Receiving votes in the coaches’ poll and back in winning form after a two-game skid, Aimee Medwin and Long Beach State head to Seattle to play Washington this week as they continue to test themselves with a non-conference schedule containing a number of Pac-12 sides. Sitting at 3-2 after their win over San Diego State, Beach have acquitted themselves well throughout the season to this point, with Medwin playing a significant role as a regular starter. Washington may sit at 1-4 to this point, but their record is slightly deceiving. The Huskies started the season with a trip to face top 5 sides Duke and North Carolina, and ran Duke close in a 2-1 loss. However, Long Beach State have plenty to prove as they look to re-establish themselves as a feared entity in the Big West, and knocking off teams in a power conference is an ideal way to do just that.
Alabama State and their Aussie duo of Grace Norbury and Madi Chambers picked up their first win of the season last week against South Carolina State, and could have had another as they fell to a 1-0 loss to Gardner-Webb despite outshooting the Runnin’ Bulldogs 20-8. This week, their two opponents are almost diametrically opposed. Their first game this week comes against UAB, a Conference USA side that defeated the Hornets 8-1 in February, in what will be by far the biggest test of the regular season for Alabama State. Following that, they will face Faulkner, an NAIA side that they defeated 5-0 in 2019 and 8-0 in 2016. Considering the strength of the respective opponents, it will be interesting to see how coach Jodie Smith rotates his lineup this week. Grace Norbury has been a regular starter, whilst Chambers has made the majority of her appearances off the bench, but a solid performance against a team of UAB’s calibre could significantly elevate Chambers’ standing in the rotation.
Indianapolis-based Butler keep things relatively close to home, skipping over the Ohio state line to face Wright State in Dayton before heading to Muncie to face in-state opponent Ball State. Riding a four-game winning streak that has seen Claire Farrington and the Bulldogs’ defence give up just three goals in the process, Butler have every reason to be confident of picking up a pair of victories this week but will have to avoid complacency. Wright State may sit at 2-2-1, but kept things close in a 1-0 loss to Big 12 side Oklahoma State and were ruthless in front of net against Akron, banging home three goals despite managing just eight shots in a 3-0 victory. Meanwhile, Ball State currently own a 2-2 record, with 3-1 victories over Valparaiso and Purdue Fort Wayne. However, one of their losses was a 5-1 drubbing by Purdue, so they certainly haven’t found consistent form yet. For Farrington, “more of the same” will surely be the main request from the Butler coaches as they look to ride this winning streak into conference play, with just three non-conference games remaining.
Farrington’s Northern NSW junior teammate Renée Pountney will also be looking for more of the same as Creighton face North Dakota State and Kansas City this week. The former Newcastle Jet scored her first collegiate goal last week with a peach of a finish into the side netting, and if recent form is anything to go by, Pountney will have plenty of chances this week. North Dakota State have conceded 13 goals in 5 games, whilst Kansas City have shipped 16 goals in 6 contests. However, to be fair to North Dakota State, they held Wyoming (remember when they had Aussies?) to a 1-1 draw last week, so things may be turning around for the Bison. Nevertheless, Pountney and the Bluejays attack have every reason to be licking their chops. We also await the NCAA Division I debut of goalkeeper Ayana Aoyagi, who appears to be in the backup role at the moment, with starter Keelan Terrell the only one of Creighton’s three goalkeepers to play any minutes so far this season.
Moving south to Texas, Madison McComasky has picked up where she left off this season, even if the results haven’t been there for Incarnate Word, who sit at 0-5 with four one-goal losses to this point. To be fair, the Cardinals have been the underdog in every game this week, and have only conceded multiple goals on two occasions, thanks in no small part to the efforts of McComasky. The senior picked up a Southland Conference Honourable Mention for Defensive Player of the Week recently, and will be hoping to continue that form as the Cardinals look to shut down in-state foe UTRGV. However, with conference play right around the corner, Incarnate Word will be looking to ensure they are prepared as well as possible for the league schedule, particularly as it is those performances that will determine what kind of postseason they have, and whether it includes an NCAA Tournament berth.
Full Schedule
(All times AEST)
Alabama State (Madison Chambers, Grace Norbury)
This week: @ UAB – 10am, Saturday September 11; @ Faulkner – 5am, Monday September 13
Butler (Claire Farrington)
This week: @ Wright State – 9am, Friday September 10; @ Ball State – 3am, Monday September 13
Creighton (Ayana Aoyagi, Renée Pountney)
This week: v North Dakota State – 10am, Friday September 10; @ Kansas City – 5am, Monday September 13
DePaul (Katie Godden)
This week: v Loyola Chicago – 7am, Friday September 10; @ Northwestern – 6am, Monday September 13
East Tennessee State (D’arne Boato)
This week: @ Middle Tennessee State – 9am, Saturday September 11; @ Lipscomb – 4am, Monday September 13
Eastern Illinois (Ashleigh Harvie)
This week: v Central Michigan – 3am, Monday September 13
Grand Canyon (Sandra Hill)
This week: v Denver – 1pm, Friday September 10; v New Mexico – 1pm, Sunday September 12
Hawaii (Eliza Ammendolia)
No games this week.
Hofstra (Grace Watson-Carr)
This week: v Bucknell – 6am, Saturday September 11; v Yale – 2am, Monday September 13
Illinois (Ashleigh Lefevre)
This week: @ Bowling Green – 9am, Friday September 10; @ Toledo – 3am, Monday September 13
Illinois State (Indianna Asimus)
This week: v Northwestern – 9am, Friday September 10; @ Northern Illinois – 5am, Monday September 13
Incarnate Word (Madison McComasky)
This week: @ UTRGV – 10am, Saturday September 11
La Salle (Alyssa Van Heurck)
No games this week.
Long Beach State (Aimee Medwin)
This week: @ Washington – 9am, Sunday September 12
Louisiana Tech (Caitlin Le Roux)
This week: v Sam Houston State – 10am, Saturday September 11; v Little Rock – 4am, Monday September 13
Louisiana-Monroe (Brianna Edwards, Siobhan Edwards)
This week: v Alcorn State – 10am, Saturday September 11; @ Southern – 4am, Monday September 13
Massachusetts (Hannah Peric)
This week: @ Northeastern – 3am, Monday September 13
Oregon (Lara Kirkby)
This week: @ Texas – 10am, Friday September 10; @ Baylor – 10am, Monday September 13
Rhode Island (Teresa Morrissey)
This week: @ Holy Cross – 9:30am, Friday September 10; @ Princeton – 3am, Monday September 13
San Francisco (Ashley Jordan)
This week: @ Stanford – 12pm, Friday September 10; v Portland State – 6am, Monday September 13
Stanford (Amy Sayer)
This week: v San Francisco – 12pm, Friday September 10; v Loyola Marymount – 6am, Monday September 13
Tennessee-Martin (Kiarnie Latham)
This week: v Western Carolina – 4am, Monday September 13
Texas A&M-Corpus Christi (Molly Arens)
This week: v Houston Baptist – 10am, Saturday September 11; @ Texas State – 4am, Monday September 13
UMBC (Isobel Davy, Annaliese Grove, Abi Jordan)
This week: v Longwood – 8am, Friday September 10; @ Mount St. Mary’s – 3am, Monday September 13
UNC Asheville (Jasmine Barry)
This week: v The Citadel – 8am, Friday September 10; v Davidson – 4am, Monday September 13
USC (Talia Grossman)
No games this week.
VCU (Greta Kraszula)
This week: @ William & Mary – 9am, Friday September 10
Leave a Reply