Conference play starts for many of the Australians this week, and for those not in power conferences, winning the conference title is the only way of reaching the NCAA Tournament. Albany and Murray State did just that last season, earning their conferences’ auto-bids through winning conference tournaments. The best way to put yourself in a good position to do that is to earn a high seeding, so this is where the real fun starts.
Julia De Angelis’ start to her college career has come later than originally expected, but it’s been solid to begin with and this week the freshman and her Indiana teammates take on a pair of conference foes. First up they take on Northwestern, who have compiled a perfect 7-0 record so far and will no doubt provide a stern test for the Hoosiers. Following this, Indiana take on Illinois. Illinois have tallied 3 wins this season, as have Indiana, although the Hoosiers’ schedule has been slightly tougher. With Julia in the midfield, the Indiana midfield is no doubt improved in both defence and starting the attack, so the Hoosiers should stand a good chance of getting a win against Illinois, even if Northwestern may prove to be too great a challenge.
Teagan Micah has well and truly established herself as UCLA’s starting goalkeeper, and this week provides yet another test early in her college career as the Bruins ramp things up before their conference schedule begins next week. Pepperdine and Long Beach State have compiled solid if unspectacular records, with both sitting at 4-2-1 at this point in the season. UCLA do sit amongst the top teams in the nation, but with losses to fellow heavyweights Florida and North Carolina, the last thing they need is to drop a game against a lesser opponent before playing in what is arguably the toughest conference in college soccer in the Pac-12.
Nicholls State have unearthed a gem in Kristy Helmers, with the Australian sitting third in Division I in assists per game. With fellow Australian Jess Coates enjoying an excellent senior year, the Colonels move into Southland play looking to improve on last season’s 9th place. Having held their own in losses to Louisiana-Monroe and Louisiana Tech, their 3-2 record looks very respectable for a side of their standing. This week, they take on Lamar, a team that have started 1-6 and had less impressive results against common opponents. Lamar did finish two places clear of Nicholls State in the Southland last season, but there is definitely scope for the Colonels to get a first up win in conference play.
Alexandra Huynh was forced to sit out Troy’s close loss to Florida State due to being an accumulation of yellow cards, but is back and raring to go for Troy’s conference games this weekend against Appalachian State and Arkansas State. A rock at the back for the Trojans and the team’s set-piece specialist, Alex’s return to the back four will be welcome news for all those associated with the Troy program.
Despite a pair of poor results for Texas Southern last week, Paige Hayward was again amongst the goals and this week gets another chance. Oral Roberts are certainly better than Huston-Tillotson, but they’re no North Texas and whilst the Mean Green demolished Texas Southern 7-1, Paige was the goalscorer on that occasion and should certainly have more than a couple of chances in the team’s only game this week.
Full Schedule:
Massachusetts (Laura Johns)
This week: at Brown – 9am, Friday September 16; at Providence – 3am, Monday September 19
Indiana (Julia De Angelis)
This week: at Northwestern – 10am, Friday September 16; at Illinois – 4am, Monday September 19
San Francisco (Price Keogh)
This week: at California – 7am, Saturday September 17; v UC Davis – 6am, Monday September 19
Nicholls State (Jess Coates, Kristy Helmers)
This week: v Lamar – 7am, Saturday September 17
USC (Lulu Pullar)
This week: v Kansas – 8am, Saturday September 17
UCLA (Teagan Micah)
This week: at Pepperdine – 8am, Saturday September 17; v Long Beach State – 11am, Monday September 19
East Tennessee State (Isabel Hodgson)
This week: v Alabama A&M – 9am, Saturday September 17; at South Carolina State – 6am, Monday September 9
Pacific (Ellie Papalexiou)
This week: at UC Davis – 9am, Saturday September 17
Albany (Claire Urquhart)
This week: v Dartmouth – 9am, Saturday September 17
Texas (Monique Iannella)
This week: v North Texas – 10am, Saturday September 17; v UC Santa Barbara – 5:30am, Monday September 19
Stanford (Beattie Goad)
This week: v Santa Clara – 10am, Saturday September 17
Texas Tech (Demi Koulizakis)
This week: at Loyola Marymount – 10am, Saturday September 17; at San Diego State – 11am, Monday September 19
LSU (Caitlin Cantrill)
This week: v Ole Miss – 10am, Saturday September 17; v Lamar – 4am, Monday September 19
Troy (Alexandra Huynh)
This week: v Appalachian State – 10am, Saturday September 17; v Arkansas State – 4am, Monday September 19
Iona (Kiri Dale)
This week: at Siena – 3am, Sunday September 18
Colorado (Isobel Dalton, Kahlia Hogg)
This week: v Denver – 4am, Sunday September 18
Western Carolina (Kate Swartwout)
This week: v Tennessee Tech – 3am, Monday September 19
Winthrop (Jai Jackson)
This week: at Kennesaw State – 3am, Monday September 19
Fairleigh Dickinson (Sam Roff)
This week: at Army – 3am, Monday September 19
Hofstra (Emily Hulbert)
This week: at Fordham – 3am, Monday September 19
Southeast Missouri State (Maddy Cornell, Siena Senatore)
This week: at Missouri State – 4am, Monday September 19
Texas Southern (Paige Hayward)
This week: at Oral Roberts – 4am, Monday September 19
Drexel (Emma Heckenberg)
This week: 7am, Monday September 19
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