No. 14 Women's Soccer Ready for No. 15 Texas Tech
October 09, 2014 02:01 PM | General
MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – The No. 14-ranked West Virginia University women’s soccer team opens its home Big 12 Conference season with a showdown against No. 15 Texas Tech on Friday, Oct. 10, at 7 p.m., at Dick Dlesk Soccer Stadium.
The match will be streamed at NSCAATV.com, with Dean Linke on the call and Allie Dosmann adding color. Kelsi Steele will report from the sideline, while Billy Hartman will serve as host.
The match is a “Dollar Night,” and all tickets, hot dogs, popcorn and Coca-Colas are available for $1 each. The first 100 fans will receive a WVU women’s soccer scarf, and the first 100 Mountaineer Maniacs will receive a Maniacs scarf.
The Mountaineers’ (8-2-2, 1-0-1) nine-match unbeaten streak is on the line Friday evening against the Red Raiders (10-2-1, 0-2-1), the only Big 12 team to earn a regular-season win over WVU. The all-time series is tied at 1-1, with each team earning a victory in its home venue.
“The team is definitely ready. We had a great opportunity to regroup and refocus over our bye week,” Mountaineer coach Nikki Izzo-Brown said. “We know what’s at stake Friday night going up against a nationally ranked opponent like Texas Tech. It’s going to be a great game in a great atmosphere. We hope our fans bring that Mountaineer Magic to the stands Friday night.”
WVU, the two-time defending Big 12 regular-season champion, has not lost a conference match in Morgantown since falling, 3-2 in overtime, to then-No. 8 Notre Dame on Oct. 2, 2009.
“Texas Tech has a lot of different weapons – that’s why they’ve had so much success this year,” Izzo-Brown explained. “We know that it won’t be one player that can potentially beat us; the attack is going to come from every direction.”
The teams last met on Oct. 27, 2013, in Lubbock, Texas, with the Mountaineers losing, 2-0, less than 48 hours after securing their second straight Big 12 regular-season title at Oklahoma. The loss snapped a 15-match unbeaten streak in Big 12 regular-season play. WVU finished with four shots on-goal.
The teams’ first-ever meeting was at DDSS on Sept. 21, 2012, with WVU earning a 3-2 victory, giving the University its first win as a member of the Big 12 Conference. Frances Silva scored two goals, including the game-winner in the 79th minute on a penalty kick.
The Mountaineers opened Big 12 play with a 1-0-1 showing in Texas two weeks ago. The squad settled for a 0-0 draw at TCU on Sept. 26 before trumping Texas for a 2-0 victory in Austin on Sept. 28. Junior forward Kelsie Maloney netted the game-winner in the 43rd minute, her third score of the season, and sophomore midfielder Ashley Lawrence added an insurance goal in the 62nd minute, also her third score of the year.
“Getting a result at Texas was huge for this team because we will face so many more strong opponents as we progress through league play,” said Izzo-Brown. “That win gave us confidence moving into this game.”
Junior goalkeeper Hannah Steadman made a season-best six saves against the Longhorns, all in the second half. Sophomore defender Kadeisha Buchanan added her own stop in the second half, preventing UT’s best chance in the 67th minute.
Maloney paces the Mountaineers with nine points (3 G, 3 A). Lawrence (3 G, 2 A) and juniors Leah Emaus (4 G) and Kailey Utley (2 G, 4 A) all show eight points. Eleven Mountaineers have scored at least one goal this season, and WVU ranks No. 1 in the Big 12, No. 25 in the NCAA, in scoring offense (2.25 goals per game).
The Red Raiders jumped out to their best start in program history, putting together a 9-0 record and climbing to No. 6 in the national rankings before losing 1-0, in overtime, at Texas on Sept. 26. Since then, TTU has gone 1-1-1, including a 1-0, double-overtime loss to Oklahoma on Oct. 3 and a 1-1 draw against Oklahoma State on Oct. 5.
Junior forward Janine Beckie shows nine goals this season, tops in the Big 12 and No. 23 nationally. She ranks No. 2 in the conference with 19 points. Junior midfielder Alli Murphy ranks No. 1 in the Big 12, No. 5 nationally, with 10 assists. Sophomore goalkeeper Lauren Watson is No. 2 in the Big 12 with a 0.648 goals-against average.
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