Sunday, August 26
West Lafayette, IND.
12:00 p.m.
West Virginia University
vs
Northwestern
Photo by: Ken Inness
No. 18 Mountaineers Face No. 19 Wildcats
August 25, 2018 12:26 PM | Women's Soccer
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. – The No. 18-ranked West Virginia University women's soccer team closes the Boilermaker Challenge Cup against No. 19 Northwestern on Sunday, Aug. 26, at noon, at Purdue's Folk Field.
Sunday marks the Mountaineers' (0-1-2) second match in two weeks against a top-25 ranked opponent. The Wildcats (3-0) are WVU's third Big Ten Conference foe of the season. Additionally, after Sunday's match, the Mountaineers will have faced the 2017 Big Ten Conference champion (Penn State) and runner-up (Northwestern), as well as the SEC runner-up (Arkansas).
"This is a huge game for us," Mountaineer coach Nikki Izzo-Brown said. "We need to respond, and we need to get ourselves a win. We are here to win soccer games. This is going to be a big battle between two top-25 programs. I'll be relying on my seniors to lead this team."
WVU is 1-0 all-time against NU. In the first-ever match between the programs, the No. 4-ranked Mountaineers defeated the No. 23 Wildcats 4-0 in the second round of the 2015 NCAA Tournament on Nov. 20, at Dick Dlesk Soccer Stadium. WVU tallied four first-half goals, including the game-winner in the 15th minute. The Mountaineers outshot the Wildcats, 22-3, and placed 10 shots on-goal. The WVU backline held NU to one shot on-goal and earned a 3-1 edge in corner kicks.
Most recently, the Mountaineers found themselves down a goal for the third time this season, and for the second time in as many matches, WVU found the equalizer, as senior midfielder Grace Cutler headed in her first goal of the season in the 86th minute to help the Mountaineers earn a 1-1 (2OT) draw at Purdue on Aug. 24 in their first match of the Boilermaker Challenge Cup. Sophomore forward Lauren Segalla and freshman forward Lizzie Mayfield assisted on the score, their first career helpers.
WVU finished with a 24-9 edge in shots and a 13-2 advantage in corner kicks. Paced by Bianca St. Georges and Hannah Abraham's game-high two shots on-goal, the Mountaineers forced Purdue into seven saves, while junior Rylee Foster stopped four for WVU. The double-overtime match was WVU's second of the young season.
St. Georges (1 G) and Cutler (1 G) pace WVU with two points each. St. Georges shows a team-high 11 shots, six on-goal, and senior midfielder Nadya Gill follows with 10 shots, four on-goal.
Foster has played all 310:00 minutes between the posts and shows a 0.87 goals-against average (GAA). She has made nine saves and allowed three goals.
NU opened the Boilermaker Challenge Cup with a 1-0 win over Iowa State on Aug. 24. The victory marked the third time in four seasons the Wildcats have opened a campaign on a three-game win streak.
Sophomore forward Kayleigh Stahlschmidt tallied the game-winner in the 43rd minute. Freshman Mackenzie Wood made one save for her second shutout of the season. NU has allowed just one goal in 2018.
Senior forward Brenna Lovera paces the Wildcats with three points (1 G, 1 A). Wood shows a 0.33 GAA and has made four saves through three matches.
Sunday marks the Mountaineers' (0-1-2) second match in two weeks against a top-25 ranked opponent. The Wildcats (3-0) are WVU's third Big Ten Conference foe of the season. Additionally, after Sunday's match, the Mountaineers will have faced the 2017 Big Ten Conference champion (Penn State) and runner-up (Northwestern), as well as the SEC runner-up (Arkansas).
"This is a huge game for us," Mountaineer coach Nikki Izzo-Brown said. "We need to respond, and we need to get ourselves a win. We are here to win soccer games. This is going to be a big battle between two top-25 programs. I'll be relying on my seniors to lead this team."
WVU is 1-0 all-time against NU. In the first-ever match between the programs, the No. 4-ranked Mountaineers defeated the No. 23 Wildcats 4-0 in the second round of the 2015 NCAA Tournament on Nov. 20, at Dick Dlesk Soccer Stadium. WVU tallied four first-half goals, including the game-winner in the 15th minute. The Mountaineers outshot the Wildcats, 22-3, and placed 10 shots on-goal. The WVU backline held NU to one shot on-goal and earned a 3-1 edge in corner kicks.
Most recently, the Mountaineers found themselves down a goal for the third time this season, and for the second time in as many matches, WVU found the equalizer, as senior midfielder Grace Cutler headed in her first goal of the season in the 86th minute to help the Mountaineers earn a 1-1 (2OT) draw at Purdue on Aug. 24 in their first match of the Boilermaker Challenge Cup. Sophomore forward Lauren Segalla and freshman forward Lizzie Mayfield assisted on the score, their first career helpers.
WVU finished with a 24-9 edge in shots and a 13-2 advantage in corner kicks. Paced by Bianca St. Georges and Hannah Abraham's game-high two shots on-goal, the Mountaineers forced Purdue into seven saves, while junior Rylee Foster stopped four for WVU. The double-overtime match was WVU's second of the young season.
St. Georges (1 G) and Cutler (1 G) pace WVU with two points each. St. Georges shows a team-high 11 shots, six on-goal, and senior midfielder Nadya Gill follows with 10 shots, four on-goal.
Foster has played all 310:00 minutes between the posts and shows a 0.87 goals-against average (GAA). She has made nine saves and allowed three goals.
NU opened the Boilermaker Challenge Cup with a 1-0 win over Iowa State on Aug. 24. The victory marked the third time in four seasons the Wildcats have opened a campaign on a three-game win streak.
Sophomore forward Kayleigh Stahlschmidt tallied the game-winner in the 43rd minute. Freshman Mackenzie Wood made one save for her second shutout of the season. NU has allowed just one goal in 2018.
Senior forward Brenna Lovera paces the Wildcats with three points (1 G, 1 A). Wood shows a 0.33 GAA and has made four saves through three matches.
Players Mentioned
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