PLAYERS OF THE WEEK ?“ Louisiana Tech forward Emily Cleaveland and defender Savanna Russo have been named the Western Athletic Conference women?™s soccer offensive and defensive Players of the Week, respectively.
Cleaveland, a freshman from The Woodlands, Texas, totaled five points on the week with a goal and two assists in a, 7-0, win over Robert Morris College and an assist in a, 2-0, win over Centenary. Cleaveland leads Louisiana Tech with 11 shots on the season.
Russo, a freshman from Albuquerque, N.M., and Tech?™s other defenders played vital roles as they helped goalkeeper Chrissy Haisler move to 3-1 with a pair of shutouts on the week. Russo?™s tough play made it an easy game for Haisler in game three as Tech allowed Robert Morris College no shots at all in a, 7-0, win. Centenary managed nine shots but only three shots on goal against Russo and Company as the Lady Techsters took a 2-0 win.
Other offensive nominees included: Adria Campbell, Hawai'i; Eija Hodgin, Idaho and Dana Peart, Utah State.
Other defensive nominees included: None
Click Here for a .pdf version the Weekly Soccer NotesTHIS WEEK IN THE WAC ?“ The WAC enters week three of the season with two teams yet to find a win. Utah State and San Jose State are still in search of win number one, facing Air Force and Cal Poly, respectively. The Aggies are at the Montana Tournament where they will also face Montana. The Spartans host Pacific this week. Louisiana Tech had its first match of the week, Southeastern Louisiana, postponed due to the hurricane. The Lady Techsters will to look to keep its winning streak alive when they travel to Jackson, Miss., for a match with Belhaven. Nevada travels to California to face off with UC Davis. Idaho does battle with Northern Colorado in Moscow before taking on in-state rival, Idaho State. Joining Utah State in Missoula, Mont., is Boise State which will also face Montana and Air Force. Fresno State faces a pair of Golden State teams, battling with Pacific in Stockton and Cal Poly at Bulldog Stadium. Hawai'i takes its first trip off the island, traveling to Long Beach, Calif., for matches with Weber State and Long Beach State at the 49er Classic Soccer Shootout.
WAC ENTERS NEW ERA ?“ The WAC is a nine-team league with the additions of Idaho, New Mexico State and Utah State following the departures of Rice, SMU, UTEP and Tulsa. It is the third time in conference history that the WAC will be comprised of nine teams (1980-91 and 2000). Only Idaho and Utah State sponsor women?™s soccer. Louisiana Tech added a women?™s soccer progam in 2004, but this will be the first year it competes in the WAC.
STREAKING TECHSTERS ?“ Louisiana Tech made history as it recorded its first-ever win with a, 2-0, home victory over Mississippi Valley State, Aig. 28. Since that win, Louisiana Tech has posted two shutouts, with a, 7-0, win over Robert Morris and a, 2-0, win over Centenary. Although the Lady Techsters had their match with Southeastern Lousianan postponed, they still travel to Mississippi to take on Belhaven. This season, they are averaging 2.75 goals per game while holding opponents to 0.75 goals per contest. Tech is also averaging 20.2 shots per game while holding opponents to six shots per contest.
WELL TRAVELED ?“ Three WAC schools play or have played four conescutive road matches this year in Boise State, Fresno State and San Jose State. The Bulldogs and Spartans are in the midst of their extended travels. The Bulldogs started the trip off well, earning a, 2-1, win over CS Northridge, but fell to San Francisco (3-0), Sacramento State (1-0). They finish their stint at Pacific (9/9). San Jose State finished its road trip, 0-4, falling to CS Fullerton, Long Beach State, Stanford and UC Riverside. Boise State?™s four-match road trip begins Sept. 24 with a stop at IUPUI (Indianapolis - 9/24). The Broncos also make stops at Southern Utah (9/26), Texas A&M (9/30) and TCU (10/2).
FOUR WAHINE NAMED ALL-TOURNAMENT ?“ Hawai'i placed four on the Outrigger Hotels and Resorts all-Tournament team. Defenders Tehane Higa and Krisha Kai, midfielder Adria Campbell and forward Natahsa Kai, received the nod.
SOCCER FORMAT ?“ With the addition of Idaho, Louisiana Tech and Utah State and the loss of Rice, SMU, UTEP and Tulsa, the WAC has taken on a new format. Along with the Vandals, Lady Techsters and Aggies, Boise State, Fresno State, Hawai'i, Nevada and San Jose State all sponsor a women?™s soccer program. The WAC will continue its regular-season play as a single round-robin format for a total of eight conference matches, but will add in a points system. Each team will receive three points for a win and one point for a tie. The six teams with the most points at the end of the regular season will advance to the WAC Tournament.
RETURNING ALL-WAC PLAYERS ?“ The WAC returns only four all-conference players for the 2005 season. Fresno State has two in first-team selection Cortney Sobrero and second-teamer Rochelle Jagdeo. Boise State returners second-team all-WAC goalkeeper Kim Parker, while Hawai'i returns Natasha Kai, a three-time first-team selection. Although Utah State had two all-Big West selections, they were both lost to graduation.
KAI MOVING UP RECORD LISTS ?“ Hawai'i senior forward Natasha Kai, is moving up the WAC career list. Kai is second all-time in shots with 353, 15 behind BYU?™s Shauna Rohbuck. Kai has posted three goals this season, moving her career total to 60 which is good for third and is seven behind Kim Harvey of SMU for second. At 135 career points, Kai is 21 points behind SMU?™s Kim Harvey who is second. Kai set a new single-season record for shots at 130 in 2004. She passed Rohbuck who tallied 108 in 1996. She set the new shots mark in the conference-season as well, as she tallied 49 shots, to top 44 by Sherry Dick of TCU in 2000.
NCAA OPPONENTS ?“ Of the 95 non-conference matchups, 17 are against teams that played in the NCAA Tournament last year and six are at WAC home sites. Seven teams in the WAC play at least one non-conference opponent that competed in the NCAA Tournament last year while Boise State, Fresno State, San Jose State and Utah State are playing a WAC-high three NCAA opponents. Hawai'i and Idaho are playing two, while Nevada is playing one.
UNLV def.
Nevada, 5-0
Utah def.
Boise State, 3-0
Pepperdine def.
Hawai'i, 2-0
UNLV def.
Utah State, 2-1
Utah def.
Idaho, 4-1
Stanford def.
San Jose State, 5-0
Bowling Green def.
Boise State, 1-0
Cal Poly at
San Jose State, Sept. 9
Hawai'i vs. Weber State, Sept. 10
Cal Poly at
Fresno State, Sept. 11
Idaho at Weber State, Sept. 15
Fresno State at UNLV, Sept. 16
Utah at
Utah State, Sept. 22
Santa Clara at
San Jose State, Sept. 28
Boise State at Texas A&M, Sept. 30
Utah State at
Weber State, Oct. 1
Fresno State at Santa Clara, Oct. 7
COLLEGE CUP ?“ The 24th Annual Women?™s College Cup will be held December 2-4 at the Aggie Soccer Complex in College Station, Texas. Last season, the WAC had two teams compete in postseason play, with Rice and SMU both falling in the first round. The following is a list of sites and dates for the 2005 NCAA Tournament:
First/Second Rounds (16)
November 11 and 13, 2005
On campus sites TBD
Third Rounds (8)
November 18 or 19 or 20, 2005
On campus sites TBD
Quarterfinals (4)
November 25 or 26 or 27, 2005
On campus sites TBD
Women?™s College Cup
December 2 and 4, 2005
Aggie Soccer Complex
College Station, Texas
Host: Texas A&M
TIE-BREAKING PROCEDURE ?“ To determine championship seeding in the event of ties between two teams or ties among multiple teams, the following criteria are applied:
In the event of a two-way tie:
1. Head-to-head competition
2. Compare the teams?™ records to that of the next highest finishing team (if tie for first). If tie is for position other than first, comparison will begin at the top of the standings.
3. In the unlikely event that teams are still tied, the conference conducts a draw.
For a three or more-way tie:
1. Head-to-head competition among the teams involved in the tie. The team(s) with the best record against the other teams receives the higher seed or advances to the next tie-breaker.
2. Same procedures as above.