LEBANON, Ill. - 15th-ranked McKendree University women's soccer (4-0-1, 1-0-0) begins its Great Lakes Valley Conference slate with a home-away weekend, beginning with Lewis (3-2-0, 1-0-0) at Leemon Field on Friday, September 16, and then heads to Indianapolis (1-2-2, 0-0-1) on Sunday, September 18. The Bearcats jumped into the United Soccer Coaches rankings on September 6 at No.16, after starting 3-0-0 this season. On September 13, the Bearcats moved up one place to No.15 after successfully closing out non-conference play unbeaten.
THIS SEASON
McKendree began the 2022 campaign with a pair of wins in Iowa, defeating Upper Iowa and Concordia St. Paul in Fayette at the end of August. The Bearcats returned home after the opening road trip, beating Trevecca Nazerene, 1-0, to open Leemon Field for the new year on September 3 and then beat out Kentucky Wesleyan, 5-0, on September 6. McKendree then played its final non-conference game against GLVC-foe Missouri S&T, which was a 1-1 draw on September 9.
On the year, the No.15 Bearcats have out-scored opponents 10-2 while firing 16.6 shots per game with a .410 on-frame rate. McKendree has nearly doubled its opponents' earned corners with 29 over five contests.
The offense has been led by junior forwards
Anna Stiffler and
Destiny Johnson, who both own six points. The pairing ranks tied for fourth in the GLVC in points and points per game (6 points, 1.20 per game). Stiffler sits tied for third in goals (3) and goals per game (0.60) while Johnson is tied for eighth with two goals and 0.40 per game. Johnson is tied atop the league leaderboard for assists with her two (0.40 per game) as well. Stiffler has fired three scores while Johnson has dished-out a pair of assists with her two goals. Five more Bearcats have scored while five more have an assist. Senior midfielder
Elizabeth Goldstein sits third on the team in points as she owns an assist and goal this fall.
The net has been held by senior goalkeeper
Abby Tucker (4-0-1) for over 415 minutes this year, starting all five games with 11 saves, a save percentage of 0.846, and a goals allowed average of 0.43.
PREVIEW vs. Lewis
All-Time Series: 9-2-1, McK
The Flyers travel to Leemon Field with a three-game winning streak after opening GLVC play with a 2-1 victory over UMSL on September 11. Lewis dropped its first two games of the season against Tiffin and UW-Parkside on August 25 and 27. The Flyers have out-scored opponents this season with a goal differential of four in five matches. The offense has been led by reigning GLVC Offensive Player of the Week, Cameron Sengstock, who owns four goals and Elisa Aguilar, who has fired three scores. Bekah Nielsen (3-1-0) has been the primary keeper this season with nearly 420 minutes, 19 saves with four goals allowed (0.86 goals allowed average).
The Bearcats will look to continue an unbeaten streak over the Flyers, as McKendree won six-straight matches against Lewis from 2016 through 2021, until the teams tied during last season's meeting.
PREVIEW @ Indianapolis
All-Time Series: 6-2-4, McK
UIndy hosts the Bearcats on Sunday afternoon after a week-long break, drawing its conference opener with Maryville on September 11. The Greyhounds gained their lone win this year with a 1-0 victory against Cedarville on August 31. UIndy has fired at least one goal in four of its five games this fall and has been led by Maria Herrero. Herrero has collected three scores and one assist while two others have fired one score.
The last time these two programs met was in the first round of the NCAA Midwest Regional Tournament, which UIndy claimed the win via a 3-2 final score. McKendree had been unbeaten against the Greyhounds until the 2021 fall season, where UIndy won both matchups, one regular and one post-season outing.
WEEKEND SLATE
Friday, September 16 | 5:00 PM | vs. Lewis | Lebanon, Illinois | Leemon Field |
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Live Stats *GLVC OPENER
Sunday, September 18 | 12:00 PM ET/11:00 AM CT | @ Indianapolis | Indianapolis, Indiana | Key Stadium |
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Live Stats
