian women's national soccer team have their eyes on the Olympics.

Sesselmann is one of 23 players called in for a 10-day training camp that started Tuesday in Fullerton, Calif.

A pair of Wisconsin players teamed up for the goal that sent the Creighton men's soccer team to the NCAA College Cup.

Junior midfielder Andrew Ribeiro (Green Bay Notre Dame) ripped a shot from outside the box in the 97th minute that was deflected by a defender and found its way to Ethan Finlay (Marshfield).

Junior midfielder Andrew Ribeiro (Green Bay Notre Dame) scored his fourth goal of the season – and fourth game-winner – as second-ranked Creighton scored twice in the opening 20 minutes and held off No. 13 UC Santa Barbara 2-1 Sunday in Omaha, Neb., to advance to the quarterfinals of the NCAA Division I men's soccer tournament.

After several sold-out shows last week, "Rise and Shine: The Jay DeMerit Story" will get an encore showing at seven Marcus Theaters in Wisconsin next Monday night.

Producers announced the additional showings today. They include three in the Milwaukee area, one in Cedar Creek, one in Madison, one in Green Bay and one in Sheboygan.

After helping Canada win the gold medal at last month's Pan American Games in Mexico, Lauren Sesselmann (Green Bay Notre Dame) will be back training with the national team on Saturday.

The Atlanta Beat defender was one of 21 players called in for a 12-day training camp in Phoenix that includes a closed-door friendly against Sweden on Nov.

Just more than a month into her international career, Lauren Sesselmann (Green Bay Notre Dame) already has won a gold medal.

Sesselmann started and played 77 minutes Thursday night as Canada won the gold at the Pan American Games in Guadalajara, Mexico, topping two-time defending champion Brazil 4-3 on penalty kicks following a 1-1 draw in the final at Estadio Omnilife.

After viewing a film like "Rise and Shine: The Jay DeMerit Story" it's hard not to be emotional. The tale is one of intrigue and inspiration that will serve as motivation for young athletes all over the country. Make no mistake this is a real movie; with production value and a true story. It's clear that those involved all believed in the message and the love they had for Jay is clear as well.

For the third straight year, UW-Fox Valley won the Wisconsin Collegiate Conference double.

Freshman midfielder Yang Sor Lee (Green Bay West) and freshman forward Juac Majok (Oshkosh North) each had hat tricks as the Cyclones (14-1-2) beat UW-Sheboygan 6-4 on Saturday in Menasha in the final of the WCC tournament.

Lauren Sesselmann (Green Bay Notre Dame) set up Robyn Gayle's 88th-minute winner as the Canadian women's national team slipped past Colombia 2-1 on Tuesday night in Guadalajara, Mexico, to advance to the championship game of the Pan American Games.

Sesselmann served a free kick into the box that Gayle chested down and finished to send the Canadians to a rematch with Brazil in Thursday's final at Omnilife Stadium.

City rivals Marquette and UW-Milwaukee celebrated repeat conference titles during the week, though the Panthers saw their long winning streak halted in surprising fashion.

Meanwhile, UW-Green Bay will have extra motivation when it plays the Panthers in a regular-season finale next Friday.

Lauren Sesselmann (Green Bay Notre Dame) played the full 90 minutes at left back Saturday night as Canada tied Brazil 0-0 in the final match of Group B play at the Pan American Games in Guadalajara, Mexico.

The teams shared the group title, as both teams went 2-0-1 with four goals scored and one allowed in three games.

Lauren Sesselmann (Green Bay Notre Dame) started and played 62 minutes at left back as Canada beat Costa Rica 3-1 in the opening match of the women's soccer competition at the Pan American Games on Tuesday at Omnilife Stadium in Guadalajara, Mexico.

Sesselmann, making her third international appearance, conceded a penalty kick in the 27th minute as she was called for a foul on Raquel Rodríguez Cedeño during a breakaway.

Marquette goalkeeper Natalie Kulla and UW-Milwaukee forward Sarah Hagen (Appleton North) continue to add to their impressive resumes as they close in on the end of their final regular season of women's college soccer – and their nationally ranked teams continue to win games.

Meanwhile, UW-Green Bay coach Trevor Warren and the Phoenix continued their quest to qualify for the Horizon League tournament.

The wins keep coming for the state's nationally ranked NCAA Division I women's soccer teams, Marquette and UW-Milwaukee – even without All-American forward Sarah Hagen missing from the Panthers' lineup for one game.

Meanwhile, UW-Green Bay continues to keep things close but struggle to find goals.

Three players with state ties are headed to Mexico with the Canadian women's national team for the Pan American Games next month.

Atlanta Beat defender Lauren Sesselmann (Green Bay Notre Dame), Marquette sophomore Vanessa Legault-Cordisco and University of Wisconsin recruit Diamond Simpson were among the 17 players selected by new coach John Herdman.

Atlanta Beat defender Lauren Sesselmann (Green Bay Notre Dame) started at left back as the Canadian women's national team lost to the U.S. 3-0 in a friendly watched by a crowd of 18,570 on Thursday night at Jeld-Wen Field in Portland, Ore.

Sesselmann, 28, played 75 minutes in her second career cap, having made her international debut in Saturday's 1-1 draw with the Americans in Kansas City.

"Rise and Shine: The Jay DeMerit Story" has been picked up for worldwide theatrical distribution.

D&E Entertainment acquired the documentary about the Green Bay native and former Bay Port High School standout's amazing rise to the Premier League and the World Cup, which was co-directed by DeMerit's friends Ranko Tutulugdzija and Nick Lewis.

Conference play started well for city rivals Marquette and UW-Milwaukee in women's college action, but the Golden Eagles had a rough road trip to finish off the week.

Meanwhile, UW-Green Bay suffered a familiar fate not once, but twice on the weekend. Get all the highlights in our weekly recap of the Golden Eagles, Panthers and Phoenix.

Lauren Sesselmann (Green Bay Notre Dame) had a chance to be the hero in her international debut.

The Atlanta Beat defender played the full 90 minutes at left back for Canada on Saturday night in Kansas City, Kan., but it ended on a frustrating note as she fired a shot over U.

Another Wisconsinite is poised to play international soccer – but not for the U.S.

Atlanta Beat defender Lauren Sesselmann (Green Bay Notre Dame) was named to the 22-player training camp roster for the Canadian women's national team ahead of two matches against the U.

Freshman forward Cara Walls (Wauwatosa East) scored for the second straight game as the University of Wisconsin women's soccer team maintained its perfect record against UW-Green Bay with a 1-0 victory in a non-conference match Sunday afternoon at the McClimon Complex.

Walls' goal came on the Badgers' third chance on a sequence in the 28th minute.

It was a frustrating opening weekend for the Marquette and UW-Milwaukee men's soccer teams, as the city rivals both took losses to kick off the season.

Meanwhile, UW-Green Bay and new coach Kris Kelderman are still preparing for their first matches, coming up this week.

Three players from Wisconsin teams were named to the National Premier Soccer League All-Star team, which is set to play three matches over the next week.

Hartford's Anthony Santaga (Green Bay Notre Dame) and North Carolina's Carlos McCrary, both midfielders from the Madison 56ers, and Mountain State defender Pedashoo Deneus from Eau Claire Aris FC are part of the 21-player roster.

When Kris Kelderman took over as UW-Green Bay men's soccer coach, he knew he'd have to replace eight seniors from last fall's team.

That list has grown, as two potential key returnees for the Phoenix have announced recently that they're transferring.

Midfielder Tony Walls (Wauwatosa East), right, will play his final season of college soccer at reigning NCAA champion Akron, while midfielder Anthony Santaga (Green Bay Notre Dame) is headed to the University of Hartford to rejoin former UWGB coach Tom Poitras.

Move over fellas. The women are the biggest draw around this summer. With the viewing numbers set to be released in the next few days (and expect some records to be shattered), the internet has already revealed a new Twitter record for the Women's World Cup final yesterday afternoon. The match between the United States and Japan drew an average 7,196 tweets per second at its peak, breaking the previously held record of 6,939 set just after midnight in Japan on New Year's Day.

Thanks to an incredible response from soccer fans across the world, "Rise and Shine: The Jay DeMerit Story" will be completed.

The fundraising project surpassed $215,000 in pledges on Friday, assuring that the documentary about the Green Bay native's incredible rise from the low levels of semipro soccer in England to the Premier League and the World Cup can be finished and distributed to a wide audience.

In a match that mirrored their season, the Madison 56ers had their chances to beat the Chicago Fire on Sunday, but couldn't quite get it done.

Hartford midfielder Anthony Santaga (Green Bay Notre Dame) scored equalizers in each half as the 56ers tied the Fire 2-2 in Cary, Ill.

Creighton's Andrew Ribeiro (Green Bay Notre Dame) and Thierry Zahui scored in a three-minute span in the second half as the Chicago Fire PDL team knocked off the Madison 56ers 2-0 in a second-round match of the U.S. Open Cup on Wednesday at Breese Stevens Field.

Two Croatian Eagles teams will play for U.S. Adult Soccer Association Region II championships.

The club's men's Under-23 and women's sides won their groups Saturday at the tournament in Overland Park, Kan., to earn berths in Sunday's finals.

In Under-23 play, UW-Green Bay's Anthony Santaga (Green Bay Notre Dame) scored lone goal as the Croatians topped KC United 1-0 to finish 3-0-0 atop Group B – one of their matches was a forfeit over a Michigan team that dropped out of the event.

It's an all-private schools affair for the WIAA Division 2 state girls soccer tournament.

Appleton Xavier, Green Bay Notre Dame, Madison Edgewood and Waukesha Catholic Memorial, all former members of the Wisconsin Independent Schools Athletic Association, make up the field for the tournament at Uihlein Soccer Park in Milwaukee.

Over the past few months, we've provided several updates on "Rise and Shine: The Jay DeMerit Story."

The documentary tells the story of how the Green Bay native rose from Bay Port High School and the lower levels of semi-pro soccer in England all the way to the Premier League and the World Cup.

"Rise and Shine: The Jay DeMerit Story" will be shown Friday night at Aquinas High School in La Crosse.

The documentary follows the Green Bay native's amazing path from playing at Bay Port High School to the Premier League and the World Cup. The 31-year-old DeMerit is now the captain and a starting central defender for the Vancouver Whitecaps in Major League Soccer.

The makers of "Rise and Shine: The Jay DeMerit Story" released a new trailer this week as they continue to seek donations to help them complete the documentary about the Green Bay native's rise to the top levels of world soccer.

The group has received more than $61,000 in pledges from nearly 450 people through their KickStarter fundraising site, according to an update sent Thursday afternoon.

Kris Kelderman, who starred at Neenah High School and went on to play and coach in Major League Soccer, was named the eighth head coach in UW-Green Bay men's soccer history Tuesday.

Kelderman, 42, most recently was in his second stint as an assistant at George Mason. He also was an assistant for the Patriots in 2005 and '06 before serving as an assistant under Curt Onalfo in MLS, first with the Kansas City Wizards (2007 to '09) and then D.