CEDAR CITY, Utah -- Following their third draw in a row the SUU soccer team will find themselves in Stockton, California this Friday, Sept. 8 to take on the University of the Pacific. The game is scheduled for 8 p.m. MDT and can be streamed on ESPN+. The two teams have played each other just once with Pacific taking a 1-0 victory in 2021 at the Thunderbird Soccer Field. SUU will then travel a short 90 minutes to play San Jose State on Sunday Sept 10 at 1 p.m. MDT.
University of the Pacific
Jaida Nyby has been the top scorer for the Tigers, putting up six goals through six games played, including two game winners. The Pacific has eight total team assists, with no players contributing more than one so far.
The Tigers' only goalkeeper to see the field, freshman Libby Davy, has averaged four saves per game with a single-game high of eight.
With a 3-2-1 record, the Pacific is coming off of a 1-3 loss to New Mexico State.
San Jose State
The Spartans are led by Bella Flochinni who has three goals on the season with just five shots on goal. SJSU is 1-3-2 on the year and have only scored six goals. Most recently coming off a 2-0 loss to St. Mary's.
The Thunderbirds
SUU has scored seven goals through their first six games. Sammie Sofonia and Skylar Cano stand at the top with two goals apiece and shot-on-goal percentages at above .500. Whitney Gardner leads the team in assists with three, the only Thunderbird with more than one.
As the Thunderbirds' primary goalkeeper, Julia Ortega has collected 42 saves through six games played. She is coming off of her second-highest single-game save total of eight which came against Northern Arizona University.
After their tie against NAU, Southern Utah stands at 0-2-4 and will aim for their first victory of 2023.
Quotes from Kai Edwards
"Undefeated last weekend is always nice and going up first in both games is good to see. This coming weekend we have two very tough tests. A talented University Pacific team Friday night out of the very good West Coast Conference and San Jose State, the Mountain West Champions and 2022 NCAA participants on Sunday. Pacific is well organized and dangerous in the attack. We will need to be sharp."
"Sunday vs San Jose will be a challenging environment as it is supposed to be hot and SJSU isn't playing a game on Friday and will be coming off a full week of rest so we might need to do some different things in that game. All in all we are undefeated in the last three games and need to keep developing as individuals and as a team to get results this weekend."
Written by: Anden Garfield
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