2018 Week 7 Preview

Games don’t get much bigger than a rematch of the previous year’s College Cup championship, and that’s exactly what we have this week as Beattie Goad and Stanford face Teagan Micah’s UCLA side on Friday afternoon Sydney time. Stanford are currently on a 31-match unbeaten streak dating back to early last season, but for UCLA, they will be looking to bounce back after falling 1-0 to Washington State in their only game last week. Teagan Micah missed that game after suffering a knock during the warm-ups, and will be hoping to return to the side for one of the most highly anticipated games of the season. On the other hand, Beattie Goad continues to make the most of her extended time on the pitch in a Stanford side that has suffered a few injuries of its own recently, continuing to be one of the best-performed players for the Cardinal in recent weeks.

Staying in the Pac-12, Isobel Dalton and Colorado travel south to Arizona to take on Arizona State before facing Arizona to round out the week. The Buffaloes have put together an outstanding 9-0-1 record to this point, but the two Arizona schools represent an entirely different proposition to what they have faced in non-conference play and in the 6-0 win in last week’s conference opener against Oregon State. Now sitting at #18 in the rankings, Colorado will be out to show that they deserve that ranking against a pair of solid opponents, and Isobel Dalton will hopefully be able to secure some more playing time after an impressive outing off the bench against Oregon State. Of particular note was the delightful pass that set up the team’s final goal, a ball that reminded everyone of the senior’s class in midfield.

Heading east, we find another highly-anticipated game in the form of the local derby between Kate Swartwout’s Western Carolina and Isabel Hodgson’s East Tennessee State outfit. Swartwout and the Catamounts certainly have the bragging rights at the moment, having won in both 2016 and 2017, and with a 5-3-2 record to this point in comparison to ETSU’s 3-7, will be favourites for this one. However, the Buccaneers’ offence appears to be humming again with everyone back after defeating Wofford 7-1 last week as both of these teams beat the same two opponents last week to sit tied atop the Southern Conference standings after one week of play. Isabel Hodgson picked up a goal and an assist in the space of a minute in that win over Wofford, whilst Kate Swartwout has been an integral part of the Western Carolina side for much of the year, so expect both Aussies to be heavily involved in what should be an entertaining game.

Emma Heckenberg’s Drexel side and Lorena Bugden’s William & Mary outfit each split their opening Colonial Athletic Association league games this week, meaning that a win in this Aussie v Aussie matchup could go a long way to keeping whichever team gets the three points in contention for top spot in a league season consisting of just nine games. Both teams played College of Charleston last week, with William & Mary falling 2-1, but Drexel winning by the same scoreline in overtime as Heckenberg delivered an assist on the equaliser before the Dragons completed the comeback in the extra minutes. Drexel are certainly the team expected to do better in conference play this season, but William & Mary always pose a threat and will certainly not roll over easily.

Laura Farrelly and Marshall got away to a flyer in Conference USA last week with wins over UTEP and Florida International, and this week will see the Thundering Herd attempt to keep the good times rolling against Gaby Bentley and Old Dominion. The Monarchs had a far less successful opening to league play, falling to Louisiana Tech and Charlotte, and need to pick up some points fairly quickly if they want to make their way into a conference tournament that selects only the top 8 in the 14-team league. Whilst this game does have the potential to be an Aussie v Aussie matchup, it will take some selection changes from coaches for it to happen, as Farrelly is yet to make her debut and Bentley has seen only limited minutes in recent weeks. However, to paraphrase Murray Walker, anything happens in college women’s soccer, and it usually does.

Full Schedule: 

Akron (Freyja Murray)

This week: v Eastern Michigan – 9am, Saturday September 29; v Central Michigan – 3am, Monday October 1

Albany (Claire Urquhart)

This week: v Stony Brook – 9am, Friday September 28; @ UMass Lowell – 7am, Monday October 1 

Chicago State (Sarah Clark)

This week: v Cal State Bakersfield – 4am, Saturday September 29; v Cal Baptist – 4am, Monday October 1 

Colorado (Isobel Dalton)

This week: @ Arizona State – 7am, Friday September 28; @ Arizona – 5am, Monday September 1

Drexel (Emma Heckenberg) 

This week: @ William & Mary – 4am, Monday October 1

East Tennessee State (Isabel Hodgson) 

This week: @ Western Carolina – 9am, Saturday September 29; v King – 9am, Tuesday October 2

Fairleigh Dickinson (Sam Roff)

This week: @ Central Connecticut State – 8am, Saturday September 29; v Robert Morris – 6am, Monday October 1 

Georgia Southern (Hannah Allen)

This week: @ Louisiana-Monroe – 9am, Saturday September 29; @ South Alabama – 3am, Monday October 1 

Grand Canyon (Sandra Hill)

This week: @ Seattle – 6am, Monday October 1

Hawaii (Kiri Dale)

This week: @ UC Irvine – 12pm, Saturday September 29; @ Cal State Northridge – 10am, Monday October 1

Hofstra (Monique Iannella, Grace Watson-Carr) 

This week: v Delaware – 9am, Friday September 28; @ UNC Wilmington – 2am, Monday October 1

Illinois (Ashleigh Lefevre) 

This week: v Michigan State – 9am, Sunday September 30 

La Salle (Claudia Jenkins, Alyssa Van Heurck) 

This week: @ Duquesne – 9am, Friday September 28; v Massachusetts – 3am, Monday October 1 

LSU (Caitlin Cantrill) 

This week: v Alabama – 10am, Friday September 28

Marshall (Laura Farrelly)

This week: @ Old Dominion – 9am, Saturday September 29; @ Charlotte – 3am, Monday October 1 

Nicholls State (Tessa Calabria, Tenille Harberger, Kristy Helmers)

This week: v Houston Baptist – 7am, Saturday September 29; v Texas A&M-Corpus Christi – 4am, Monday October 1 

North Dakota State (Lauren Featherstone)

This week: @ Western Illinois – 7am, Saturday September 29; @ Fort Wayne – 1:30am, Monday October 1 

Old Dominion (Gaby Bentley)

This week: v Marshall – 9am, Saturday September 29; v Western Kentucky – 3am, Monday October 1 

Southeast Missouri State (Siena Senatore) 

This week: v Eastern Kentucky – 9:30am, Friday September 28; v Morehead State – 5am, Monday October 1 

St. Francis University (Shelby Milton)

This week: @ Sacred Heart – 2am, Saturday September 29; @ Bryant – 5am, Monday October 1 

Stanford (Beattie Goad) 

This week: v UCLA – 1pm, Friday September 28; v USC – 6am, Monday October 1 

Texas Tech (Demi Koulizakis) 

This week: v Oklahoma – 10am, Saturday September 29; v Baylor – 4am, Monday October 1

Towson (Jodie Burchell) 

This week: v Northeastern – 5am, Friday September 28; @ Elon – 3am, Monday October 1

UCLA (Teagan Micah)

This week: @ Stanford – 1pm, Friday September 28; @ California – 8am, Monday October 1

Western Carolina (Kate Swartwout)

This week: v East Tennessee State – 9am, Saturday September 29 

William & Mary (Lorena Bugden)

This week: v UNC Wilmington – 9am, Friday September 28; v Drexel – 4am, Monday October 1 

Wyoming (Indianna Asimus, Annika Clayton, Jessie Gentle, Caitlin Pickett)

This week: @ Utah State – 8am, Saturday September 29; @ Boise State – 5am, Monday October 1

About Lachy 436 Articles
Founder of College Matildas. An Australian women's football fan who also happens to be a college sports fan. Often found at A-League Women or NPLW games.

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