No. 17 Women's Soccer Closes Out Regular at UConn

Sunday, October 24

Storrs, Conn.

1:00 PM

Xavier University

Connecticut

No. 17 Women's Soccer Closes Out Regular at UConn

10.22.21 | Women's Soccer

Live Stream Live Stats

Musketeers and Huskies play at 1:00 p.m.

By: Hayley Schletker, Xavier Athletic Communications

CINCINNATI - No. 17 Xavier women's soccer (15-1-1; 8-1-0 BIG EAST) heads to Storrs, CT for a Sunday match with the UConn Huskies with a BIG EAST regular season title on the line. Xavier sits in first place with the match with UConn closing out the regular season for the Musketeers.

Xavier has earned at least a top-two finish in the BIG EAST, earning a first round bye in the BIG EAST Championship. They'll open the postseason in the BIG EAST Semifinals on Thursday, November 4, with matches in the semifinals and finals being hosted at the No. 1 seed.

GAME DETAILS

vs. UConn
Sunday, October 24 - 1:00 p.m.
Joseph J. Morrone Stadium at Rizza Performance Center - Storrs, CT.

OPPONENT INFO

The Huskies 8-6-1 overall and 4-3-1 in the BIG EAST to sit in a tie for fourth place after playing Providence to a 1-1 draw on Thursday.
Jaydah Bedova leads UConn with 15 points on six goals and three assists.
Jada Konte has 11 points on four goals and three assists and Duda Santin has seven points on two goals and three assists.
Seven other Huskies have tallied goals this season, including Lucy Cappadona, who also has a team-high four assists.
Kaitlyn Mahoney has made 14 starts in-goal for the Huskies, collecting 68 saves with 17 goals against for a 6-6-1 record after making a career-high 14 saves against Providence. MaryKate Ward has made eight appearances, starting in one match, collecting 18 saves with seven goals against for a 2-0-0 record.
UConn was picked third in the league in the preseason poll after the Huskies went 8-3-1 overall and 6-2-1 in the BIG EAST in the spring, finishing second in the East Division and earning a spot in the BIG EAST tournament. The Huskies fell to Butler in the semifinals of the BIG EAST Championship.
Redshirt senior Randi Palacios earned BIG EAST Co-Goalkeeper of the Year and all-conference First Team honors after posting a GAA of 0.40 through 12 starts, allowing just seven goals on the season and collecting 38 saves.
Senior defender Melina Couzis and sophomore midfielder Jessica Mazo both earned First Team All-BIG EAST honors as well.
Senior Yamilee Eveillard earned All-BIG EAST Second Team honors after leading the Huskies with eight points on three goals and two assists. Isabelle Lynch also had eight points on a team-high four goals.
Midfielder Lucy Cappadona and forward Jada Konte earned BIG EAST All-Freshmen honors.
This will be the first match-up between the Huskies and the Musketeers in women's soccer.

BIG EAST STANDINGS

SCHOOL	CONF	CPTS	OVERALL	PCT.	STREAK
Xavier	8-1	24	15-1-1	0.912	W7
Georgetown	6-0-2	20	10-0-6	0.813	W4
Butler	5-2-1	16	12-3-1	0.781	L1
St. John's	4-3-1	13	8-5-2	0.600	W2
UConn	4-3-1	13	8-6-1	0.567	T1
Marquette	4-5	12	8-8	0.500	L2
DePaul	4-4	12	7-9	0.438	W1
Providence	3-3-2	11	8-5-3	0.594	T1
Creighton	1-6-1	4	7-8-2	0.471	L1
Seton Hall	1-7	3	6-10	0.375	L7
Villanova	1-7	3	7-9	0.438	L2

WEEKLY AWARDS

Following another 2-0 weekend for Xavier women's soccer, graduate student Carrie Lewis was named BIG EAST Defensive Player of the Week by the league offices.
Lewis, a midfielder from Charlotte, N.C., was instrumental in a pair of key wins for the first-place Musketeers. She helped anchor a defense which allowed Xavier to outshoot DePaul and Marquette by a combined 36-18 margin, including 16-9 on target.
The midfielder also added a pair of assists on offense, assisting on Dana Dahm's game-winning goal in the 1-0 win at DePaul on Thursday, before dishing on Sarah Owusu's 30th-minute goal in the 3-1 win against Marquette on Sunday.

LAST TIME OUT

No. 17 Xavier women's soccer topped Butler, 2-1, at Corcoran Field on Thursday to stay on top of the BIG EAST standings with one match remaining in the regular season.
Chloe Netzel scored from Sonia Vargas in the 12th minute to give Xavier the lead going into the half. Ella Rogers added another goal in the 59th minute to put Xavier up 2-0 which held into the closing minutes.
The Musketeers defense kept the Bulldogs off the board until the 89 minute when Alli Leonard struck for Butler, but BU couldn't find the equalizer in the final minute, securing the Xavier win.
Chloe Netzel added to her team-high with her first half goal, giving her six for the season, and 14 points for the season.
Ella Rogers' goal was her fourth of the season and her second game-winner. She has eight points on the season.
Sonia Vargas picked up her third assist of the season on Netzel's goal, combining with a goal to give her five points.
Elise Le picked up a helper on Rogers' goal, her third of the season to give her three points.
Xavier finished with a 15-13 advantage on shots but each team had six looks on-frame. Xavier earned 11 corners to two for the Bulldogs.
Olivia Jenkins added to her school-record win total in-goal, now sitting at 15-1-1. She made five saves with one goal against.
Grace Brauer and Hayley Jakovich continued to anchor Xavier's backline, each playing the full 90 minutes in the win.
Xavier's two goals against the Bulldogs marks the first time Butler has allowed multiple goals in a game in BIG EAST play, and only the second time this season they've allowed multiple goals, with the other time occurring in the season opener against Michigan.

XAVIER STATS

Chloe Netzel leads the Musketeers with 14 points on a team-high six goals and a pair of assists after scoring in the first half against Butler. Her point total is tied for 10th in the league.
Among Netzel's six goals are three game-winners, matching Emma Marcus for team-high and tied for fourth most in the BIG EAST.
Shelby Sallee has 11 points on the season on four goals and three assists. Eight of those points have come in league action, leading the Musketeers in BIG EAST play and tied for fourth in the conference. Her three goals in BIG EAST play also lead Xavier and rank fifth in the league.
Sallee, Netzel and Ella Rogers all have four goals in BIG EAST play, tied for fourth most in the league.
Carrie Lewis has a team-high six assists for the season, which ties for third most in the BIG EAST. Her three helpers in BIG EAST play are also tied for fifth in the conference.
Sarah Owusu and Shelby Sallee have two assists in conference play, tied for 10th most.
Molly McLaughlin scored the game-winner against Marquette on a penalty kick, making her 2-2 on PKs for the season, which ties for the best percentage NCAA DI.
Xavier leads the conference with 18 goals in BIG EAST play, averaging 2.0 goals per game through nine matches.
Olivia Jenkins has a goals against average of 0.52 which, as it stands, would rank as the best GAA for a single season in program history, and currently ranks second in the BIG EAST and 11th in the nation. Jenkins has nine shutouts so far this season, leading the conference and tied for the most in the country.
Xavier's defense has only allowed four goals in BIG EAST play, the second lowest total in the league. The Musketeers' 0.44 GAA in conference play is also second in the conference.
The Musketeers picked up a 15th win in the regular season against Butler, the most in school history. The previous record was 14, set in both 1991 and 2019.

XAVIER IN THE RANKINGS

Xavier re-entered the United Soccer Coaches National Poll this week, coming in at No. 17 to match a program-best ranking. The Musketeers were previously ranked No. 17 in week four (9/14/21). BIG EAST opponent Georgetown also re-entered the rankings this week, coming in at No. 20.
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.
Xavier also moved back up to the No. 1 spot in the East region in week nine of the USC poll.
The Musketeers came in at No. 13 in the most recent DI Women's Soccer RPI, one of four BIG EAST teams in the top 50 for the week, Georgetown (11), Providence (32) and Butler (42).

UPCOMING SCHEDULE

The Musketeers will be in action next in the Semifinals of the BIG EAST Championship, set for Thursday, Nov 4, with opponent, time and location to be determined.
Xavier has secured at least the one or two seed in the tournament, earning a first round bye. The third and fourth seeds will host opening round matches on Sunday, October 31.
The Musketeers have earned a spot in the BIG EAST Championship in four of the five seasons of Nate Lie's tenure. In their last trip, in 2019, Xavier picked up the tournament title as the No. 1 seed with wins over Villanova and Georgetown.
The Georgetown Hoyas and Butler Bulldogs have also secured bids to the BIG EAST Championship.

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