Women's Soccer Games of the Week (9/12 - 9/14)
#3 Florida at #6 Stanford, Friday, 10:30 pm ET
Stanford's great start to the season continued last weekend when the team went 1-0-1, defeating UC Santa Barbara 2-0 before tying Notre Dame 0-0. Stanford leads the all-time series 2-0 against Florida. This is their first meeting since 2002 when the Cardinal won in a 4-0 rout at home over the Gators.
Florida snapped a 38-match Florida State win streak in regulation play with its 2-1 victory last week. Pamela Begič’s goal at 24:12 ended a Gators’ scoreless streak against the Seminoles at 226 minutes, dating back to 2011. Florida State’s home unbeaten streak also ended. The Seminoles had a 36-0-1 consecutive home unbeaten record and its last loss in regulation was October 13th, 2011 versus Maryland. That was the ninth longest unbeaten streak in NCAA history. FSU hadn’t lost a match in regulation (home or away) in its previous 38 matches. The last loss in regulation for the Seminoles was a loss to Virginia in 2012 ACC Tournament. Now the Seminoles want to take advantage of their momentum and get a result in Palo Alto.
#8 Texas Tech at #9 California, Friday, 6:30 pm ET
Cal's had an impressive start to the year, going 6-0, including a win against highly regarded Santa Clara on the road (The Broncos make a return visit to play Cal on Sunday). The Bears have outscored their opponents 19-3, including an astonishing 14-1 in the second half. Taylor Comeau and Kelly Fitzgerald have each found the back of the net four times, while three others have scored twice apiece. Comeau also leads the squad with three assists.
Texas Tech got the nation's attention when it defeated Notre Dame on the road and has kept it ever since then. The Red Raiders have gone 3-0 since the win at Notre Dame, including a sweep of Sam Houston State (3-1) and Portland State (1-0 2OT) last weekend. Hannah Devine was the star of last weekend's games, as she scored twice in the game against SHSU and knocked in the game winner in the 109th minute against the Vikings.
#10 Wisconsin at Michigan, Sunday, 2:00 pm ET
Michigan is 10-12-5 all-time against Wisconsin but has not lost to the Gophers in the last three meetings. The two teams tied 0-0 in double overtime last season, while the Wolverines defeated UW twice during the 2012 campaign. Michigan has not allowed a goal against Wisconsin since October 24th, 2010, when the Wolverines fell 1-0 in double overtime in Madison. Nicky Waldeck leads the way with four goals.
The Badgers have scored 18 goals, while allowing just one this season. Last weekend they defeated Washington 4-0 and handled a good Portland squad 3-0. Cara Walls has seven goals on the season, while Kinley McNicoll has added five goals and four assists. Rose Lavelle has a team-leading five assists on the year.
#24 Pepperdine at Kentucky, Sunday, 12:00 ET
The Waves suffered their first loss on the year when they dropped a 2-0 decision to top-ranked UCLA in Hawaii. Before that, Pepperdine had outscored its opponents 8-1, allowing a goal in the first match of the season and nothing in the next four. The scoring is equally distributed, as Lynn Williams leads the team with two goals and six others have one each.
After dropping its opener, Kentucky has won five straight, with the last four all shutouts. In that four game stretch, the team has outscored its opponents 13-0. Like its opponent, the team equally distributes the ball, as three players (Arin Gilliland, Michaela Dooley and Jade Klump) have buried three shots. Gilliland also has five assists and Dooley four.
