Oct. 17, 2007
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Columbia, Mo. - The 12th-ranked University of Missouri women's soccer team (10-3-0, 4-1-0 Big 12) looks to bounce back from its first conference loss last Sunday (Oct. 14) when they play the 7th-ranked Texas Longhorns (10-2-2, 3-1-1 Big 12) and the Colorado Buffaloes (7-4-3, 3-2-0 Big 12) on the road this weekend. Mizzou will face UT in Austin, Texas, at 7 p.m. Friday (Oct. 19) and then fly to Colorado to face the Buffaloes in Boulder, Colo., at 2 p.m. (CT) Sunday (Oct. 21).
Coverage on the Internet
Both Texas and Colorado will feature live video coverage of this weekend's games, through their respective athletic department web sites. Fans can log on to TexasSports.com to watch Friday's game and CUBuffs.com for Sunday's contest.
Tigers Split Weekend
Mizzou split two games last weekend, defeating Oklahoma (Oct. 12) and falling to Oklahoma State (Oct. 14). Tiger freshman Alysha Bonnick scored the first goal in Friday's 3-0 win, her fifth game-winner of the season. Mizzou also got scores from freshman Kari Adam and sophomore Kristin Andrighetto. Sunday, Meghan Pfeiffer scored the first goal of the game, and her first of the season, but the Tigers fell to Oklahoma State, 2-1, in overtime.
Still off to a Great Conference Start
Despite losing their first Big 12 game Sunday (Oct. 14) against Oklahoma State, the Tigers are still off to their best five-game conference start since 1999, when the team won four of its first five, and six of its first seven Big 12 games.
National Rankings
The Tigers are as high as 12th in the country in this week's national polls. Mizzou is 12th in the SoccerTimes.com Top 25 poll. They dropped from fifth to 12th in the Soccer America poll. Mizzou is 16th in the National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA)/adidas National Rankings, and 18th in the Soccer Buzz Top 30. Texas is ranked seventh in the SoccerTimes.com poll and as high as sixth in the NSCAA/adidas poll.
Central Region Rankings
Mizzou is fourth and Texas is second in both the NSCAA/adidas and Soccer Buzz regional polls. Colorado is not ranked in any national polls, but they are seventh in the Soccer Buzz Central Region Rankings, as well as the NSCAA/adidas regional poll.
Tiger Notes
Please Note: All national and conference statistical rankings include all games through Oct. 14
Mizzou Tries to Break Road Wins Record
The Tigers have won four road games this season, tying them with the 1999 and 2004 teams for the program lead in road victories over the course of the season. The Tigers are 4-1-0 on the road, with their only loss coming to then-No. 1 Stanford in California. Mizzou lost to then-No. 3 Santa Clara away from Columbia, but it was on a neutral field at the Stanford Invitational.
Blitz Earns Eighth 10-win Season
The Tigers secured a 10-win season after the win over Oklahoma, Tiger Head Coach Bryan Blitz's eighth 10 or more-win season of his Mizzou career. Mizzou has earned 10 or more wins in 2006 (10), 2003 (12), 2002 (11), 2001 (13), 2000 (10), 1999 (14) and 1998 (11).
Game-Winners
Bonnick's goal in Friday's 3-0 win over Oklahoma was her fifth game-winner, giving her the program record for game-winning goals in a season by a freshman. Bonnick also leads the Big 12 in game-winning goals. Midfielder Mo Redmond's assist was her fourth of the season. All four have been game-winning assists.
Andrighetto and Bonnick in National Picture
Andrighetto ranks 11th, nationally, in points per game, with a 2.0 ppg average. She is 15th in goals per game, with a .769 goals per game average. With her 1.77 points per game average, Bonnick ranks seventh among freshman nationally. Overall, she is 24th in points per game.
Bonnick Slides Past Nobis
Bonnick scored her ninth goal of the season Friday (Oct. 12) against Oklahoma, passing Jennifer Nobis in the goals scored by a freshman category. She is five away from Erin Grimsley's total of 14 for the top spot.
Shooting on Goal
Bonnick has shot 23 times, 18 of them on goal, which gives her a .783 shot on goal percentage. The season record is .818 by Shea Swoboda, set in 2003.
Goals
Mizzou has scored 39 goals this season, already more than last year's squad (33). The 2007 Tigers are still 22 goals behind the 1999 team's record of 61 goals scored in a season, and they'll have to pick up the pace to catch them. With an average of three goals per game, the Tigers are on pace to score 54 during the regular season.
Defensive Efforts
The Mizzou defense earned its fifth shutout of the season against Oklahoma (Oct. 12), keeping the Sooner offense to only six shots. So far this season, Mizzou has held opponents to 10 shots or less five times; keeping Western Michigan to five, Iowa to four, Eastern Illinois to five, Texas Christian to 10 and Oklahoma to six.
Injury Report
Tiger midfielder Brittany Hopkins injured her knee in Friday's win against Oklahoma. She will miss the rest of the season. Defender Crystal Wagner injured her nose in that game, and will play with a mask the rest of the season. Tiger midfielder Bree Thornton is out for the year after she tore her ACL in her left knee against California on Sept. 21. Krista Kruse broke her nose earlier in the season, but she is back, and Tasha Dittamore is also healthy after missing a few games.
Tiger Quick Notes
1-Mallory Forst-6-3 on season, started last eight games, earning three shutouts. Four assists on season.
2-Bree Thornton-Tore ACL; out for season. Season: 7 starts in 7 games, 1 assist
3-Meghan Pfeiffer-Started all 13 games at midfielder. One goal and one assist on the year.
4-Lindsay McCoy-Started all 13 games on the back line. Earned four assists on season.
5-Kari Adam-Three goals on season. First 2 career goals vs. A&M. Conference Newcomer of the Week (Sept. 24-30)
7-Katya Hessel-Two goals, two assists. Played in all 13 games. Third on team with 36 shots.
8-Crystal Wagner-Started all 13 on defense. Earned an assist on Adam goal vs. A&M.
9-Krista Kruse-Missed 3 games due to a nose injury; has one goal and one assist on season
11-Alysha Bonnick-Leads all Big 12 freshmen in points (23), goals (9) and assists per game (0.38).
12-Mo Redmond-Two goals and four assists on season...all four were game-winning assists
13-Janelle Cordia-Played in all 13 games...1 assist from midfield position
14-Michelle Collins-Third on team with eight goals...tied for third on team with four assists
15-Tasha Dittamore-Started first 5 games, earning a 4-0 record before injury. Has played forward in three games.
16-Kristin Andrighetto-Leads team with 10 goals and six assists.
17-Caitlin Linas-Has played in 11 games...played a season-high 48 minutes against TTU (Oct. 5).
18-Brittany Hopkins-Out for season (ACL)...played in 11 games, started three
19-Kat Tarr-defender has started all 13 games...tied for fourth on team with three goals
20-Ashley Hamblin-played in all 13 games...dished out two assists on the year...has taken 15 shots
22-Kelsey Stokes--played in all 13 games. Five shots, including two on goal. ...played 31 minutes in loss last Sunday (Oct. 14) against Oklahoma State
23-Emily Zaler-Mizzou's third goalkeeper is gaining experience in practice after transferring from Oregon.
Friday's Match-up
The Tigers will face Texas in a marquee Big 12 match-up in Austin Friday (Oct. 19). Mizzou is currently second in the conference with 12 points, one win behind Texas A&M, who has 15. It must be noted that A&M has played one more game than the Tigers. The Longhorns are tied for second place with Oklahoma State, with 10 points.
Texas' Season So Far
The Longhorns got off to a hot start, winning four of their first five games, including a 2-1 upset of then-No. 2 UCLA (Sept. 2). Two games later, UT lost to un-ranked Arizona, 2-0, in Tucson, Ariz. (Sept. 9). They bounced back to win five of their next six games, including a victory over Texas Tech (Sept. 30) to start the conference schedule 1-0. Also in the conference, they tied Iowa State, 1-1, (Oct. 5) defeated Nebraska, 2-1, in overtime (Oct. 7) fell to then-No. 5 Texas A&M, 2-0, (Oct. 12) and defeated Baylor, 1-0, (Oct. 14).
Series Notes
Mizzou will not have history on their side when they hit the turf Friday night. The Tigers have not won in Austin since Sept. 13, 1996, the first game of the series. Mizzou defeated the Longhorns, 1-0, in that game, but have gone 0-5 since, only scoring four total goals in six games at Myers Stadium. Overall, Texas leads the series, 10-2-1. The last time Mizzou beat the Longhorns was Nov. 5, 1998, at the Big 12 tournament in San Antonio, Texas. UT took the last meeting, 1-0, Oct. 20th of last season in Austin.
MU Offense Against Texas D
Statistically speaking, fans that are in attendance Friday night will see the best offense in the Big 12 meet the best defense, in a showdown that will go a long way in deciding the top of the conference standings. The Tigers lead the conference with 39 goals this season, and their 3.0 goals per game average ranks fifth nationally. The Tigers are outscoring their opponents, 39-16, over the first 13 games. Blitz uses three forwards on offense, and three of those forwards have already scored a combined 27 goals, helping Mizzou win 10 games thus far. Andrighetto leads the team with 10 goals, Bonnick is second with nine and Michelle Collins has scored eight. Adam and defender Kat Tarr each have three on the season. Mizzou starts four midfielders behind the three forwards. The Texas defense has given up 11 goals this season, which ties them with Texas A&M for the fewest in the conference. Greta Carter, Erica Campanelli and preseason All-Big 12 defenders Stephanie Logterman and Kasey Moore have started all but one game together on the Longhorn back line. Texas plays three midfielders to go along with their back four.
Tiger D Against Texas Offense
The Texas offense has scored 29 goals in its 14 games, which ties them for fourth in the conference. Freshman forward Niki Arlitt leads the team with eight goals and four assists. She ranks 20th, nationally, in two offensive categories, with 1.82 points per game and .727 goals per game. 2006 NSCAA All-Americans Kelsey Carpenter and Kasey Moore have each scored six goals on the season. Both were named to the Missouri Athletic Club (MAC) Hermann Trophy Watch List in the preseason. Last Sunday (Oct. 14) against Baylor, the Longhorns started three forwards, Arlitt, Carpenter and Emily Anderson. Mizzou's defense has given up 16 goals in 13 games, which ranks seventh in the conference. Tiger defenders McCoy, Wagner and Tarr have started all 16 games, and have kept Mizzou in most games, in addition to registering five shutouts. The Tigers have kept all opponents to two goals or less with the exception of then-No. 1 Stanford, who scored three on Mizzou in a 3-2 victory Sept. 14. The Tigers start three defenders along with four midfielders.
Goalkeepers
Tiger goalkeeper Mallory Forst has played in 10 games, registering a 6-3 record, while giving up 12 goals. She has earned three shutouts on the season, including two in the Big 12 (Texas Tech Oct. 5 and Oklahoma Oct. 12). UT goalkeeper Dianna Pfenninger leads the Big 12 with a .71 goals against average, only giving up 10 goals in 14 games. She has a 10-2-2 record, while earning three shutouts. The junior was the 2006 Big 12 Defensive Most Valuable Player.
Rocky Mountain High
The Tigers will travel to the Rocky Mountain State Saturday for Sunday's game against the Buffaloes. Live video coverage of Sunday's game will be available on CUBuffs.com for a fee. Live stats will be available, free of charge.
Colorado's Conference Start
Going into their game against Kansas Friday (Oct. 19), the Buffaloes are 7-4-3 overall and 3-2-0 in the Big 12. They currently sit in fifth place in the conference with nine points. After going 4-2-3 in their non-conference schedule, they began Big 12 play with a 1-0 loss to Texas Tech (Sept. 28). They had a full week to prepare for Nebraska and Iowa State, and they won both of those matches, defeating the Huskers, 4-0, Oct. 5, and Cyclones, 1-0, Oct. 7. Last weekend (Oct. 12-14) they beat Baylor, 3-2, in Waco and fell to then-No. 5 Texas A&M, 4-2, in College Station.
Series
The Tigers lead the all-time series, 8-6-1, after defeating CU, 3-0, in Columbia last season. The Buffaloes have a 3-2 series lead in Boulder, and the Tigers haven't won there since 2001.
CU Defense
Colorado is tied for the Big 12 lead with seven shutouts in 14 games. A&M also has shut out teams seven times over their first 14 games. So far this season, the Buffaloes have given up 15 goals in 14 games, tying them for fifth in the conference. Defenders Brittany Dornseif, Michelle Wenino and Kim Lowry help keep opponents out of their own zone, and keep the pressure off of goalkeeper Kirstin Radlinski.
CU Offense
The CU offense has scored 20 goals this season, ranking them seventh in the conference. Sophomore forward Nikki Marshall is tied for fourth in the conference in goals scored, with eight. She also has three game-winning goals, which ties her for third in the league in that category. Marshall was named to the 2007 Preseason All-Big 12 Soccer Team in August. Fellow forward Gianna DeSaverio has three goals on the season, which ranks second on the team.
CU's Keeper
Radlinski has started seven of the team's 14 games, and has collected four shutouts. She ranks third in the conference with those four shutouts. She has a 1.27 goals against average, which ranks ninth in the Big 12.
UP NEXT: Last Home Conference Weekend
The Tigers will be back in action in Walton Stadium next weekend, when they finish the home schedule with games against Iowa State (Oct. 26) and Nebraska (Oct. 28). Tickets for Sunday's game, Mizzou's last scheduled home contest of the year, are only $1.