GAMES: The UND soccer team is on its home field this weekend as it takes on two Big Sky Conference opponents. North Dakota will face Northern Arizona on Friday, with a start time of 3 p.m., before rounding off the weekend Sunday at 12 p.m. with a matchup against Southern Utah. Sunday's game will serve as senior day, honoring UND's four seniors.
LUMBERJACKS: Northern Arizona is led by head coach Andre Luciano, who is in his twelfth season with the Lumberjacks. Luciano and his team enter this weekend with a season record of 4-6-4 and a Big Sky Conference record of 2-1-2. Demi Schmieder leads the team with six points (one goal and four assists), while Haley Wingender closely follows with five points (two goals and one assist). Goalkeepers Lauren Weaver and Natalie Gilbertson have split time in the net. Together, they have collected 101 saves and tallied a goals against average of 1.28.
THUNDERBIRDS: Led by first-year head coach Becky Hogan, Southern Utah enters this weekend with a 1-9-1 season record and a 0-5-0 BSC record. The Thunderbirds have scored eight goals on the season and average twelve shots per game. Stacey Brinkman and Morgan Bridge have each tallied two goals (four points) for SUU. Savannah Spere also has four points for the Thunderbirds with one goal and two assists. Goalkeeper Charly Booth has started all eleven games, earning a goals against average of 1.87. Southern Utah will be on the road all weekend, facing Northern Colorado on Friday before heading to North Dakota for Sunday's matchup.
THIS WEEK IN THE BSC: With the first half of the conference soccer season in the books, Portland State tops the Big Sky standings with a 4-1-1 record.
Portland State went 1-0-1 over the weekend after a tie with Northern Arizona and a win over Southern Utah. On Friday, PSU and NAU went 110 minutes without either team scoring. PSU outshot NAU 19-10. On Sunday, Portland State defeated Southern Utah 3-0. The Vikings had three different players score. Torie Morris, Cori Bianchini and Lynsey Gaines each scored for the Vikings.
Montana went 2-0 over the weekend with a win over Northern Colorado and North Dakota. On Friday, Montana gave Northern Colorado its first conference loss as the Grizzlies defeated the Bears 1-0. UM's Allie Simon scored the game-winning goal in the 78th minute off of a cross from Tyler Adair. On Sunday, Montana defeated North Dakota 4-0. UM had goals from Mackenzie Akins, Paytyn Wheeler, Allie Simon and Mary Makris.
Weber State went 1-0 over the weekend with a 1-0 win over Idaho State. WSU's Mackenzie Harrison scored the only goal of the match in the 75th minute off of Brecken Holbrook's free kick.
Eastern Washington went 1-0-1 over the weekend with a win over North Dakota and a tie with Northern Colorado. On Friday, EWU defeated North Dakota 4-1. After being down 1-0, Eastern Washington Scored four unanswered goals. UND's Taryn MacMaillan scored the first goal of the match in the 18th minute. Less than a minute later, EWU's Cassie Black tied the match 1-1. Black scored two other goals, one in the 65th minute and one in the 82nd, to record her first collegiate hat trick. EWU's Caitlin Hepworth scored the final goal of the match to give EWU the 4-1 win over North Dakota. On Sunday, EWU and Northern Colorado went into overtime. After 110 minutes of play, neither team scored. Northern Colorado had 21 shots compared to Eastern Washington's 14 shots.
Sacramento State also went 1-0-1 over the weekend with a win over Southern Utah and a tie with Northern Arizona. On Friday, after being down 1-0, Sacramento State scored three unanswered goals to defeat Southern Utah 3-1. SUU's Morgan Bridge scored the first goal of the match in the 18th minute. Less than three minutes later, SAC's Alyssa Anderson tied the game 1-1. Anderson scored again in the 24th minute to give SAC the 2-1 lead. SAC's Victoria Ramirez scored the final goal of the match in the 67th minute to give SAC the 3-1 win over SUU. On Sunday, after 110 minute of play, Northern Arizona and Sacramento State also ended in a 0-0 tie. Sacramento State outshot Northern Arizona 21-13.
