Player of the Week
SMU midfielder Jill Heinemann was named this weeks Western Athletic Conference Womens Soccer Player of the Week.
Heinemann, a freshman from Plano, Texas, notched three goals and an assist in two matches last weekend. Against Tulsa last Friday, Heinemann found the back of the net at 58:49 and added another goal just 1:40 later. She also tallied an assist as the Mustangs scored five second-half goals to overwhelm Tulsa, 6-1. Then on Sunday Heinemann scored the first goal of the match against Rice, as the Mustangs went on to win, 2-1.
Others Nominated
Kaziah Hill, a sophomore forward for Boise State, helped the Broncos go 2-0 over the weekend with a pair of goals. She scored a goal in each game as Boise State beat Hawai`i, 3-0, and San Jose State, 2-1. Hills goal against San Jose State came just 12 seconds into the match, breaking the school record for quickest goal, and ranking as the seventh-fastest goal in NCAA Division I history. Hawai`is Tiffany Makue, a junior midfielder, set a new school record for assists in a match when she posted three in a 4-1 road win against Nevada. Makue leads the Wahine with five assists, just one shy of the school single-season record, and is third on the squad with nine points. Fresno State senior Aimee Thompson tallied two assists in the Bulldogs 2-1 win at San Jose State. Rices Janelle Crowley, a freshman midfielder, scored the game-winning goal against UTEP, as the Owls went on to win, 2-1. Crowley also assisted on the first goal. Kim McNally, a freshman forward for Tulsa, scored three goals over two games last week. She scored Tulsas lone goal in a 6-1 loss to SMU, then two days later at UTEP recorded her first career multiple-goal game with two goals in a 4-3 win over the Miners.
WAC Play Concludes This Weekend
SMU continues to dominate the field in WAC action. The Mustangs posted two wins last week, beating Tulsa, 6-1, and Rice, 2-1, to improve to 7-0 in conference play with one remaining match. Boise State also continues its run to the WAC Championship with a 3-0 win over Hawai`i and a 2-1 win over San Jose State. The Broncos are guaranteed their first winning season in the programs four-year histroy, while their five-game winning streak is a school record. Fresno State emerged as the third-place team this week with a 2-1 win over San Jose State last Thursday. Tulsa, Hawai`i and Rice remain tied at .500, but drop from third to fourth. San Jose State is seventh with a 3-4-0 conference record, UTEP fell to 1-5-1 with losses to Rice and Tulsa, while Nevada remains winless in both conference action and overall.
Seven WAC matches are scheduled for this week, the final week of regular-season action. On Thursday, San Jose State travels to Hawai`i for a 7:00 matchup. Then on Friday, Nov. 2, Boise State plays at Rice, while Nevada heads to Tulsa. Hawai`i hosts Fresno State at 4:00 on Saturday as SMU takes its seven-game win streak to UTEP. To finish conference play on Sunday, Boise State plays at Tulsa and Rice hosts Nevada.
Conference Tournament Update
The WAC Championship is slated for November 7, 8 & 10 at SMUs Westcott Field in Dallas, Texas. Six of the nine teams will compete in the championship, which will follow a single-elimination format with the top two seeds receiving first-round byes. The championship match is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. on Saturday, November 10. Seeding will be announced at the conclusion of the regular season. With its undefeated conference record, SMU is guaranteed a spot in the tournament. On the flip side, with a maximum two possible wins for the season, UTEP and Nevada have no way of making it to Dallas. Of the remaining six teams, it is too early to tell which five will qualify for the postseason and which teams season will end this weekend. In the event of a tie, head-to-head standings are considered first. If the tie cannot be broken, the results of each team against the highest-seeded team are compared, working from highest to lowest until the tie can be broken. For example, consider this scenario which could occur after this weekends games: Hawai`i, Rice and Tulsa, each 4-4, are tied for fourth behind SMU, 8-0, Boise State, 6-2, and Fresno State, 5-3. Each team holds a record of 1-1 against each other, so the tie cannot be broken using the head-to-head criterion. The next comparison is each teams results versus SMU. Since SMU is undefeated, the tie cannot be broken. Each team also lost to Boise State, but Hawai`i and Tulsa beat Fresno State. Rice then drops to sixth, while Hawai`i and Tulsa remain tied. With the tie now consisting of two teams, head-to-head standings can again be utilized to break the tie. Since Hawai`i beat Tulsa, 2-1, on October 12, Hawai`i earns the fourth seed and Tulsa becomes the fifth seed. Further explanation of tie-breaking procedures can be found in the 2001-2002 WAC Code Book on page 48 (Article Five of Administrative Policy and Sport Regulations, section nine).
Senior Days
Four teams will honor their seniors this weekend as the regular season comes to a close. On November 3, UTEP hosts SMU and Hawai`i hosts Fresno State. The Miners lone senior is Laura Glasspoole. For the Wahine, Carmel Hurley, Veronica Flores, Jennifer Starsiak and Erin Schremser will be honored. Then on November 4, Rice hosts Nevada and Tulsa hosts Boise State. Rices sole senior is Lindsay Botsford. The Hurricanes senior-laden squad includes Corrine Bowman, Kara Heer, Beth Taruscio, Melanie Beaulieu, Melissa McCormick and Shannon Blatney.