Women's Soccer Hosts Dayton to Close Out Non-Conference

Women's Soccer Hosts Dayton to Close Out Non-Conference

09.16.17 | Women's Soccer

Season Stats (PDF)Watch Live Live Stats Dayton Women's Soccer Info

Musketeers and Flyers set for 6:30 p.m. first touch on Sunday

By: Hayley Schletker, Xavier Athletic Communications

CINCINNATI – Xavier women's soccer closes out its non-conference schedule on Sunday, September 17 when the Musketeers host the Dayton Flyers in the third match of a five-game home stand. The match, a third-straight against 2016 NCAA Tournament participants for the Musketeers, is set to begin at 6:30 p.m. at the XU Soccer Complex.

A live stream of the match will be available through the GoXavier.com.

THE MATCHUP

Xavier Musketeers vs.
Dayton Flyers
Sunday, Sept. 17 | 6:30 PM
XU Soccer Complex

PREVIEWING DAYTON

The Flyers enter the game at 4-4 overall, after picking up a 3-0 win over Ohio on Friday evening. Sara Robertson scored the game winner in the 25th minute and Micayla Livingston and Alexis Kiehl added insurance goals in the second half.
The Flyers also picked up wins against Saint Francis (3-0), Marshall (3-0) and at Akron (3-2). All of the Flyers' losses have occurred on the road, opening the season in North Carolina with a pair of losses at ECU (3-2, in overtime) and at UNC Wilmington (2-0), and falling at Purdue (2-0) and Kent State (1-0).
Kiehl and Livingston lead the Flyers with a team-high four goals. Each has a pair of assists to lead the team with 10 points.
Roberston has three goals on the season. Three other Flyers have tallied.
Nadia Pestell leads Dayton with four assists.
Kaeyln Johns has played all eight games in-frame for the Flyers, collecting 36 saves with 10 goals against. She has collected three complete shutouts so far this season.
Dayton finished 2016 with a record of 9-10-3 (4-4-2 A10).
The Flyers won the A10 Tournament Championship to earn and automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament.UD fell to Ohio State in NCAA Tournament First Round.
Last season Xavier topped UD, 3-1, in Dayton for the program's first win over the Flyers since 2000. Ellie Eckerle scored early to put Xavier up 1-0 and Samantha Dewey made it 2-0 in the 60th minute. The Flyers responded in the 63rd minute to cut the lead down to one, but Dewey scored her second goal of the game in the 82nd minute to secure the first win for XU at Baujan Field since 1998.
Xavier's all-time record with UD now stands at 10-25-2.
The win over Dayton was one of two wins the Musketeers had over NCAA Tournament teams last season.
The home match with UD marks the first time the Musketeers have hosted the Flyers since leaving the Atlantic 10 for the BIG EAST in 2013. The last time the Flyers played at XU in an official contest was 2010.

PROMOTIONS

USA DAY: Wear your Red, White & Blue to the game. The best dressed fan will win 2 tickets to the USWNT game on September 19 at Nippert Stadium.
SOCCER CARNIVAL: Tailgate activities including cornhole, KanJam and more will be available for fans.
FACULTY/STAFF APPRECIATION NIGHT: Xavier faculty/staff can receive up to 4 complimentary tickets.
STUDENT GIVEAWAY: Red, White & Blue Buffs for the first 150 students.
POST-GAME PENALTY KICKS: Kids 8th grade & under can participate in penalty kicks on the field following the game.

LAST TIME OUT

On Thursday, Xavier picked up a result against defending MAC champion, Kent State, playing the Golden Flashes to a 1-1 draw through double overtime.
Kent State took the lead in the 14th minute when the Golden Flashes' Hayden Pascoe served the ball ahead to Vital Kats on a counter attack. Kats shot to the bottom right for her fourth tally of the season, putting the Golden Flashes up, 1-0.
The Musketeers pressed for the equalizer before the half, forcing a corner kick in the 43rd minute. Courtney Lankford served the ball into the box off the corner, and Emma Westwater used a high-arcing header to power the ball over the Kent State goal keeper's head to tie the game, 1-1.
Kent State took 16 shots to nine for the Musketeers, with Megan Sullivan, Westwater, and Schembri each taking a pair to lead Xavier.
Xavier led the Golden Flashes with seven corner kicks to five.
Libby Grace made her first collegiate start start in-goal, collecting a career-high seven saves with one goal against in 110 minutes.
Shay Martinez and Abi Janzsen also made the first start of their Xavier careers.
Maddie Tierney and Carly Alfano played the full 110 minutes on the Xavier back line. Addie Englehart and Andie Kennard both played over 100 minutes for the Musketeer defense.

XU STATS (AS OF 9/11)

The draw with Kent State moves the Musketeers to 4-3-2 overall, and 4-1-2 at home.
The Musketeers remain undefeated in overtime, moving to 1-0-2 on the season in extra time.
The result is the second result against an 2016 NCAA Tournament participant, after taking down NKU last Sunday. Next Sunday's match-up with Dayton marks the third-straight match against tournament teams from last season. The Musketeers are 1-1-1 on the season against NCAA participants, including the early season match against the now No. 4 Duke Blue Devils.
Emma Westwater's goal was the third of the season for the junior forward, matching Sydney Schembri and Samantha Dewey for team high. Westwater has a team-high seven points on three goals and an assist.
Westwater's three goals match Sydney Schmebri and Samantha Dewey for team-high in goals (3) and points (6). Westwater, Schembri and Dewey's mark would be tied for sixth in the conference for most goals, and rank in the top ten in the BIG EAST for points, in stats as of Sept. 11.
Dewey's goals per game (0.60) rank second in the conference, with the preseason All-BIG EAST selection scoring three goals despite being limited to five appearances this season.
Dewey's total points (6) and points per game (2.0) are both fourth among BIG EAST competitors.
Courtney Lankford picked up the assist Westwater's goal, her second of the season, matching Carrie Lewis for team-high.
Lankford and Lewis' pair of assists rank would among the top 10 in the BIG EAST, as of Sept. 11.
Toni Bizzarro's total saves (49) ranks highest in the BIG EAST and seventh in NCAA D-I. Her saves per game (6.12) ranks second in the conference and 36th in the country.
Bizzarro's save percentage (.803) ranks fourth in the conference.
As a team, Xavier ranks in the top five in the conference in total shots (99 - 4th), goals (11 - T4th), points (30 - 5th) and goals per game (1.38 - 5th). The Musketeers also lead the conference in saves (49) as a team.

UP NEXT

Next weekend, the Musketeers open BIG EAST play by hosting the Creighton Bluejays on Sunday, September 24 at 1:00 p.m.
Xavier remains home for its next match, hosting Providence on Sept. 28, before heading to Villanova on October 1 for its first BIG EAST road trip.

WESTWATER NAMED TO HONOR ROLL

After scoring the first goal of her Xavier career on Friday night at Duquesne, Emma Westwater added a second on Sunday night to earn a spot on the BIG EAST Weekly Honor Roll, announced by the conference office on Monday.
Friday evening, Westwater, a Canisius transfer, scored her first goal as a Musketeer. After Duquesne took a 3-0 lead, in the 78th minute Westwater found a ball, misplayed by the DU goalkeeper, in the penalty box. Westwater poked it in to cut the lead to 3-1,
Westwater, a native of Campbellville, Ontario, struck again in the 33rd minute against NKU on Sunday night. Caitie Baron served the ball ahead in transition for the Musketeers. Westwater took possession on the left side of the box, working the ball past several defenders before tapping it into the left corner to put the Musketeers ahead 2-0. After NKU scored early in the second half, making Westwater's goal the game-winner.
The two goals bring her collegiate total to three, including the first game-winner of her college career. Westwater's point total now stands at five, including an assist against Cleveland State, for the third most for the Musketeers so far this season.