Women's Soccer Heads to Omaha to Face Creighton

Sunday, October 3

Omaha, Neb.

2:00 PM

Xavier University

Creighton

Women's Soccer Heads to Omaha to Face Creighton

10.02.21 | Women's Soccer

Live Stream Live Stats

Musketeers and Bluejays play at 2:00 p.m. ET on Sunday

By: Hayley Schletker, Xavier Athletic Communications

CINCINNATI - Xavier women's soccer (9-1-1; 2-1-0 BIG EAST) returns to the road for its next match, traveling to Omaha, Nebraska to face the Creighton Bluejays on Sunday, Oct. 3 at 2:00 p.m. ET. The Musketeers are in a tie for fourth place in the league after Thursday evenings win over Villanova.

Xavier will return home to host St. John's on Thursday, Oct. 7 at 7:00 p.m. All BIG EAST matches this season will be available through FloSports.

GAME DETAILS

at Creighton
Sunday, October 3 - 2:00 p.m. ET
Morrison Stadium - Omaha, Neb.

OPPONENT INFO

The Bluejays are 6-4-2 overall and 0-2-1 in BIG EAST after falling to Marquette on Thursday evening, putting Creighton in ninth place in the league after three matches.
Abigail Santana leads the Bluejays with 15 points on seven goals and an assist, Cristiana Garriga and Jordy Rothwell each have multiple goals.
Ansley Atkinson has a team-high nine assists on the season.
Keelan Terrell has started all 11 matches for the Bluejays in-goal, making 27 saves with five goals against for a GAA of 0.43.
Creighton was picked to finish fifth in the league by the conference coaches after finishing the spring 2021 season at 4-6 overall and 4-4 in BIG EAST play, finishing third in the Midwest Division.
Redshirt sophomore Aida Kardovic led the Bluejays with nine points on four goals and an assist, earning First Team All-BIG EAST.
Junior Ansley Atkinson had seven points on three goals and an assist and sophomore Skylar Heinrich added two goals and assist, with both earning All-BIG EAST Second Team honors.
Defender Maddie Radke earned a spot on the BIG EAST All-Freshman Team.
Sophomore Keelan Terrell started nine games in-goal, allowing 14 goals on the season for a GAA of 1.53.
Creighton's coaching staff earned BIG EAST Staff of the Year following the 2021 spring season.
Xavier is 7-5 all-time against the Bluejays after splitting the home-and-away series in spring 2021.

BIG EAST STANDINGS


SCHOOL	CONF	CPCT.	OVERALL	PCT.	STREAK
Butler	2-0-1	0.833	9-1-1	0.864	T1
Georgetown	2-0-1	0.833	6-0-5	0.773	W2
St. John's	2-0-1	0.833	6-2-2	0.700	T1
Xavier	2-1	0.667	9-1-1	0.864	W1
Marquette	2-1	0.667	6-4	0.600	W2
Providence	1-1	0.500	6-3-1	0.650	W1
UConn	1-1	0.500	5-4	0.556	W1
Seton Hall	1-2	0.333	6-5	0.545	L2
Creighton	0-2-1	0.167	6-4-2	0.583	L2
DePaul	0-2	0.000	3-7	0.300	L2
Villanova	0-3	0.000	6-5	0.545	L4

WEEKLY AWARDS

After scoring the game-winning goal in Xavier's BIG EAST opening win in overtime at Providence, Shelby Sallee earned a spot on the conference's Weekly Honor Roll, the league announced on Monday.
Sallee, a freshman forward from Strongsville, Ohio, scored the 96th minute golden goal at Providence on Thursday, her second goal of the season and first game-winner, to help the Musketeers move to 8-0-1 overall and 1-0 to start BIG EAST play.

LAST TIME OUT

Xavier moved to 9-1-1 overall and 2-1 in BIG EAST play with a 3-0 win over Villanova on Thursday evening.
Xavier took the 1-0 lead in the first five minutes, on a tally from Emma Marcus from Sonia Vargas. The Musketeers held on to the one-goal advantage into halftime, taking a 10-4 advantage on shots in the first half.
The 1-0 lead held into the 79th minute when a Wildcat foul in the box gave the Musketeers a penalty kick opportunity. Molly McLaughlin connected to make it a 2-0 lead for Xavier. Late in the second half, Chloe Netzel connected on a third goal for the Musketeers, scoring from Carrie Lewis. Xavier finished with a 23-5 advantage on shots after holding a 13-1 advantage in the second half.
The Musketeer defense picked up its fifth shutout of the season, with goalkeeper Olivia Jenkins picking up her ninth win of the season, matching a school record for most wins in a single season.
Emma Marcus' first half goal was her third of the year, with all three going down as game-winners. Combined with a pair of assists, Marcus has eight points.
Molly McLaughlin's goal on a penalty kick in the 79th minute is her second of the season to give her four points. McLaughlin finished with a career-high 10 shots, four on frame.
Chloe Netzel's goal in the 87 minute is her team-high fourth of the year, combining with an assist to give her a team-leading nine points.
Sonia Vargas picked up an assist on Marcus' goal, her second of the season. She now has four points on the season.
Olivia Lawson also picked up an assist on Marcus' goal, her first point of the season.
Carrie Lewis added to her team-high assist total, helping on Netzel's goal to give her four for the season.
McLaughlin's 10 shots led Xavier as the Musketeers finished with a 23-5 advantage on shots overall and a 9-1 shots on frame.
Olivia Jenkins picked up the win to move to 9-1-1, a new career high for wins in a single season for the senior. Her nine wins match Toni Bizzarro's school-record total for wins in a season from both the 2018 and 2019 seasons.
Jenkins and Xavier's defense picked up a fifth shutout for the season after limiting the Wildcats to just one shot on goal. Hayley Jakovich and Grace Brauer played the full 90 minutes on Xavier's backline.

XAVIER STATS

Chloe Netzel scored in the closing minutes of Xavier's 3-0 win over Villanova, giving her a team-high four goals for the season. Combined with an assist, she leads the Musketeers with nine points.
Emma Marcus knocked in the game-winner against Villanova in the first five minutes of the match, her third goal of the season, all three were game-winners. She has eight points on three goal and two assists.
Shelby Sallee's golden goal against Providence was her second tally of the season and first game-winner as a Musketeer. Combined with an assist, she has five points on the season.
Molly McLaughlin scored her second goal of the season and 10th as a Musketeer on a PK against Villanova. Ella Rogers and Mathilde Rasmussen each also have four points on a pair of goals for the season.
Sonia Vargas picked up an assist on Emma Marcus' first half goal against Villanova, her second of the season. She also has a goal for four total points.
Carrie Lewis picked up an assist on Chloe Netzel's goal against Villanova, her team-high fourth of the season.
Sarah Owusu picked up an assist on Halle Rogers' goal against Georgetown, combining with goal o move to three points on the season.
Hayley Jakovich picked up an assist on Rogers' goal against Georgetown, giving her three points on three assists for the season.
Elise Le picked up an assist on Chloe Netzel's goal against Loyola and she now has two points on a pair of assists.
Olivia Lawson recorded an assist on Emma Marcus' game winner against Villanova for her first point of the season. Grace Brauer has also recorded a helper this season.
Jakovich and Brauer have anchored Xavier's backline, playing the full time in all 11 matches so far, helping limit opponents to just seven goals through 1022 minutes of action.
Olivia Jenkins has made all 11 starts in frame, playing the full time in each match. She's collected 28 saves, including making a career-high seven against Providence, and has seven goals against for a GAA of 0.62 and a record of 9-1-1 with five complete shutouts. Jenkins' nine wins in a single season matches a school record total, set by Toni Bizzarro in both 2018 and 2019.

XAVIER IN THE RANKINGS

Xavier moved up to a program-best ranking of 17 in week four (9/14/21) after going 2-0 against Ball State and Loyola Chicago the weekend before to move to 7-0 on the season.
Following the 1-1 draw at Bowling Green, Xavier moved down to No. 21 in week five (9/21/21) before falling into the receiving votes category in week six after falling to Georgetown.
The Musketeers made their first appearance of the season in the USC National Poll in week three (9/7/21), entering the rankings at No. 23, marking the first time the Musketeers have been ranked in the USC National Poll since finishing the 2019 season at No. 24. The Musketeers had been receiving votes in each of the two previous weeks.
Xavier also moved up to the No. 1 spot in the East region in week three, after being at No. 3 in the region for week two. The Musketeers remained at No. 1 in the region until week five, when Hofstra moved up to No. 1. Xavier is currently ranked No. 5 in the East Region.

UPCOMING SCHEDULE

The Musketeers return to Corcoran Field to host St. John's on Thursday, Oct. 7 at 7:00 p.m.
The Red Storm are 6-2-2 overall and 2-0-1 in BIG EAST play after taking wins over UConn and DePaul and playing Butler to a 1-1 draw.
Preseason BIG EAST Offensive Player of the Year Zaani Kajan leads the league in goals (11) and points (25).
Ava Collins and Brooke Boyd each have three goals and Isabelle Aviza and Samantha Gordon have a pair.
Jessica Garziano and Nicole Gordon each have a team-high five assists.
Naya Lipkens has made all 10 starts in-frame for SJU, playing the bulk of the time. She has 45 saves with nine goals against for a record of 6-2-2 wiht five complete shutouts and a sixth shutout where she shared time with Meghan Groah.
SJU was picked sixth in the league in the preseason coaches poll after going 5-4-3 overall and 2-4-3 in BIG EAST play last season and finishing fourth in the East Division.
Sophomore Jessica Garziano earned First Team All-BIG EAST after leading the Red Storm with 15 points on seven goals and an assist.
Redshirt senior Zsani Kajan finished with 10 points on four goals and two assists, earning Second Team All-BIG EAST.
Freshman Ava Collins earned a spot on the BIG EAST All-Freshman Team after collecting eight points on two goals and four assists.
Redshirt sophomore Naya Lipkens started in 10 games for the Red Storm, allowing 10 goals on the season for a GAA of 0.70.
Xavier is 1-6 all-time against St. John's taking the last match-up, 3-0, in 2019.

SPRING 2021 SEASON

Xavier finished spring 2021 at 3-6 overall and 2-4 in BIG EAST play, picking up wins over Bellarmine in the non-conference portion of the schedule, and BIG EAST wins over Creighton and DePaul, all three coming on the road.
Following the spring season, two Musketeers earned all conference honors, All-BIG EAST Second Team honoree, senior midfielder Molly McLaughlin, and All-Freshman Team member, forward Sonia Vargas.
McLaughlin led the Musketeers with four points on two goals, while sophomore Grace Blumfeldt finished her rookie season with three point on a goal and an assist.
After finishing fourth in the Midwest Division, the Musketeers missed the BIG EAST Tournament for the first time in Nate Lie's tenure as head coach.

THE MUSKETEERS

The Musketeers return 26 letter-winners from the spring, including All-BIG EAST Second Team honoree, senior midfielder Molly McLaughlin, and All-Freshman Team member, forward Sonia Vargas.
Xavier's returners account for over 70 percent of the goals scored last season, led by McLaughlin's pair of tallies.
The Musketeers added and 11-person freshman class for the fall after losing 11 letterwinners from spring 2021.
Xavier was picked seventh in the BIG EAST Preseason Coaches' Poll, collecting 45 points. Georgetown was picked to win the conference.
Ahead of the start of the 2021 season, head coach Nate Lie announced additions to his staff. Katy Etelman joins Xavier as an assistant coach, while Tyler Smaha, who served as Xavier's Director of Player Development last season, also moves into the role of assistant coach. Jacob Morrison joins Xavier as the Director of Goalkeeping and Kaitlyn Jones joins Lie's staff as Director of Player Analysis/Operations.

BIG EAST COACHES POLL

1. Georgetown	100 (10)
2. Butler	88
3. UConn	74
4. Providence	65 (1)
5. Creighton	64
6. St. John's	47
7. Xavier	45
8. Marquette	43
9. DePaul	41
10. Villanova	27
11. Seton Hall	11

(first-place votes)

BIG EAST Preseason Offensive Player of the Year
Zsani Kajan, St. John's, Grad., F

BIG EAST Preseason Defensive Player of the Year
Kelly Ann Livingstone, Georgetown, Grad., D

BIG EAST Preseason Goalkeeper of the Year
Stephanie Rodriguez, Butler, Grad., GK

Preseason All-BIG EAST Team
Stephanie Rodriguez, Butler, Grad., GK
Anastasia Savich, Butler, Sr., F*
Katie Soderstrom, Butler, Sr., F*
Jessica Mazo, UConn, Jr., M
Aida Kardovic, Creighton, So., M
Kelly Ann Livingstone, Georgetown, Grad., D
Daisy Cleverley, Georgetown, Grad., M
Julia Leas, Georgetown, Jr., M
Meg Hughes, Providence, So., F
Jessica Garziano, St. John's, Jr., M
Zsani Kajan, St. John's, Grad., F
*unanimous selection