Oct. 20, 2010
Game 16: Missouri (5-8-2, 3-4-0) vs. Baylor (10-5-2, 3-4-0)
Friday, October 22; 7:00 p.m.
Betty Lou Mays Soccer Field; Waco, Texas
Listen: http://www.baylorbears.com/allaccess/index.html?media=191531
Live Stats: GameTracker on mutigers.com
LAST TIME OUT
Missouri Soccer closed its home schedule last weekend with matches against the Texas Longhorns and The Texas A&M Aggies. Missouri dropped to 5-8-2 overall, 3-4 Big 12 on the weekend. The Tigers came out strong against Texas, keeping the match scoreless at halftime. Midfielder Dominique Richardson made a huge contribution to the game with a defensive save from just inside the net. She was able to flick the ball out of the goal after it beat keeper Jess Gwin. The Tigers played hard, but they were unable to hold off the Longhorns. On Sunday, the Tigers took on A&M on ESPNU. The game was goal-for-goal with captains Alysha Bonnick and Krista Kruse racking up the points to keep the game at a 2-2 tie until the 70th minute when the Aggies took the lead.
SCOUTING BAYLOR
Baylor finished off last weekend with two double-overtime matches against Seattle University and Kansas. Friday's match against Seattle ended in a 1-1 tie. Sophomore Hannah Gilmore evened the score in the 64th minute when she netted Baylor's first PK goal since 2005. The Bears topped Kansas 1-0 on Sunday to keep their undefeated at home streak going. Sophomore Hannah Gilmore earned the golden goal for Baylor when she buried another penalty kick in the 103rd minute. Gilmore has seven goals on the season, which puts her as tied for the top spot on the team. The Bears are 10-5-2 overall on the season, 3-4 Big 12 after suffering losses to nationally ranked Texas A&M and Oklahoma State among others. After facing Missouri on Friday, Baylor will host Iowa State at 1 p.m. on Sunday.
SERIES HISTORY
Missouri Soccer earned its 150th win in program history in last year's match against Baylor. The Tigers traveled to Waco, Texas in October of 2009. Jessie Crabtree scored Mizzou's first two goals, starting in the third minute of play. Kari Adam, Kelsey Blincow and Kristin Andrighetto also contributed to the win. The Tigers are 9-6-0 on the series with Baylor.
KRUSE MAKES TOP 10
Senior co-captain Krista Kruse got a taste of the spotlight after Sunday's game against Texas A&M. Kruse goal made on to ESPN SportsCenter's TOP 10 after the game was broadcast nationally on ESPNU. The goal started off of a back-heel pass from Alysha Bonnick to Kruse who flicked the ball behind her into the top of the net. Fans can check out the replay on mutigers.com or on Mizzou Soccer's Vimeo page.
SENIOR NIGHT
Mizzou honored its senior players in a special ceremony before the game on Friday, Oct. 15. Seniors include Paula Pritzen, Alysha Bonnick, Kari Adam and Krista Kruse. All four seniors have made a special contribution to Mizzou soccer during their time with the team.
Paula Pritzen transferred to the University of Missouri this summer from Clemson, where she graduated with a year of eligibility and a degree in Communications. Pritzen spent her senior year at Clemson as the first-ranked goal keeper in the ACC with a 5.33 save per game average.
Alysha Bonnick has been consistently setting records for the Tigers throughout her time here. She is a co-captain and leads the team in four out of six categories. Bonnick holds the program's record for most career game-winning goals (13), and is also one of the top players in the Big 12 conference.
As another one of the team's co-captains, Krista Kruse leads from the midfield. She has earned consistent playing time since her freshman season at Mizzou, and was United States U-23 National Team Camp last summer.
Kari Adam is the team's third co-captain. A giving person, Adam donates her time to the community as well as the soccer team. In her junior season, her efforts were recognized when she was selected for the Mystical Seven Secret Society. She has scored two goals for the Tigers this season, including the team's only penalty kick attempt.
DIGGIN' DEEP
Freshman Alyssa Diggs has been tearing things up on the field recently. She racked up a goal and an assist over Nebraska. Diggs has two career goals at Mizzou and one assist. She scored her first career goal in Mizzou's 4-1 victory over KU. She has played in all 15 games this season with 12 starts. She has knocked off 16 shots with 9 shots on goal so far this year.
BONNICK IN THE BIG 12
Senior co-captain Alysha Bonnick stepped up for the Tigers earning a victory over Oklahoma in the last five minutes of the game. She is holding steady in the league this week's Big 12 rankings. The forward from North Gower, Ontario is ranked No. 4 in the Big 12 conference for goals per game (.57) and No. 6 for goals (8) and points per game (1.29). She sits at No. 7 in the category of points (18) and holds the No. 9 spot in shots per game (2.86). Bonnick leads the Tigers in points, goals, shots and shots on goal. In the record books, Bonnick is the second-highest scorer in program history with 38 career goals so far, she sits even with Kristin Andrighetto (38) and Nikki Thole (61). She has 13 career game-winning goals, to put her at the top of the record book for the most career game-winning goals just above former Tiger Nikki Thole (12).
Haley Krentz HEATS UP
Tiger midfielder Haley Krentz was on fire during Missouri's matches against Loyola Maryland and Wisconsin-Milwaukee. Krentz scored the game-winning goal for the Tigers against Loyola one minute into the second overtime period. She hit the back of the net again on Sunday against Milwaukee, helping the Tigers gain ground against the Panthers. Krentz now has two career goals.
AT THE TOP OF TOPDRAWER
Freshmen Dominique Richardson and Danielle Nottingham received recognition from topdrawersoccer.com this season. The two were ranked in the website's College Freshman National Top 100 Women. Richardson, a midfielder from Fullerton, Calif, checked in at No. 74 on the list a few weeks ago, and is now up to the No. 72 spot. Richardson has started in all eleven games for the Tigers this season, and she has racked up a total of 29 shots. She has two goals on the season. Nottingham, a Frisco, Texas native, came in at the No. 79 spot in the previous poll. She has also earned a starting position for Mizzou, playing a total of 947 minutes so far this season. Nottingham has 20 shots and a team-leading three assists on the season.
BLITZ WINS 200
Head coach Bryan Blitz earned his 200th career win in a 4-0 shutout of Arkansas. For Blitz, the next win was more important that the 200th. The program's only head coach credits the players he has coached with his success. Blitz holds a record of 204-175-25 on his career. Before coming to Missouri, the Dallas, Texas native spent five years as the head coach for Butler University where he amassed a record of 45-44-8.
GWIN SAVES THE DAY
Sophomore keeper Jessica Gwin is stepping up this season after having a year of experience under Tasha Dittamore. Gwin has a record of 3-7-2 on the season for the Tigers. Her record includes games played nationally ranked teams Maryland, Duke, North Carolina, Oklahoma State and Texas A&M. So far this season Gwin has racked up 59 saves, with over 1135 minutes of playing time. She ranks fourth in the conference for saves and fifth in saves per game (4.54).
SENIOR CLASS SETS STANDARD
The Back-to-Back Big 12 Champions are starting off a new season with a new team. Mizzou lost six starters from last season including Kristin Andrighetto, Michelle Collins and goalkeeper Tasha Dittamore. Andrighetto leaves Missouri holding the school records for career shots (379) and shots on goal (165). She graduated as the team leader in points, goals, shots and shots on goal for the 2009 season. She also holds the Big 12 record for shots in the 2009 season with 113. Michelle Collins led the team in assists last season, racking up 22 assists in her career. Goalkeeper Tasha Dittamore holds the records for career shutouts (17), victories (35), games started in goal (55) and minutes in goal (4945:05).
The Tigers graduated a total of seven seniors from the University of Missouri last year, including midfielders Bree Thornton, Meghan Pfeiffer and Michelle Makasini and defender Crystal Wagner.
TIGERS WELCOME SEVEN
After graduating seven seniors, Mizzou added another seven players to its roster. The Tigers welcomed six freshmen and one senior transfer from Clemson. Freshman forward Danielle Nottingham is already showing her stripes, netting the only two goals in the Tigers' preseason match against the University of Illinois. Freshmen Dominique Richardson and Alyssa Diggs joined Nottingham as starters for the Tigers on the day. Senior Paula Pritzen is working hard for a goalkeeping position as she comes in under sophomore Jessica Gwin who has a year of experience with the Tigers under her belt. Pritzen was ranked first in the ACC in saves per game average during her sophomore and junior seasons at Clemson.
RICHARDSON NOTCHES FIRST GOAL
Freshman Dominique Richardson stepped up to the plate for the Tigers against Maryland, scoring the first goal of the game. The long-range shot marks her first goal at MU. "I looked up and saw it was going in and I kind of got the chills," said Richardson. "It's my first college goal so that's pretty special for me." Richardson is having a breakout season with the Tigers; she is one of the team's top shooters (29) and she has tallied 12 shots on goal so far this season.
MIZZOU SELECTED THIRD IN PRESEASON POLL
The defending Big 12 regular season champions received 69 points and one first place vote in the Big 12 preseason poll released on Aug. 11. The Tigers came in at No. 3, above last year's Big 12 tournament winner, Oklahoma State. Texas A&M secured the top spot in the poll, voted on by the league's coaches. Missouri senior Alysha Bonnick was chosen for the Preseason All-Big 12 team. Bonnick finished last season with 11 goals and four assists, and she has 13 career game-winning goals to date making her the top game-winning goal scorer in program history.
BACK-TO-BACK BIG 12 CHAMPS
The Tigers clinched the Big 12 regular season title last year after a 5-0 win over Nebraska. The title is the first regular season title won by a Missouri program since the softball team won it in 1997. Missouri's regular season title continued the success of the 2008 season when soccer came home from San Antonio, Texas with the Big 12 Tournament trophy. The team looks to continue its success this year as they defend their regular season title.
LEADING BY EXAMPLE
Senior captains Alysha Bonnick, Kari Adam and Krista Kruse are looking to lead the Missouri soccer team to tournament turf this season. Alysha Bonnick is coming into the 2010 season with Big 12 preseason honors. She followed close behind Kristin Andrighetto as one of the team's top scorers last season. With 13 career game-winning goals, Bonnick holds the program's record just over Tiger alum Nikki Thole who totaled 12 game-winners in her career. Kruse leads by example on the field where she holds a midfield spot. She scored three game-winning goals last season. Kari Adam finished 2009 with two goals on 11 shots on goal and three assists. She has played 67 games so far in her career, allowing her to set an example for the younger players on the team.
TIGERS TAKE TO THE NATIONAL TEAMS
A few Missouri soccer players earned the opportunity to play at a national level. Redshirt Freshman Edith Lopez spent her summer at Mexico U-20 team camp. Edith appeared versatile during the spring season for the Tigers showing her stripes in both the striker and midfield positions. She has four years of eligibility left after redshirting her freshman year. Senior Alysha Bonnick also represented her country as one of 28 players selected by Canada Soccer to participate in the Senior National Team training camp. She also participated in the Canadian U-20 National Team camp in Vancouver as a freshman. Senior Krista Kruse and Freshman Dominique Richardson both represented the United States, Kruse with the US U-23 National Team training camp and Richardson with the U-18 training camp. Richardson attended the camp for the second time in her high school career.
FOLLOW THE TIGERS
In addition to the official news, videos, statistics, and more available on mutigers.com, updates on the Missouri women's soccer team can be found on several social media sites. Search Mizzou Soccer on www.facebook.com, check out videos at www.youtube.com/mizzousoccer and at www.vimeo.com/ user4444281, and get frequent updates at www.twitter.com/MizzouSoccer.