On tap in the wac- Western Athletic Conference teams are back on the pitch this week when Louisiana Tech take its 6-2 record to Southern on Tuesday, Sept. 23. Fresno State is the only WAC team to play a home game on Sept. 26 when it hosts Seattle. Among the teams on the road; Hawai?i at Portland State, Idaho at Eastern Washington, Louisiana Tech heads to Centenary, San Jose State takes on Air Force while Utah State travels to California to try its luck against Cal Poly.
All eight teams are in action on the following Sunday (Sept. 28) as the majority of the conference is on the road yet again. Boise State kicks things off when the Broncos travel to Montana while Fresno State hosts Sacramento State. Hawai?i and Idaho are both in the state of Washington as they take on the University of Washington and Washington State, respectively. The Lady Techsters host Mississippi Valley State in Ruston, while Nevada hosts UC Davis. San Jose State and Utah State round out WAC play for the week when they travel to San Diego State and Wyoming, respectively.
PLAYERS OF THE WEEK-Louisiana Tech freshman Scotti Culton and Hawai?i senior Kori Lu were named Offensive and Defensive Western Athletic Conference Players of the Week, respectively.
Culton, a freshman midfielder from Waterloo, Ill. (Waterloo HS), registered three goals in just 157 minutes on the weekend. The freshman notched her first goal of the week against Grambling State (Sept. 16) in a 3-2 double-overtime loss. She then helped the Lady Techsters rebound to a 5-1 victory over Alabama A&M when she recorded two goals in the match. Her two goals were just 19 minutes apart that gave the Lady Techsters an early commanding lead. The three goals and six points were the first of the season for Culton. She started all three games on the week. She also played an instrumental role in Tech’s 1-0 win over Troy to capture the Troy Trojans Classic, the program’s first-ever 11-on-11 tournament title.
Lu, a senior goalkeeper from San Clemente, Calif. (Santa Margarita HS), recorded seven saves in a 2-1 victory over No. 23 UC Santa Barbara, the highest ranked opponent UH has beaten in school history. Lu shutout Montana in a 0-0 tie in the first game of the Outriggers Hotels and Resorts Soccer Classic after she made five saves in the match. She totaled 12 saves and allowed just one goal on the weekend as the Rainbow Wahine captured the tournament title in Honolulu. The senior is the school’s all-time leader in wins by a goalkeeper, minutes played in goal, matches played and started, as well as solo shutouts.
Other offensive nominees included: Chelsea Deptula of Hawai?i scored the game-winning overtime goal against No. 23 UC Santa Barbara (2-1, OT) in the 98th minute, marking the biggest win in the program’s history. Fresno State’s Ali Sill notched two goals on the weekend in the Colorado Classic (Boulder, Colo.), she scored the first of two goals in a 3-2 overtime loss to Denver and then registered the Bulldogs’ lone goal against Colorado (1-4). San Jose State freshman Shanelle Furner registered a goal in the 80th minute in a 2-1 loss to San Francisco. Lauren Hansen of Utah State scored a goal on her only shot of the weekend in a 2-0 victory over University of Texas-San Antonio, she is now tied for fifth all-time in USU history with 29 points. Boise State’s Randi Baker helped the Broncos to the co-championship of the Mountain Classic in Flagstaff, Ariz. after she recorded four points on two goals including the game-winning goal against Virginia Military Institute.
Other defensive nominees included: Fresno State’s Allison Ventura organized the backline all weekend as well as having two shots on goal, she also made a goal-saving clear. Nina Butera of San Jose State made her first start of the year a good one as she shutout Miami (OH) University in double-overtime while making six saves. Utah State’s Ali Griffin made three saves in two games on the weekend including a shutout victory against UTSA (2-0). Louisiana Tech’s Amy Wolsted earned all-tournament honors in the Troy Trojans Classic as the Lady Techsters went on to take the title, she played 243 minutes in three games while recording a goal as well as holding the nations leading goal scorer, Jill Pinder (Troy), to zero goals. Liz Ruiz of Boise State continued her strong play in goal as she made six saves in a 3-0 shutout victory over Louisiana-Monroe.
TOURNAMENT TITLES- WAC teams won three of five tournaments last weekend, including Boise State’s co-championship at the Northern Arizona Tournament, Louisiana Tech’s Troy Tournament title and Hawai?i’s title at the Outrigger Hotels and Resorts Soccer Classic in Honolulu.
UC WHO?- Hawai?i took down No. 23 UC Santa Barbara, 2-1 in overtime, last Sunday. It was the school’s first win against an opponent ranked in the top 25 and the first win this season by a WAC team against a ranked opponent.
SHOTFEST- Idaho finished with 34 shots against Robert Morris last weekend, a WAC-best so far this season. The Vandals totaled 62 shots in back-to-back games on the weekend, marking it one of the best shooting performances in the nation this year.
ROAD WARRIORS- Out of the 15 games this week, WAC teams are on the road for 11 of them.
tEAm notes
Boise State Broncos (5-3-1, 0-0 WAC)
Boise State enters the week at 5-3-1 overall and is on a two-match win streak after defeating Louisiana-Monroe 3-0 and VMI 2-1 last weekend at the Mountain Classic in Flagstaff, Ariz. The three goal explosion on Friday versus ULM snapped a two-game scoring drought and a three-match losing streak as the Broncos defeated the Warhawks. This week, Boise State continues its nine-match road swing with a single contest, seventh of the nine, at Missoula, Mont. against the University of Montana Grizzlies on Sunday afternoon. Sophomore Shannon Saxton now leads the Broncos in scoring with four goals and five assists for 13 points.
Fresno State Bulldogs (2-6, 0-0 WAC)
The Bulldogs faced two tough teams that both appeared in the 2007 NCAA tournament. Colorado was also ranked No. 21 in the country. Ali Sill scored twice and moved into second place in both points and goals. Bradlee DeShane recorded her second assist. Molly Nizzoli scored her third goal moving her into first place in both goals and points. Kaitlyn Revel had 12 saves on the weekend.
Hawai?i Rainbow Wahine (3-3-2, 0-0 WAC)
Sophomore defender Chelsea Deptula scored the game-winning overtime goal against No. 23 UC Santa Barbara. It was the biggest win in UH history, knocking off its highest ranked opponent ever. Hawai?i finished 1-0-1 over the weekend including a tie against Montana in the Outrigger Hotels and Resorts Soccer Classic in Honolulu. Goalkeeper Kori Lu made 12 saves and recorded her first shutout of the season against Montana. Lu also was named Western Athletic Conference Defensive Player of the Week after her performance in goal. The Rainbow Wahine now hit the road as they travel to Portland (Sept. 26) to take on Portland State and then head north to play Washington (Sept. 28).
Idaho Vandals (1-6-1, 0-0 WAC)
The Vandals played Niagara to a 2-2 tie before losing 2-1 to Robert Morris after taking 34 shots in the in match at the UNLV Classic in Las Vegas. Idaho totaled 62 shots in two games, marking it as one of the best back-to-back shot performances in the country this season. It now ranks fourth in the WAC in shots (112) after nearly doubling its shot total after the weekend. The Vandals now gear up for road games at Eastern Washington (Sept. 26) and at Washington State.
Louisiana Tech Lady Techsters (6-2, 0-0 WAC)
Tech was 2-1 on the week. Tech posted two wins at the Troy Trojans Soccer Classic (5-1 over Alabama A&M and 1-0 over Troy). With the two wins, the Lady Techsters captured the program’s first ever fall tournament title. Amy Wolsted, Amy Quintana, and Kiva Gresham earned all-tournament honors at the event. Tech posted its fifth shutout of the season with a 1-0 win over Troy. Tech lost 3-2 in overtime at Grambling State. Tech led 2-0 with four minutes to play before surrendering two late goals and falling in overtime. The Lady Techsters are 6-2 on the season after winning only two games all last year.
Nevada Wolf Pack (0-6-2, 0-0 WAC)
Goalkeeper Sarah Hunt recorded her second career shutout at UW-Green Bay on September 19. She posted her first career shutout in Nevada’s 0-0 (2OT) tie at San Francisco on September 5. Senior Samantha Miller (120 career shots) is four shots away from being Nevada’s career leader in shots. Lauren Kinneman (2003-06) is Nevada’s current leader in shots with 124. Freshman Ellie Stott made her collegiate debut for Nevada in the Pack’s 4-0 loss at Wisconsin. Five players have recorded at least one point for the Pack this season (Samantha Miller, Karen Zmirak, Cristen Drummond, Erin Smith and Jessica Thompson)
San Jose State Spartans (1-4-3, 0-0 WAC)
After a 2-1 loss to San Francisco last Friday, the Spartans rebounded well with a 0-0 tie against a tough Miami (OH) team to end the weekend 0-1-1. Goalkeeper Nina Butera recorded her first shutout in her first start of the season. The Spartans lead the WAC in saves with 44. San Jose State makes a Mountain West road trip when it travels Colorado Springs, Colo. to play Air Force (Sept. 26) and then head back to California to take on San Diego State (Sept. 28)
Utah State Aggies (4-5-1, 0-0 WAC)
The Aggies closed out a three-match homestand last week with a loss to Long Beach State. USU ended the homestand 2-1. The Aggies registered their third shutout against the Roadrunners of UTSA. This week, the Aggies hit the road to face Cal Poly (Sept. 26) and Wyoming (Sept. 28).