No. 2/3 West Virginia Closes Home Regular-Season Slate
MORGANTOWN, W.Va. (October 15, 2015) –The No. 2/3-ranked West Virginia University women’s soccer team closes its home regular-season schedule this weekend with two Big 12 Conference matches at Dick Dlesk Soccer Stadium.
The Mountaineers (12-1-1, 3-0-1) will face Kansas (8-5-1, 3-1) on Friday, Oct. 16, at 7 p.m., and Iowa State (6-9, 0-5) on Sunday, Oct. 18, at 1 p.m.
Friday is “BOGO Coke & Popcorn” night at DDSS, and fans who purchase one popcorn or Coke product will receive a second product for free. Additionally, the first 500 fans through the gate will receive a free megaphone. The Mountaineer Maniacs also will host a pregame tailgate and will distribute a Maniac scarf to the first 150 Maniacs in attendance.
Sunday’s match will be televised on ROOT Sports Pittsburgh, with Geoff Coyle on the call, Caroline Szwed adding color and Amanda Mazey on the sideline. It’s also “Senior Day,” and WVU’s six seniors – Maggie Bedillion, Leah Emaus, Amanda Hill, Kelsie Maloney, Hannah Steadman and Kailey Utley – will be honored prior to first kick. Additionally, the first 100 fans will receive a commemorative 2015 WVU women’s soccer wristband.
Tickets for both matches are $3 for youth and senior citizens and $5 for adults. Groups of 10 or more may purchase tickets for $2 each. WVU students are admitted free with a valid WVU student I.D. Tickets may be purchased in advance at WVUGAME.com and also will be available for purchase at the gate.
A free shuttle bus will be available from the Mountainlair and the Brooke/Braxton Towers loop for an hour leading up to Sunday’s start time. Return service to the Mountainlair and the Brooke/Braxton Towers loop also will be available for an hour at the conclusion of the match.
The Mountaineers carry a 12-match unbeaten streak into the weekend. The squad also owns a 28-match unbeaten streak in home conference matches.
Friday’s contest against the Jayhawks will factor heavily into determining the 2015 Big 12 regular-season champion. The Mountaineers, the three-time defending champions, are tied with Texas for No. 1 with 10 points each. KU sits just behind the teams with nine points in conference play.
“There’s so much parity in the Big 12 Conference, and every team is ready to go once we get into league play,” said Mountaineer coach Nikki Izzo-Brown. “Kansas has some great athletes, and they’re going to present us with a lot of problems. It’s going to be important for us to get a big crowd Friday night and finish our home schedule strong. We want to build a lot of momentum at Dick Dlesk Stadium this weekend so we can carry that into our final two Big 12 matches later this month.”
One of five teams to post a nation-best 11 shutouts this season, WVU is the only team that also ranks within the top 14 in scoring offense, owning a Big 12-best 2.43 goals/game average. WVU also ranks No. 2 nationally in shutout percentage (9.786) and No. 3 in goals-against average (0.280).
Steadman ranks No. 4 nationally, No. 1 in the Big 12, with a 0.310 goals-against average. Sophomore forward Michaela Abam paces the team and ranks No. 1 in the Big 12 with nine goals. She and Utley are tied for No. 2 in the conference with 18 points, as Utley has posted a career-high six goals and six assists this year.
WVU is 4-0 all-time against the Jayhawks. The Mountaineers took the win in Lawrence, Kansas, last season, defeating the then-No. 9 Jayhawks, 2-0, on Oct. 19, at Rock Chalk Park. Junior midfielder Ashley Lawrence assisted on both of Kate Schwindel’s goals. Steadman made three saves in the win, and WVU finished with a 9-7 edge in shots.
KU has won six of its last seven matches, including a pair of 1-0 victories over Baylor and Oklahoma last weekend in Lawrence. Four of the wins have been shutouts.
Senior midfielder Liana Salazar paces KU with 12 points (4 G, 4 A). Sophomore goalkeeper Maddie Dobyns ranks No. 7 in the Big 12 with a 0.84 goals-against average, having allowed 12 goals in 14 matches.
WVU also is undefeated against the Cyclones, earning three wins in three seasons. The Mountaineers last scored a 3-0 victory on Oct. 17, 2014, at Cyclone Sports Complex, in Ames, Iowa. Schwindel, Hill and Abam tallied the Mountaineers’ goals, and the WVU defense held ISU to just two shots.
Most recently, ISU closed its nonconference schedule with a 1-0 win against Northern Iowa on Oct. 13, in Ames, with junior forward Koree Willer notching the game-winner in the 74th minute.
Willer paces ISU with 15 points (6 G, 3 A). Sophomore goalkeeper Lindsey Hendon has allowed 23 goals in 15 matches for a 1.52 goals-against average.
ISU will play host to Oklahoma State on Friday before traveling to Morgantown.
Links for live scores and video streams for both matches can be found at WVUsports.com.
For more information on the Mountaineers, follow @WVUWomensSoccer on Twitter.
MORGANTOWN, W.Va. (October 15, 2015) –The No. 2/3-ranked West Virginia University women’s soccer team closes its home regular-season schedule this weekend with two Big 12 Conference matches at Dick Dlesk Soccer Stadium.
The Mountaineers (12-1-1, 3-0-1) will face Kansas (8-5-1, 3-1) on Friday, Oct. 16, at 7 p.m., and Iowa State (6-9, 0-5) on Sunday, Oct. 18, at 1 p.m.
Friday is “BOGO Coke & Popcorn” night at DDSS, and fans who purchase one popcorn or Coke product will receive a second product for free. Additionally, the first 500 fans through the gate will receive a free megaphone. The Mountaineer Maniacs also will host a pregame tailgate and will distribute a Maniac scarf to the first 150 Maniacs in attendance.
Sunday’s match will be televised on ROOT Sports Pittsburgh, with Geoff Coyle on the call, Caroline Szwed adding color and Amanda Mazey on the sideline. It’s also “Senior Day,” and WVU’s six seniors – Maggie Bedillion, Leah Emaus, Amanda Hill, Kelsie Maloney, Hannah Steadman and Kailey Utley – will be honored prior to first kick. Additionally, the first 100 fans will receive a commemorative 2015 WVU women’s soccer wristband.
Tickets for both matches are $3 for youth and senior citizens and $5 for adults. Groups of 10 or more may purchase tickets for $2 each. WVU students are admitted free with a valid WVU student I.D. Tickets may be purchased in advance at WVUGAME.com and also will be available for purchase at the gate.
A free shuttle bus will be available from the Mountainlair and the Brooke/Braxton Towers loop for an hour leading up to Sunday’s start time. Return service to the Mountainlair and the Brooke/Braxton Towers loop also will be available for an hour at the conclusion of the match.
The Mountaineers carry a 12-match unbeaten streak into the weekend. The squad also owns a 28-match unbeaten streak in home conference matches.
Friday’s contest against the Jayhawks will factor heavily into determining the 2015 Big 12 regular-season champion. The Mountaineers, the three-time defending champions, are tied with Texas for No. 1 with 10 points each. KU sits just behind the teams with nine points in conference play.
“There’s so much parity in the Big 12 Conference, and every team is ready to go once we get into league play,” said Mountaineer coach Nikki Izzo-Brown. “Kansas has some great athletes, and they’re going to present us with a lot of problems. It’s going to be important for us to get a big crowd Friday night and finish our home schedule strong. We want to build a lot of momentum at Dick Dlesk Stadium this weekend so we can carry that into our final two Big 12 matches later this month.”
One of five teams to post a nation-best 11 shutouts this season, WVU is the only team that also ranks within the top 14 in scoring offense, owning a Big 12-best 2.43 goals/game average. WVU also ranks No. 2 nationally in shutout percentage (9.786) and No. 3 in goals-against average (0.280).
Steadman ranks No. 4 nationally, No. 1 in the Big 12, with a 0.310 goals-against average. Sophomore forward Michaela Abam paces the team and ranks No. 1 in the Big 12 with nine goals. She and Utley are tied for No. 2 in the conference with 18 points, as Utley has posted a career-high six goals and six assists this year.
WVU is 4-0 all-time against the Jayhawks. The Mountaineers took the win in Lawrence, Kansas, last season, defeating the then-No. 9 Jayhawks, 2-0, on Oct. 19, at Rock Chalk Park. Junior midfielder Ashley Lawrence assisted on both of Kate Schwindel’s goals. Steadman made three saves in the win, and WVU finished with a 9-7 edge in shots.
KU has won six of its last seven matches, including a pair of 1-0 victories over Baylor and Oklahoma last weekend in Lawrence. Four of the wins have been shutouts.
Senior midfielder Liana Salazar paces KU with 12 points (4 G, 4 A). Sophomore goalkeeper Maddie Dobyns ranks No. 7 in the Big 12 with a 0.84 goals-against average, having allowed 12 goals in 14 matches.
WVU also is undefeated against the Cyclones, earning three wins in three seasons. The Mountaineers last scored a 3-0 victory on Oct. 17, 2014, at Cyclone Sports Complex, in Ames, Iowa. Schwindel, Hill and Abam tallied the Mountaineers’ goals, and the WVU defense held ISU to just two shots.
Most recently, ISU closed its nonconference schedule with a 1-0 win against Northern Iowa on Oct. 13, in Ames, with junior forward Koree Willer notching the game-winner in the 74th minute.
Willer paces ISU with 15 points (6 G, 3 A). Sophomore goalkeeper Lindsey Hendon has allowed 23 goals in 15 matches for a 1.52 goals-against average.
ISU will play host to Oklahoma State on Friday before traveling to Morgantown.
Links for live scores and video streams for both matches can be found at WVUsports.com.
For more information on the Mountaineers, follow @WVUWomensSoccer on Twitter.
