To say that Jennifer Nobis is excited about the upcoming Womens Professional Soccer season is a huge understatement.

The Boston Breakers forward was the first member of the team to arrive in Boston to prepare for the upcoming campaign. And it actually seems as if Nobis’ 2009 season never ended. Not long after Boston’s WPS season finale Aug. 9, the 25-year-old Nobis boarded a plane for Sweden. She played, on loan from Boston, for Piteå IF in the 12-team Damallsvenskan, the premier women’s soccer league in Sweden.

From Sept. 10, 2009, through Nov. 11, 2009, Nobis played in six matches for Piteå, joining a club that had several quality players, including Canadian national team forward/midfielder Brittany Timko. Nobis scored three goals in six appearances for Piteå, including the game-tying goal Oct. 18 against Hammarby that resulted in a 2-2 draw. Piteå finished the season with a 2-17-3 record, but finished with one win and one draw during Nobis’ time with the team. She made her 2009 Damallsvenskan debut Sept. 27 by scoring in the 15th minute of Piteå’s 2-1 win over KIF Örebro.

“Piteå was in the bottom of the league, so it was an opportunity for me where I can come in and try to be a leader. It was awesome,” Nobis said. “It puts me in a position to perform well, like here in WPS. The girls around me were great players. This year it allowed me to have the pressure on my shoulders to play well. It was an amazing group of girls. I really got a lot of ball skills in playing outside mid. Hopefully it will pay off with the Breakers.”

Nobis had quite an interesting experience in a game this fall with Piteå. An opposing coach, clearly frustrated by his team’s performance against Piteå, a team that sat several spots lower on the table, took his anger out on Nobis. The coach pushed Nobis from behind while she was on the sideline waiting for a throw-in.

“I don’t know if the coach got nervous or what. I think he got frustrated with me,” Nobis said. “I was on the sideline waiting for a throw-in, and I thought it was a girl on the team (who pushed me), and turned around to yell at her, and it was the coach. I was shocked. It was very random and kind of weird. But after the game, he apologized. I think they were third in the league, at least in the top five, and they were thinking they would come in and win. We were a different team. I don’t think they thought we’d bring the heart and determination.”

Shortly after returning to the states, the 2006 University of Missouri grad and Quincy, Ill., native headed to New York, where she worked out with a trainer, preparing for the 2010 WPS season. Nobis knows that the pressure to step up her game is essential if she wants to crack the starting lineup. In 11 games last year, Nobis started seven. She peaked halfway through the season and finished with two goals. She was one of only five Breakers to score at least two goals in 2009.

Nobis’ performance during the latter half of the 2009 WPS season impressed Boston Head Coach Tony DiCicco and his staff so much that they put Nobis on their list of protected players for the WPS Expansion draft, meaning that the two new teams, the Philadelphia Independence and Atlanta Beat, could not select her in the draft. Nobis also wasn’t declared a free agent, indicating that the Boston coaching staff have big plans for Nobis in 2010.

“I was surprised they saved me, but I’m glad they did,” Nobis said. “They see something in me for this season. I know what’s to be expected this year. I’m ready.”

But to earn a spot on the pitch, Nobis said she has to put in an extra effort. That’s why she’s training six days a week, working on ball skills every day, and conditioning herself to the point she knows her body will be 90-minutes fit.

“It’s awesome to be here and getting prepared for the season,” Nobis said. “I’m working really hard with my training and practicing different things. You’ll definitely see a different Boston Breakers team. I think it will be a good improvement.”

Nobis is part of an extremely talented nucleus of forwards and attacking midfielders, including last year’s leading scorer, English international Kelly Smith (six goals and two assists in 15 games), 2009 WPS All-Star Kristine Lilly (the team’s second leading scorer last season with three goals. She also had three assists), Canadian international Christine Latham (who led the team in game-winning goals with two), a young and extremely talented Brazilian forward, Fabiana, as well as a pair of newcomers to Boston, U.S. Women’s National Team members Tiffany Weimer and Leslie Osborne, who both came over from FC Gold Pride.

“I know they’re both great teammates for the national team. They have experience and talent,” Nobis said of Weimer and Osborne. “Tony does a great job getting great players to help us on and off the field as well. It’s something I’m looking forward to.”

The Breakers saw a number of changes this offseason. The 2009 number one overall draft pick, forward Amy Rodriguez, did not live up to the standard of play DiCicco expected out of the USC grad. After the season, the Breakers traded the USWNT forward to Philadelphia. Fellow USWNT member, defender Heather Mitts, was declared a free agent and wound up signing with Philadelphia. USWNT midfielder Angela Hucles, who scored two goals and logged the third most minutes on the team last season (1,692 in 19 games), retired.

The Breakers also waived defender Nancy Augustyniak Goffi and Canadian international midfielder Candace Chapman. Two of the players the Breakers put on the unprotected list for the 2009 WPS Expansion Draft were selected by Philadelphia – forward/midfielder Kelly Schmedes and defender Sue Weber. Former Breaker Stacy Bishop, who Boston waived, signed with the expansion Atlanta Beat. Midfielder Sophia Mundy, who signed halfway through the 2009 season with Boston, has now signed with Atlanta after the Breakers declared her as a free agent.

“It’s a business, so you don’t know every year who will we drafted or traded,” Nobis said. “They were great teammates, and they were all great players. They taught us so much. It’s tough to see them leave, but we’ll move on. Angela Hucles will be around doing stuff with the Breakers. They taught me so much (last) season.”

With the 2010 WPS Draft just days away (Jan. 15), a number of highly skilled athletes are available, including a number of high-level forwards like Lauren Cheney (UCLA), Casey Nogueira (UNC), and Kelley O’Hara (Stanford). The Breakers have the number two overall pick in the draft, and they also have the number 11 pick, giving them two first-round draft choices. With a roster already loaded with forwards and top goal scorers, the Breakers still may seek out one of those three players. DiCicco made it clear after the final game of the 2009 season that his team needed to increase its offensive output. The team scored only 18 goals in 20 games. Of the 21 Breakers who played last year, only eight found the back of the net, and of those eight, three (Hucles, Rodriguez, and Kelly Schmedes) are no longer with the team.

“It’s definitely going to be interesting to see who we pick up,” Nobis said of the WPS Draft. “I know Tony and (Assistant Coach) Lisa (Cole) do a good job recruiting good players. It will be interesting to see how we connect. We lost a few players and we got a few players. I think it will be a great team. Knowing we’re going to get somebody from Stanford or North Carolina, those are good colleges. It kind of makes me nervous. I’m going to have to be at a high level. Every day will be a challenge. Having that challenge pushed me in the offseason. It’s making me work harder and making me more of a technical player.”

The 2010 schedule is still in the works, however, the Breakers do know their first two opponents. They open April 10, in Maryland against the Washington Freedom before returning home to take on Mitts, Rodriguez, Weber, and Schmedes and the Philadelphia Independence Sunday, April 18. That game will be televised on Fox Soccer Channel and is guaranteed to draw thousands of fans to Harvard Stadium.

“I think we’ll be a more skillful team than last year. We didn’t make our goal, and I think we learned from that,” Nobis said. “I’m excited. It’s definitely a new team, especially with a lot of the new players coming. It brings more of a forward mentality and striking mentality. It’s something we needed to improve on. We still have Kristine Lilly, who is offensive-minded.

“I’m so excited. I’m working out six days a week with fitness, ball skills every single day. It’s something I need to be prepared for this season,” Nobis added. “Hopefully I can come in as a new player.”

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