Weekly Schedule:
*Thursday, Sept. 22 – at Missouri Southern; 7:00 pm; Joplin, Mo.
Saturday, Sept. 24 – at Southwest Baptist; 12:00 pm; Bolivar, Mo.
* - Match counts toward MIAA standings
Full Notes (PDF)
Week At-a-Glance:
KIRKSVILLE, Mo. - - In the midst of a five-match road trip, the Truman women's soccer team will look to add a pair of wins to the season ledger this weekend when the squad travels to Joplin and Bolivar for matches against Missouri Southern and Southwest Baptist.
On Thursday (Sept. 22) night, the Bulldogs (1-3-2) visit Joplin for a critical contest, as the 7:00 pm game with Missouri Southern (0-4-1) marks the official MIAA opener for both teams. Then, on Saturday, Truman travels to Bolivar for a high-noon showdown with the SBU Bearcats (1-4-1, 0-1 MIAA) in a regional match that does not count towards the final MIAA conference standings.
Following the Bulldogs:
Full coverage of Truman women's soccer is available online at TrumanBulldogs.com, including results, upcoming game information and weekly updates.
When available, links to free online live stats are added to the Bulldog soccer schedule page as well as the top of each weekly update.
Keep up with the Bulldogs by tracking in-game updates (when available). Follow Truman Athletics on Twitter at www.twitter.com/TrumanAthletics. Also be sure to sign up for TextCaster updates on the Bulldog homepage.
Canine Corner:
Despite posting back-to-back 0-1-1 weeks, the season hits full throttle for the Truman women's soccer squad this week when the official MIAA season begins on Thursday at Missouri Southern. The Bulldogs, having gone goal-less for the first two times this season in last week's matches, are averaging 1.33 goals per game, having scored eight goals through the first four games of the year.
Junior Olivia Hayes and sophomore Trisha Shoemaker lead the team with two goals apiece, while both senior Megan Buri and junior Kelsey Twellman are responsible for a goal and two assists each. Buri has the only two-assist game in the MIAA this season, accomplishing hers in Truman's 3-3 draw at Incarnate Word (Texas) on Sept. 9.
The squad lowered its goals-against average more than a half-point during the past week, dropping it to 1.86 following the first shutout of the season against Northwest Missouri last Thursday (Sept. 15). Both senior Jayne Grisham and sophomore Emily Bozdeck saw time in goal in both games last week, with Grisham giving up two goals and making six saves in 105 minutes and Bozdeck posting nearly 95 minutes of scoreless action.
For the season, the Bulldogs are still out-shooting their opponents, 84-81, and rank second in the MIAA in shots (14.00/game) and third in points (3.50/game).
Scouting the Lions:
Missouri Southern, off to an 0-4-1 mark through its first five games, has scored four goals and given up ten so far this season. Like Truman, the Lions have tested themselves outside of the MIAA, having already played No. 3 Quincy (loss, 2-0) and No. 19 St. Edward's (Texas) (loss, 2-0). MSSU fell, 2-1, at home to SBU last Thursday and have been idle since.
Shannon Kuhn has scored three of the team's four goals, earning six of the team's ten total accumulated points this year. Both Randi Russell (1.84 GAA) and Abby Risner (2.00 GAA) have spent time in goal.
Truman and Missouri Southern have met 22 times, with the Bulldogs holding a 16-2-4 lead in the all-time series. The teams played to a 0-0 draw in Joplin last season before the Bulldogs rebounded with a 1-0 win in Kirksville.
Scouting the Bearcats:
Southwest Baptist will be looking for its first home win of the season, having posted a 1-4-1 (0-1 MIAA) record through the first three weeks. By the time Truman meets SBU on Saturday, the two teams will have shared four common opponents, as the Bearcats were shutout by Midwestern State (3-0), Central Oklahoma (4-0) and Northwest Missouri (2-0) but earned a 2-1 win at MSSU.
Scoring has been a struggle for the Bearcats, as the teams has found the net just twice – both coming against MSSU. Teams have found success against the SBU defense primarily in the second half, as the Bearcats have allowed seven goals (of 12) and been outshot 75-17 in the final 45 minutes of games this year. Megan Link has logged every minute in goal this year, making 52 saves and posting a GAA of 1.93.
The Bulldogs and Bearcats have met 27 times, with the Bulldogs holding a 19-3-5 lead in the all-time series. Last season, Truman picked up a 1-0 win in Bolivar before cruising to a 3-0 win in Kirksville.
Bulldogs vs. MSSU/SBU:
The present set of Bulldogs have seen high levels of success against Missouri Southern, as the current players have combined for 13 goals and six assists offensively and nearly 750 minutes of scoreless action on defense.
Junior Olivia Hayes, in eight career games against MSSU and SBU, has scored six goals including a pair of game-winners, to go with three assists. In addition, senior Megan Buri has scored three times in 12 career games with two game-winners against the Lions, and fellow senior Jaclyn Schumann has provided the decisive goal against SBU twice.
Senior Jayne Grisham has tallied 560 minutes between the pipes, totaling four shutouts and 21 saves to go with zero goals allowed, while sophomore Emily Bozdeck shutout both teams once last season.
Hayes Cracks Top-Ten:
Junior Olivia Hayes cracked Truman's all-time top-ten goals scored chart earlier this season, giving her 20 all-time. She is tied with current assistant coach Katie Reuck's three-year total, set from 2007-2009. Riley Mahn (21; 2006-09) and Jill Benson (22; 1994-97) sit in ninth and eighth places on the career goal scoring list.
MIAA? Or Not MIAA? That is the Question…
Due to Nebraska-Omaha's sudden departure from the league last March, conference officials had to scramble to create a balanced schedule for the 2011 season. To do so, teams will play 12 matches against other MIAA programs, but only eight (four home, four road) will count towards the official MIAA championship race and standings. All of the matches will count for regional consideration, but only those denoted with an asterisk on the women's soccer schedule page count for the MIAA standings and tournament seeding.
This Saturday's match at SBU and home matches against Missouri Southern (Oct. 20) and Emporia State (Oct. 27) will be strictly nonconference matches to go with both of last week's contests.
Let's Just Call it Even:
Truman tied a program-high with five draws in 2010, including four coming in true road matches. The Bulldogs last had five draws in the 1996 season and have not had a draw-less season since 2001.
Truman Picked Second in MIAA Poll:
Truman women's soccer picked up one first-place vote and placed second in the 2011 MIAA Preseason Coaches Poll, announced Thursday, Aug. 4 by the league office.
The Bulldogs totaled 57 points in the nine-team poll, earning one first-place and seven second-place votes. Last season's conference champion Central Missouri was picked to repeat, collecting the other eight first-place votes for 64 total points, while Southwest Baptist (46), Missouri Southern (43) and Washburn (38) rounded out the top five. Coaches were not allowed to vote for their own team, as Northwest Missouri, Missouri Western, Emporia State and first-year program Fort Hays State wrapped up the poll.
Up Next:
The Bulldogs head in opposite directions next week, as the team renews its Rt. 6 rivalry with No. 3 Quincy (Ill.) in a nonconference tilt on Tuesday (Sept. 27) night before heading to the western plains of Kansas to tangle with Fort Hays State for the first time on Saturday (Oct. 1) afternoon.
