SLIPPERY ROCK — Talk about your soft landings.

After graduating from the University of Dayton last spring and looking for a school from which to earn a masters degree in physical therapy, Butler graduate Lisa Rodgers has found her way to Slippery Rock University.

She will also be a goalkeeper/coach for The Rock’s women’s soccer team, ranked No. 24 in the country and carrying a 15-game unbeaten streak into this season.

So much for Rodgers’ future being up in the air.

“Yeah, this worked out pretty well,” Rodgers said. “All of the girls on the team have been very welcoming and helpful.

“The transition hasn’t been difficult at all. The tempo and speed of the game are a little different, but not much. This is a very talented team.”

At Dayton last year, Rodgers put together a 15-1-1 record with 12 shutouts. She allowed only nine goals and made 63 saves, posting a .875 save percentage.

She helped the Flyers reach the NCAA Tournament twice in three years, losing her junior season to a knee injury.

She is competing with returning Rock goalkeeper Dana O’Neill for the starting job. O’Neill, a junior, was 9-2-3 with eight shutouts last year. She allowed eight goals and made 52 saves, a save percentage of .825.

“This is a win-win situation for us,” SRU coach Noreen Herlihy said. “If Lisa wins the job, Dana still has two years of eligibility left.

“If Dana remains our No. 1 keeper, she will benefit from working with Lisa.”

Herlihy said she doesn’t want to alternate goalkeepers.

“I want to settle on a No. 1, but it’s not easy. They are both very good,” she said.

With a couple of days practice remaining before the season starts, Rodgers admitted “I have no idea where the competition stands. We’re both doing well.”

If Rodgers isn’t the starter, she will not make an issue of it.

“I’m here to help the team win and if that means working with Dana and other goalkeepers to make us better, so be it,” she said. “This team has the talent to compete for a conference championship no matter who’s in goal.

“It’s just a matter of putting it all together.”

When Rodgers returned from her knee injury at Dayton, she had to win back the starting job from teammate Catherine Boone, who shined in goal the year before.

“I’m no stranger to situations like this,” Rodgers said.

While at Dayton, Rodgers was coached by Sergio Gonzalez, who was also the goalkeeper coach at SRU a few years ago.

Herlihy knew of Rodgers’ goalkeeping abilities before she even graduated from Butler.

“Lisa used to come to our goalkeeper weekend camps in the summer,” Herlihy said. “She was looking for physical therapy schools and at the time, we were pretty deep in our goaltender situation.

“I knew the coach at Dayton and recommended Lisa out there. That obviously worked out. Then she was recommended back to us.

“I knew what we were getting. We’re thrilled to have her come in,” Herlihy added.

Rodgers has entered a three-year physical therapy program at SRU. She has one year of soccer playing eligibility, then will serve as a graduate assistant coach with the women’s team next spring and next season.

After that, she will place soccer on the back-burner for a while.

“Working toward a career in physical therapy will take precedent for me,” Rodgers said. “But I’m going to enjoy these next two seasons, I know that.”