United Athletic Conference

Complete Release (PDF)

 

Grand Canyon's Camryn Larson and Seattle U's Kait Raffensperger been named TicketSmarter Western Athletic Conference Offensive and Defensive Players of the Week, respectively, for August 30 through September 5.

 

Larson, a senior forward from Gilbert, Ariz., played a leading role in GCU's two wins over the past weekend. She scored the Lopes' opening goal and assisted on their third and last goal on the 3-0 win over Northern Arizona, Friday. Larson then finished the week strong by scoring an overtime game-winner for the Lopes', earning them a 2-1 win over UNLV.

 

Raffensperger, a freshmen defender from Redmond, Wash., played a major role as the centerback for the Redhawks' two home shutouts this past weekend, 1-0 over Eastern Washington, Thursday, and 1-0 over Portland, Sunday. The Redhawks' defense minimized the number of shots made against them with a total of 17 shots with only five on goal.

 

Other offensive nominees: … Chicago State's Jayla Gage scored scored her first goal of the season on Friday's 2-1 loss against Green Bay … Lamar's Isela Ramirez got nominated for the third week in a row after scoring two goals and one assist on the Cardinals' whopping 9-0 win over Alcorn, Sunday … NM State's Corey Kizer moved up to seventh on the Aggies' women's soccer all-time goals list when she scored the second goal on Sunday's 2-0 win over Incarnate Word … Seattle U's Hallie Bergford scored the Redhawks' winning goal on their overtime 1-0 win against Eastern Washington, Thursday … UT Rio Grande Valley's Anna Barkey scored the Vaqueros' opening goal on Friday's 2-0 win against Texas Southern … 

 

Other defensive nominees: Grand Canyon's Tyler Ferguson played a key role in GCU's line of defense past weekend, contributing to the Lopes' Friday 3-0 shutout over Northern Arizona and Sunday's 2-1 win over UNLV allowing a total of only 16 shots made against the Lopes … NM State's Makenna Gottschalk  recorded her second shutout of the season on Sunday's 2-0 win over Incarnate Word … UT Rio Grande Valley's Maile Lunardi only conceded one goal this past week and was in the net on the Vaqueros' shutout 2-0 win over Texas Southern, Friday.

 

Another busy weekend is a ahead of the WAC teams with twenty matches scheduled between Thrusday and Sunday this week. Among them, the highlighted match is Grand Canyon's road game against the 23rd College Soccer News ranked Denver.

 

Going into the fourth week, Grand Canyon keeps their spot as league leaders in shots (129), points (44), goals (15), assists (14), assists per game (2.33), least goals allowed (3), goals against average (0.50) and shutouts (4). Lamar stole the top spot for average goals per game (2.60) after the whopping 9-0 win over Alcorn. Sam Houston holds the top spot in saves (48) while Utah Valley is the leader in corner kicks (35). 

 

Individually, Grand Canyon's Marleen Schimmer holds the top spot for total shots (43) and shots per game (7.17). Lamar's Isela Ramirez is the current top scorer of the league (4). NM State's Hannah Leitner has the most assists (3). In the net, Grand Canyon's Jordan Ferguson is on the lead with the least goals against average (0.49) while Dixie State's Mashaun Estridge is at the top in save percentage (.875). SHSU's Abby DeLozier is the leader in saves (39) and saves per game (7.80). 

 

GCU improved their record to 5-1 after winning both of their matches last weekend, putting the Lopes at the top of the West Division standings coming off the third week. The Lopes showed great defense with only allowing three goals made against them in the course of the last three weeks, least in the league. Also in the West Division, Seattle U extends their winning-streak to three with a two-win sweep this past weekend.

 

Following a short offseason and an influx of new programs, Stephen F. Austin is the preseason favorite to win the 2021 Western Athletic Conference Southwest Division while Utah Valley is the coaches' pick to win the WAC West Division in a vote of the league's 12 head coaches, who could not vote for their own team or players. 

 

WAC-newcomer Stephen F. Austin received three first place votes to edge out Abilene Christian and Lamar for the top spot with 22 points, compared with two first place votes and 18 points for the Wildcats and one first place vote and 18 points for the Cardinals. UT Rio Grande Valley was picked fourth, followed by Sam Houston in fifth and Chicago State in sixth.

 

In the west, defending WAC champion Utah Valley received four first place votes and 24 total points to edge out rival Seattle U for the first spot. The Redhawks received one first place vote and 21 points to take second, followed by Grand Canyon, with the final first place vote and 17 points, in third. California Baptist takes fourth, NM State is fifth and Dixie State is sixth.

 

Seattle U's Sydney Carr and UVU's Jenna Shephard were selected as the WAC Preseason Offensive and Defensive Player of the Year respectively in a vote of the league's 12 head coaches, who could not vote for their own team or players.

 

Carr represented the Redhawks on the Preseason All-WAC team whole Shephard was joined by teammates Sadie Brockback, Heather Stainbrook and Amber Tripp. California Baptist had two players honored as Erin Gallagher and Romy Salvador represented the Lancers. Also earning honors were Abilene Christian's Christina Arteaga, Dixie State's Whitley Griffiths, Grand Canyon's Marleen Schimmer and Stephen F. Austin's Jamie Jezierski. 

 

WELCOME TO THE WAC 

The Western Athletic Conference is a little bit bigger this season as Abilene Christian, Lamar, Sam Houston and Stephen F. Austin have all joined the party. Due to the increase from eight teams to 12 teams, the league will play in a divisional format this season with the top three teams from each division advancing to the WAC Tournament.

 

WAC women's soccer teams will take on some of the top teams in the nation this season with 17 non-conference games against opponents that participated in the 2020-21 NCAA Women's Soccer Tournament in North Carolina. Stephen F. Austin has the most daunting schedule, facing off against four postseason opponents. GCU is second with three matches scheduled against NCAA tournament teams. Sam Houston and Seattle U have two each.

The 2021 WAC Women's Soccer Tournament will feature the top three teams from each division on November 3, 5, and 7 at Elmer Gray Stadium in Abilene, Texas. The two divisional winners will receive byes to the semifinal round with the second place team taking on the third place team from the other division in the first round.

 

As Tarleton continues its growth to NCAA Division I, the athletics department will be adding women's soccer with the expectation to begin play in the fall of 2022. Southern Utah will also join the WAC, with the Thunderbirds moving all their athletic grams from the Big Sky Conference to the WAC effective July 1, 2022.