WAC TEAM-BY-TEAM NOTES
Bakersfield Roadrunners (1-3-0, 0-0-0 WAC)
Bakersfield went 0-2 last week as the team dropped matches at home against Northern Arizona and Sacramento State ... Emily Noethe, who scored the lone Roadrunner goal of the weekend, suited up for the first time this week after sitting out the opening two matches due to a back injury ... sophomore Taylor Wheeler recorded her first career assist on Noethe’s goal against Sacramento State on Sept. 1 ... freshman Megan Vina made the first two starts of her career against Northern Arizona and Sacramento State ... she made nine saves in the two matches ... senior Erica Shelton is the lone ‘Runner to have played every minute this season (360) ... Bakersfield looks to get back on track this week as the team plays at Portland State on Saturday.
Grand Canyon Antelopes (0-3-0, 0-0-0 WAC)
The ‘Lopes participated in their first overtime game of the season on Aug. 30, a 1-0 loss to Valparaiso ... the game against Valpo was delayed nearly three hours due to inclement weather, meaning the teams were still in action past midnight in Indiana ... eight different GCU athletes played the entire 94 minutes of the overtime contest ... GCU goalkeeper Cat Lena collected seven saves over the course of two games over the weekend ... the ‘Lopes continue their string of road games with two contests in Colorado this weekend – a Friday matchup at Colorado State and a Sunday game at Air Force, both teams are members of the Mountain West Conference.
Idaho Vandals (0-3-0, 0-0-0 WAC)
Idaho went 0-1 last week with a 5-0 loss at Washington State ... Washington State scored four of its five goals in the first half ... the young Vandals squad played seven freshmen on the day, with five getting the starting nod ... Idaho started with Stewart in net for the first time this season ... she totaled five saves in the half ... Marina Siegl began the second half in net, reversing roles from the previous two games ... Siegl faced only two shots on goal, making one save ... Alyssa Lloyd registered the only shot on goal in the match for the Vandals ... Idaho returns to action this week at North Dakota State on Friday and at Creighton on Sunday.
Kansas City Kangaroos (2-2-0, 0-0-0 WAC)
Kansas City went 0-2 last week ... the ‘Roos dropped a 3-2 decision at Oral Roberts before falling 3-0 at home to Missouri ... Ellie Chadick and Kaely Tott registered goals for UMKC against Oral Roberts ... Tott also assisted on the Chadick goal ... Kansas City out-shot Oral Roberts 17-13 and had an 8-5 advantage on shots on goal ... in the loss to Missouri, Emily Herndon led the UMKC attach with a team-high two shots ... Chadick, Tott and Taylor Bare also recorded a shot against Missouri ... Kansas City returns to action this week as the team travels to play UALR on Friday before playing at Central Arkansas on Sunday.
New Mexico State Aggies (2-2-0, 0-0-0 WAC)
New Mexico State went 1-1 last week ... the Aggies picked up their first win away from home this season with a 1-0 shutout over LIU Brooklyn ... junior forward Layla Todd scored her second goal of the season win the victory over LIUB ... senior goalkeeper Jessica Schutter recorded her first shutout of the season and grabbed a season-high five saves against LIU Brooklyn ... junior midfielder Katie Smith recorded her first assist of the season in the win ... NM State wrapped up play at the UNLV Nike Invitational with a split 1-1 record after falling to Portland State, 7-0 ... the Aggie offense fired eight shots with five shots on goal against Portland State, which are both second-best marks of the season, but couldn’t find the back of the net ... NM State hosts Stephen F. Austin, Friday, Sept. 6, and UC Riverside, Sunday, Sept. 8.
Seattle U Redhawks (2-1-0, 0-0-0 WAC)
Seattle U recorded a win in overtime in its only game last weekend ... the Redhawks defeated Boise State 2-1 in overtime ... less than two minutes before the horn of the first overtime, Natasha Howe drove in her first collegiate goal to give Seattle U the win over the Broncos ... Julia Besagno scored her second goal of the season on a PK to give the Redhawks the early lead ... in goal, Brianna Smallidge earned the win, making three saves in her third complete game of the season in goal ... Seattle U will face Butler on Friday, Sept. 6 and Purdue on Sunday, Sept. 8 ... the Redhawks will return to Seattle for a match at Washington on Friday, Sept. 13 and their next home match on Friday, Sept. 20 vs. Grand Canyon to open WAC play.
Utah Valley Wolverines (0-3-0, 0-0-0 WAC)
Utah Valley dropped a 1-0 decision to Utah State on a penalty kick on Monday ... the team then dropped another heart-breaking 2-1 double-overtime decision to Weber State on Thursday ... each of Utah Valley’s three losses this season have come by a one-goal margin ... the Wolverines had 10 one-goal losses in 2012 ... in the loss at Utah State, Lexi Dunn, Haley Curtis and Kim Stratford each registered a shot ... Lauren Sack registered four saves in goal for UVU against the Aggies ... in the double-overtime loss to Weber State, Natalie Bakers scored UVU’s goal in the 11th minute ... UVU will play three matches in seven days, starting with a visit to Idaho State Tuesday ... from there, the Wolverines head to Missoula for the Montana Cup where it will face Houston Baptist Saturday and host Montana on Monday.
WAC NOTES
WAC SOCCER PLAYERS OF THE WEEK
Offensive: Natasha Howe, Fr., F, Seattle U
Howe, a freshman forward from Mission Viejo, Calif. (Mission Viejo HS), came off the bench to score the game-winning overtime goal in a 2-1 victory over Boise State. Playing in just her third collegiate match, Howe scored her goal on the only shot she took in the match.
Other offensive nominees included: Grand Canyon junior forward Jessica Lincoln … Kansas City junior defender Kaely Tott … Utah Valley senior forward Natalie Baker.
Defensive: Brianna Smallidge, So., GK, Seattle U
Smallidge, a sophomore goalkeeper from Port Orchard, Wash. (South Kitsap HS), earned her second win of the season in goal as she gave up only one goal in a 2-1 overtime win over Boise State last week. She made three saves in the match against the Broncos for a .750 save percentage.
Other defensive nominees included: Grand Canyon sophomore defender Martine Gjennestad … Utah Valley senior defender Lexi Dunn.
SEATTLE U TAKES LEAD IN NON-CONFERENCE STANDINGS
With its 2-1 overtime victory over Boise State last week, Seattle U climbed to the top of the WAC’s non-conference standings with a 2-1 record. The Redhawks’ other win is a 2-0 shutout against Eastern Wasington. SU’s lone setback is a 3-1 loss to Washington State. Kansas City and New Mexico State are tied for second place with 2-2 records, while Bakersfield is fourth at 1-3. Idaho, Grand Canyon and Utah Valley each hold 0-3 marks.
BAKERSFIELD’S SHELTON RECORDS HAT TRICK IN SEASON OPENER
Erica Shelton (Sr., Bakersfield, Calif., UC Santa Barbara) recorded a hat trick to lead Bakersfield past Southern Utah 4-1 in its season opener on Aug. 23. After trailing 1-0, Shelton tied the score from five yards out in the 30th minute. She then scored the go-ahead goal at 65:10 as she took advantage of SUU’s goalie turning the ball over 35 yards out. Shelton completed the hat trick scoring in the 71st minute on a direct kick. Shelton’s hat trick was the first for a Roadrunner since Sam Peña posted the feat on Oct. 12, 2010 against Hawai’i. Shelton is just the second Roadrunner to record at hat trick at the Division I level. Sam Peña is the only other ‘Runner to post a hat trick since 2007. Shelton is only 1-of-5 Bakersfield players to score at least three goals in game, joining Jamie Simpson (5x), Taylar Sklar, Nicole Van Dyke, and Peña.
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.