CEDAR CITY, Utah-- The Southern Utah University women's soccer team begins Big Sky play this weekend as they host Northern Colorado Thursday, and Montana Sunday.
Game Info
Game 9
Southern Utah vs Northern Colorado
Friday, September 24 (4:05 p.m. MT)
Cedar City, Utah (Thunderbird Soccer Field)
Watch Live Stats
Game 10
Southern Utah vs Montana
Sunday, September 26 (1:00 p.m. MT)
Cedar City, Utah (Thunderbird Soccer Field)
Watch Live Stats
ABOUT NORTHERN COLORADO (2-6-2)
Northern Colorado enters Friday having lost three of their last four out of conference matchups. The Bears are led by senior forward Lexi Pulley, who has scored four goals this season. Two of Pulley's goals came in a 3-1 win over Colorado College at the beginning of the season. Senior Morgan Bury stands in goal for UNCO. Bury has racked up a total of 37 saves in eight games for the Bears. Northern Colorado is coached by Tim Barrera.
OTHER BEARS TO WATCH:
Senior Forward Lauren Woodhull: Goals:2 Assists:2 Shots: 6 Shots On Goal: 10
Senior Forward Taylor Bray: Assists: 3 Shots: 7 Shots On Goal: 3
LAST TIME AGAINST BEARS: Last season's series was postponed due to severe weather-related issues. In 2019, the Thunderbirds hosted the Bears on October 11th. In the match, Northern Colorado scored goals in the 13th, 25th, and 70th minutes of the game. Pulley, who was a freshman at the time, highlighted the game for the Bears recording two assists. SUU got on the scoreboard in the 86th minute when forward Jaylynn Barton scored her first career goal, but in the end, it wasn't enough as the Bears walked away with the 3-1 win.
ABOUT MONTANA (4-4):
The Grizzlies come into Sunday having won their last three games. They have scored 14 goals on the season to their opponents 8. Montana is led by Juniors Sydney Haustein and Jaden Griggs. The midfield pair has scored seven goals this year for the Grizzlies. Standing between the pipes for Montana is Freshman Camilla Xu. Xu has recorded 29 saves while allowing seven goals on the year. Montana is coached by Chris Citkowski.
OTHER GRIZZLIES TO WATCH:
Forward Taylor Stoeger: Goals: 2 Assist:3 Shots: 17 Shots On Goal: 9
Defender Taylor Hansen: Goals: 1 Assist: 4 Shots: 9 Shots On Goal: 4
LAST TIME AGAINST THE GRIZZLIES:
The Thunderbirds didn't see the Grizzlies in last spring's adjusted schedule. In 2019, they did play host to Montana on October 13th. Haustein and Hansen highlighted the match for the Grizzlies with a total of seven shots. SUU forward Jaylynn Barton put up two shots of her own for the Thunderbirds, while senior defender Emma Leong gave a tremendous defensive effort playing a full 110 minutes. In the end, neither team could find an edge as the game ended in a 0-0 tie.
NOTES AND QUOTES
LAST TIME ON THE PITCH: The Thunderbirds last took the pitch on the road against the Colorado College Tigers on September 19th. Neither team could find the back of the net in the first 90 minutes. SUU goalkeeper was the standout for the Thunderbirds, recording 12 saves on the day. The Tigers did breakthrough in the 95th minute when Kaelin Enga sent a shot past the goalkeeper Short into the bottom left corner of the net.
Edwards on his team's performance against Colorado College: "Our team fought and played well. We lost focus during overtime and it's my responsibility to get that fixed. We start conference play on Friday and everyone starts from zero. We will get a couple of starters back so we are excited to start."
Edwards on last week's heartbreaking loss against Dixie State: " It's unfortunate. We had chances and we are a better team than we were before. I am extremely proud of our group because one of our core values is to develop and we keep getting better every day. We've shown resilience throughout this season and we just have to continue to plug away because at some point the results will follow."
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