WAC TEAM-BY-TEAM NOTES
Bakersfield Roadrunners (2-9-1, 1-3-1 WAC)
Bakersfield went 1-1-0 last week ... the ‘Runners dropped a 2-0 decision to Seattle U before defeating Idaho 1-0 ... Emily Noethe scored the lone goal as Bakersfield won for the first time since opening day as the Roadrunners defeated Idaho Oct. 6 in Bakersfield ... it was Noethe’s second goal of the year and came off an Erica Shelton assist ... it was Shelton’s team leading third assist ... she also leads the team in goals (3) and shots (26) ... Tori Ornela recorded her second career shutout against Idaho ... the victory was the first for Bakersfield in 10 matches, the longest such stretch since moving to the Division I level ... Bakersfield hosts New Mexico State on Friday and Kansas City on Sunday.
Grand Canyon Antelopes (2-9-1, 1-4-1 WAC)
Grand Canyon split its weekend road contests, falling 6-2 at UMKC on Oct. 4 and winning 2-1 in double overtime at New Mexico State on Oct. 6 ... the win over NMSU was the first-ever WAC victory for the program ... Samantha Bush picked up her team-leading third goal, and first game-winning goal, in the 106th minute against the Aggies ... Jessica Fitzgerald and Joanna Lagunas each recorded their first score goal of the 2013 season in the game at UMKC ... on the weekend, ‘Lopes goalkeeper Cat Lena recorded 13 saves ... GCU will now return home for a stretch of four straight home games, beginning with a 5:45 p.m. contest versus Seattle U on Friday, Oct. 11 ... alongside the GCU men’s soccer team, the women will play for Breast Cancer Awareness this coming weekend.
Idaho Vandals (3-9-0, 3-2-0 WAC)
Idaho went 1-1-0 last week ... the Vandals defeated Utah Valley 1-0 in Orem on Friday before falling 1-0 at Bakersfield on Sunday ... sophomore midfielder JP Burgess scored the game-winning goal in the 1-0 victory at Utah Valley ... Burgess fielded a pass from freshman Kaysha Darcy on the right side of the field and fired a shot from 12 yards out to break the scoreless 0-0 tie ... for Burgess it was her first career goal and Darcy picked up her first helper of the season ... the Idaho keeper tandem of Marina Siegl and Torell Stewart were forced to make 12 saves to hold the Wolverines scoreless for the second time this season ... Idaho travels to play Grand Canyon on Sunday.
Kansas City Kangaroos (6-6-1, 3-2-0 WAC)
Kansas City went 1-0-0 last week with a 6-2 win over Grand Canyon at home ... the ‘Roos established new program records for goals in a half and goals in a game en route to a 6-2 victory over the visiting Antelopes of Grand Canyon ... TBare, the school’s all-time leader in goals and points, set a school record with three (3) goals in the win on Friday ... on the strength of Bare’s performance, the ‘Roos also set program records for goals in a half (4) and goals in a game ... Bare is now tied for the league-lead in goals with eight (8) ... Ellie Chadick, Alyssa Elver and Emily Herndon also scored goals against Grand Canyon ... this week, Kansas City travels to play Utah Valley on Friday and Bakersfield on Sunday.
New Mexico State Aggies (4-8-1, 1-4-0 WAC)
New Mexico State went 0-1-0 on its single-game WAC weekend at home ... the team dropped a 2-1 decision to Grand Canyon in a double-overtime battle on Sunday ... Daisy Hernandez scored the only Aggie goal of the weekend on a penalty kick early in the second half ... the Aggies are 4-8-1 on the season and 1-4 in WAC play ... Hernandez, a Bakersfield, Calif., native scored the Aggies lone goal of the week on a penalty kick ... her goal came just a minute and a half into the second period and tied the score against GCU, forcing a double overtime game ... it was Hernandez’s second goal of the season and she also had two shots on goal in the 1-2 loss ... the team heads out on the road on Friday against Bakersfield and then travels to Utah Valley on Sunday looking for its first road conference win.
Seattle U Redhawks (8-2-2, 5-0-0 WAC)
Seattle U extended its shutout streak to five matches and its winning streak to six over the weekend ... the Redhawks are now in sole possession of first place, undefeated in league play ... SU defeated Bakersfield 2-0 on Friday before downing Utah Valley 2-0 on Sunday ... Brianna Smallidge recorded a perfect 1.000 save pct. over the weekend and has now recorded four complete shutouts in 2013 ... Verdoia has now scored at least one goal in five straight games and 7 of 12 total ... since allowing Grand Canyon to score in the first half of the match on Sept. 20, SU has now scored 17 straight unanswered goals ... during their five game shutout streak, the Redhawks have outshot their opponents, 99-34 ... with seven regular season games remaining, SU is just one win away from tying their 2012 win record.
Utah Valley Wolverines (5-7-0, 3-2-0 WAC)
Utah Valley went 0-2-0 last week at home ... the Wolverines dropped a 1-0 decision to Idaho before falling 2-0 to Seattle U ... despite a decisive advantage in shots, shots on goal, and corner kicks, Utah Valley dropped its match to Idaho ... UVU outshot Idaho 21-11, fired 12 shots on target compared to eight from the Vandals, and led in total corner kicks 7-3 ... still, the Wolverines were unable to convert its statistical dominance into figures on the scoring column, suffering only its second shutout of the season ... Utah Valley suffered its second WAC loss of the weekend Sunday afternoon, falling to first-place and preseason conference favorite Seattle U ... UVU has now gone goalless in its last two games and falls to 0-5-0 all-time against Seattle U ... Kansas City will be in Orem Friday night for a 7 p.m. kickoff, and New Mexico State awaits the Wolverines on Sunday at 1 p.m.
WAC NOTES
WAC SOCCER PLAYERS OF THE WEEK
Offensive: Taylor Bare, Sr., F, Kansas City
Bare, a senior forward from Anoka, Minn. (Anoka HS), set a school record with three goals in a 6-2 victory over Grand Canyon on Friday. On the strength of Bare’s performance, the ‘Roos also set program 4records for goals in a half (4) and goals in a game (6). Bare’s three goals in Friday’s match brings her season total to eight, which ties her for the league lead. Overall on the week, Bare tallied five shots, four shots on goal, three goals and six points.
Other offensive nominees included: Grand Canyon senior forward Samantha Bush … New Mexico State senior midfielder Daisy Hernandez … Seattle U junior forward Stephanie Verdoia.
Defensive: Brianna Smallidge, So., GK, Seattle U
Smallidge, a sophomore goalkeeper from Port Orchard, Wash. (South Kitsap HS), recorded all 180 minutes in goal in Seattle U’s two shutout victories. Smallidge registered five saves in the 2-0 win at Bakersfield, and four more saves in the 2-0 shutout win at Utah Valley. Over the two matches, Smallidge recorded nine saves, two shutouts wins and a perfect 1.000 save percentage. She has now recorded four complete shutouts for Seattle U this season.
Other defensive nominees included: Grand Canyon senior goalkeeper Cat Lena.
SEATTLE U TAKE CONTROLL OF FIRST PLACE IN THE WAC STANDINGS WITH PERFECT 5-0-0 RECORD
Seattle U picked up a pair of 2-0 shutout road victories last week to take complete controll of first place in the WAC standings. The Redhawks now own a perfect 5-0-0 record with 15 points. SU defeated Bakersfield and Utah Valley on the road last week. Idaho, Kansas City and Utah Valley sit in a three-way tie for second place with 3-2-0 records (9 points). Bakersfield and Grand Canyon are tied for fifth place with four points each, while New Mexico State sits in seventh with three points. The top four teams in the standings at the end of the season qualify for the WAC Tournament in Las Cruces, N.M. The tournament will take place Nov. 8 and 10 at NM State’s Soccer Athletic Complex.
SEATTLE U RANKS 10TH IN LATEST NSCAA/CONTINENTAL TIRE WEST REGIONAL POLL
After picking up a pair of 2-0 shutout road victories last week to improve its overall record to 8-2-2, Seattle U remained at No. 10 in this week’s NSCAA/Continental Tire West Region Top-10 Poll. The Redhawks have won six straight matches dating back to a Sept. 20 win over Grand Canyon.
2013 WAC TOURNAMENT HEADS TO LAS CRUCES
The 2013 Western Athletic Conference Soccer Tournament will be held at the Soccer Complex on the campus of New Mexico State University in Las Cruces, N.M. Tickets may be purchased by calling the Mew Mexico State ticket office at (575) 646-1420. More information can be found at www.wacsports.com.
2013 NCAA COLLEGE CUP
The 33rd Annual Women’s College Cup will be held Dec. 6 and 8, 2013, in Cary, N.C., at the WakeMed Soccer Park. Last season, the WAC had two teams compete in postseason play with Utah State falling in the first round to BYU and Denver making a run to the Sweet 16. The following is a list of sites and dates for the 2013 NCAA Tournament:
First Round (16)
November 15-17, 2013
On campus sites TBD
Second/Third Rounds (8)
November 22-24, 2013
On campus sites TBD
Quarterfinals (4)
November 29-Dec. 1, 2013
On campus sites TBD
Women’s College Cup
December 6 and 8, 2013
WakeMed Soccer Park - Cary, North Carolina
CHICAGO STATE AND UTPA TO JOIN WAC WOMEN’S SOCCER LEAGUE IN 2014
Chicago State and UTPA have each hired head coaches to manage their respective women’s soccer programs. Tony Tommasi has been named the first women’s soccer head coach in Chicago State University history. Tommasi heads to Chicago State with 12 years of collegiate head coaching experience along with two years as an assistant at NCAA Division I Mississippi State. UTPA announced that Glad Bugariu, who had been the head coach at South Carolina State (SCSU) for the last five seasons, is the first Broncs women’s soccer head coach. Both teams are set to begin thier inaugural seasons of women’s soccer as members of the WAC in 2014.