WAC TEAM-BY-TEAM NOTES
Bakersfield Roadrunners (4-14-1, 3-8-1 WAC)
Seniors Erica Shelton and Taylor Jordan concluded their Bakersfield careers at NM State last week ... the ‘Runners went 0-2-0 last week to wrap up the 2013 season ... Bakersfield dropped a 1-0 decision at Kansas City before falling 2-1 in double overtime at NM State ... Shelton had the assist on the lone ‘Runner goal of last weekend at NM State ... the Bakersfield native led the Roadrunners in 2013 in points (12), and assists (5) ... her five assists tie her with eight others for 14th in school history for most assists in a season (Division I or II) ... she tied for the team lead this season with Hedda Regefalk in goals with four ... Shelton’s 23 career points are the 11th most in school history while her eight career goals are the 14th most in school history ... Jordan played in 74 matches in her career, the 14th most in school history.
Grand Canyon Antelopes (5-12-1, 4-7-1 WAC)
Grand Canyon concluded its inaugural run through the WAC with a 1-0 win over Bakersfield on Sunday ... it was the third win for the Antelopes in their final five games ... freshman Taylor Layton scored her first game-winning goal on Sunday, assisted by fellow freshman Jessica Valadez ... senior goalkeeper Cat Lena recorded nine saves through her final two games with the Antelopes and finished the season with 77 stops ... Cassie Beckwith led the squad with four goals, followed by Samantha Bush with three ... Jessica Fitzgerald and Chelsea Santos each recorded two assists ... the ‘Lopes finished the season with four shutout victories and eight games decided by just one goal ... the team also participated in seven 1-0 games throughout the season.
Idaho Vandals (4-15-0, 4-8-0 WAC)
Idaho went 0-2-0 last week to wrap up regular season play ... the Vandals earned the No. 4 seed at this week’s WAC Tournament in Las Cruces ... Idaho dropped a 3-0 decision at Seattle U before falling 3-1 in its home finale to Seattle U on Sunday ... in Friday’s loss at Seattle U, Kaysha Darcy recorded the only Vandal shot on goal ... in Sunday’s loss to Seattle U, Katie Baran got Idaho on the board early in the contest ... Baran scored 59 seconds in to the match, netting the earliest goal of the season for Idaho ... Kavita Battan played a ball into the goal box from the left side corner ... Alyssa Pease screened the Seattle U keeper and the ball was headed into the net by Baran from the right side post ... Baran’s goal was only the fourth goal allowed by the Redhawks in WAC play ... Idaho will played a third-straight game against Seattle U in Friday’s tournament opener.
Kansas City Kangaroos (11-8-1, 8-4-0 WAC)
Kansas City went a perfect 2-0-0 to wrap up regular season play and earn the No. 2 seed at this week’s WAC Tournament in Las Cruces ... the ‘Roos defeated Bakersfield 1-0 on Friday before taking down Utah Valley 3-0 on Sunday ... Taylor Bare scored two goals in a 3-0 victory over Bakersfield on Sunday to extend her season total to a WAC-leading 13 goals ... in the process, Bare, who already owns the program career record (27), set a new single-season goals record, as well ... she has scored five times in the last three games ... sophomore Nina Tzianos notched her third shutout of the season in a 3-0 victory over Bakersfield ... the St. Louis-native also made eight stops in a losing effort at Utah Valley on Friday ... Kansas City will play Utah Valley in Friday’s tournament semifinal match.
New Mexico State Aggies (5-13-2, 2-9-1 WAC)
The New Mexico State Aggies ended the 2013 season with a double overtime win against Bakersfield on Sunday afternoon after falling in double OT to Utah Valley ... the Aggies outshot their opponents on goal 17-14 on the weekend and saw freshman Devin Hart earn her first career goal as an Aggies and push NM State to the 2-1 win over CSUB to end the year ... the Aggie goalkeepers also saw a combined 11 saves, eight came from freshman Tayler Hammack in her first collegiate start on Friday afternoon ... the Aggies wrap up the season with a 5-13-2 overall record and a 2-9-1 mark in conference play ... the Aggies dropped six overtime matches this season.
Seattle U Redhawks (15-2-2, 12-0-0 WAC)
Seattle U completed a perfect 12-0 record in conference play, becoming just the fourth team in WAC history to do so ... SU will be the No. 1 seed in this weekend’s WAC tournament ... the Redhawks are the WAC Regular Season Champions ... the Redhawks are currently on a 13 game winning streak going into the conference tournament ... SU has scored 3 goals in their past three matches, scoring three or more goals in nine of their last 13 games ... the Redhawks will face the Vandals for the third straight time in the semifinals of the WAC Tournament on Nov. 8 ... Seattle U is the first WAC team to ever win 12 conference games.
Utah Valley Wolverines (9-9-1, 7-4-1 WAC)
Utah Valley went 1-1-0 this weekend, picking up a 2-1, double OT win at NM State before falling 3-0 at Kansas City ... Haley Curtis scored her career-high seventh goal of the season in the second overtime to lift the Wolverines to the win over the Aggies ... redshirt freshman Kristen Bailey-Yoo tallied the second goal of her career to equalize in the 76th minute in Las Cruces ... with Sunday’s loss to UMKC, the Wolverines settle into the third seed at the WAC Tournament this weekend ... UVU will meet UMKC, the second seed, in Friday’s second semifinal ... the Wolverines and Kangaroos split the season series with UVU winning the first meeting, 2-0 ... in four years in the Great West Conference, Utah Valley went 8-1 in tournament matches and won the tournament three times ... its lone loss was a 1-0, overtime setback against Houston Baptist in the 2010 tournament semifinals.
WAC NOTES
WAC SOCCER PLAYERS OF THE WEEK
Kansas City’s Taylor Bare and Seattle U’s Kiana Kraft have been named Western Athletic Conference Offensive and Defensive Players of the Week, respectively, for the week of Oct. 28-Nov. 3.
Bare, a senior forward from Anoka, Minn. (Anoka HS), scored two goals in a 3-0 victory over Bakersfield on Sunday to extend her season total to a WAC-leading 13 goals on the year. The 13 goals is a single season school record for Bare, who also owns the program’s career goals mark at 27. Bare has now scored five goals in UMKC’s last three matches. On the week, Bare tallied five shots, three shots on goal, two goals and four points.
Kraft, a sophomore midfielder from Kent, Wash. (Kentwood HS), anchored the midfield defense to a 3-0 shutout victory over Idaho on Friday and a 3-1 win on Sunday. Kraft helped a Seattle U defense that allowed only eight shots and four shots on goal over two matches last week. Kraft also helped offensively with a goal and an assist over the weekend.
Other offensive nominees included: New Mexico State senior midfielder Mary Kate Koziol … Seattle U junior forward Stephanie Verdoia … Utah Valley senior forward Haley Curtis.
Other defensive nominees included: Kansas City sophomore goalkeeper Nina Tzianos … New Mexico State senior midfielder Daisy Hernandez.
SEATTLE U WINS WAC REGULAR SEASON TITLE, BECOME FOURTH WAC TEAM IN LEAGUE HISTORY TO GO UNDEFEATED IN CONFERENCE PLAY
Seattle U became just the fourth team in WAC history to wrap up conference play with a perfect record. The Redhawks finished league play with a 12-0-0 record to win thier first-ever WAC regular season title. The 12 wins are the most WAC victories ever recorded in single season in league history.
SEATTLE U MOVES UP FOUR SPOTS TO 4TH IN LATEST NSCAA/CONINENTAL TIRE WEST REGIONAL POLL
After picking up a pair of wins last week to improve its overall record to 15-2-2, Seattle U moves up four spots to No. 4 in this week’s NSCAA/Continental Tire West Region Top-10 Poll. The Redhawks have won 13 straight matches dating back to a Sept. 20 win over Grand Canyon.
WAC POSTSEASON HONORS ANNOUNCED
The Western Athletic Conference women’s soccer postseason award winners as selected by the league’s seven head coaches have been announced. WAC regular-season champion Seattle U led all teams with nine players selected to the all-WAC team, including four on the first team and five on the second team. Seattle U junior forward Stephanie Verdoia was named the WAC’s Offensive Player of the Year, while Utah Valley senior goalkeeper Lauren Sack received Defensive Player of the Year honors. Bakersfield’s Hedda Regefalk was named the league’s Freshman of the Year and Seattle U’s Julie Woodward was named Coach of the Year.
First Team All-WAC
Natalie Baker, Sr., F, Utah Valley
Taylor Bare, Sr., F, Kansas City
Stephanie Verdoia, Jr., F, Seattle U
Julia Besagno, Sr., MF, Seattle U
Haley Curtis, Sr., MF, Utah Valley
Erica Shelton, Sr., MF, Bakersfield
Chelsie Breen, Sr., D, Idaho
Lexi Dunn, Sr., D, Utah Valley
Monique Escalera, Sr., D, Seattle U
Mary Hill, Sr., D, Seattle U
Lauren Sack, Sr., GK, Utah Valley
Second Team All-WAC
Jennae Cambra, Jr., F, New Mexico State
Hedda Regefalk, Fr, F, Bakersfield
Taylor Ritzman, Jr., F, Seattle U
Ava Ames, Sr., MF, Seattle U
Alyssa Elver, Jr., MF, Kansas City
Natasha Howe, Fr., MF, Seattle U
Kat Prati, Sr., MF, Seattle U
Sarah Cook, Jr., D, Bakersfield
Kaely Tott, Jr., D, Kansas City
Nitalia Zuniga, Sr., D, Idaho
Brianna Smallidge, So., GK, Seattle U
Offensive Player of the Year: Stephanie Verdoia, Jr., F, Seattle U
Defensive Player of the Year: Lauren Sack, Sr., GK, Utah Valley
Freshman of the Year: Hedda Regefalk, Fr., F, Bakersfield
Coach of the Year: Julie Woodward, Seattle U
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.