Oct. 25, 2005
SAN DIEGO -
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This Week's Action
The Aztecs (10-7-2, 2-2-2 MWC) will close out their Mountain West Conference schedule with a road contest against UNLV at Peter Johann Memorial Field at 2:30 p.m. Saturday. PJMF will also be the site of the 2005 MWC Championships, which will begin Wednesday, Nov. 2 with the quarterfinal matches.
*SDSU is 5-3-1 (.611) at on the road this season. The .611 road winning percentage is its highest since the 1999 season when the Aztecs were 7-3 (.700) in road contests. 1999 was also the last year SDSU made the NCAA tournament.
*The Aztecs are 21-15-6 (.571) against MWC opponents in the regular season and 26-20-7 (.557) overall (including postseason).
So Close...
Ten wins in the season so far is pretty impressive, but think how much better the Aztecs record could be. Consider this:
*Of SDSU's seven losses this season, five have come with opponents scoring in the last eight minutes of play.
*Three of SDSU's losses have come in overtime. The Aztecs are 0-3-2 (.200) this season in the extra periods after going 1-0-6 (.571) in 2004.
*68.4 percent (13-of-19) of SDSU's games this season have been decided by one goal or less, the highest percentage in the MWC. The 11 one-goal games, in which the Aztecs are 5-6, are also the most of any team in the MWC. Considering 75.8 percent of the SDSU roster is underclassmen and the team averages 5.5 starts per game, a .455 record is still a good mark.
The Mello And Sutton Connection
Not only do the freshmen tandem of Jen Mello and Erika Sutton lead the team in scoring, but the duo is responsible for 42.7 percent of the team's points (32/75 points) thus far. Four of Mello's team-leading seven goals have been off assists from Sutton, while Sutton leads the MWC with nine assists and leads the Aztecs with 17 points in 2005.
*Mello's seven goals are the most by an Aztec since Kim Castellanos scored 10 times in 2002 and Sutton's nine assists are the most since Fay deLeon had nine helpers in 2000.
*Three of Sutton's four goals have been game-winners.
*The Aztecs are 8-2 when Sutton records at least one point, 6-1 when Mello does the same and 5-1 when each contribute at least one point.
The One-Two Punch
Sophomore Cat Burson and freshman Christi Yount have split time in net this season for the Aztecs and both players have put up remarkable numbers. The two have combined for seven shutouts, a 0.91 goals against average and a 83.8 save percentage.
*Burson, a transfer from UC Santa Barbara, has got the starting nod in net nine of the last 10 games for the Aztecs. In 864:23, Burson is 4-3-2 with a 0.73 GAA and three shutouts. She has faced 125 shots and has a remarkable 88.9 save percentage.
*In the last three games, Burson has 28 saves and a 93.3 save percentage. The 28 saves are the most ever by an Aztec in a three-game stretch.
*Burson would be ninth in the nation in save percentage if she had enough minutes to qualify (need to play in 75 percent of team's games).
*Burson could set the SDSU single-season records for lowest GAA, set by Katherine Judkins in 1998 (0.61) and highest save percentage, set last year by Sophia Perez (86.1 percent). By playing 200 minutes over the weekend, Burson now has enough minutes to qualify for both school records.
*While playing for the Big West Champion Gauchos in 2004, Burson appeared in seven games, finishing with a 3-2-1 record in 599 minutes. She posted a 0.60 goals against average, best on the team, and had three shutouts. Burson had 27 saves and a team-best 87.1 save percentage.
*Yount is also off to an excellent start in her first season on The Mesa. In 10 games, Yount is 6-4 with a 1.09 goals against average. She has 35 saves (76.1 save percentage) and four shutouts.
*On Aug. 26 against Cal State Fullerton, Yount became the first Aztec freshman to start an opening game in net since Judkins in 1996. Along with the lowest single-season GAA, Judkins is among the school leaders in career shutouts (first, 23.5), career saves (second, 192), career GAA (second, 0.97) and shutouts in a season (second, 10.5 in 1998).
*Katie Sullivan (1997) was the last SDSU goalie to see playing time as a freshman goalkeeper.
Good Things Come To Those Who Wait
Through the first 19 games, the 2005 Aztecs have been a second half team. SDSU has scored 18 of its 25 goals (72.0 percent) in the second session and has 36 more shots (132-96) than it has in the first half.
*The Aztecs have outscored their opponents, 18-9, in the second half and have outshot the opposition, 132-115.
Youth Is Served
It's hard to believe, but 25 of the 32 Aztecs (78.1 percent) on the roster are underclassmen (freshmen or sophomores). The 78.1 percentage of underclassmen is the highest in the MWC, followed by Wyoming (72.4), Air Force (64.5), Utah (62.5), TCU (60.9), Brigham Young (58.1), UNLV (57.1) and New Mexico (55.2).
*The production of the underclassmen is obvious, but the transfers have also contributed. Consider this for the underclassmen and transfers (UAT) through the first 19 games:
*The UAT average 8.2 starts per game (5.5 spg by freshmen)
*The UAT have played 100 percent (1,770+-of-1,770+) of the time in goal (51.2 percent (906+-of-1,770+) by freshmen)
*The UAT have scored 80 percent (20-of-25) of the goals (60 percent (15-of-25) by freshmen)
*The UAT have had 88 percent (22-of-25) of the assists (68 percent (17-of-25) by freshmen)
*The UAT have had 82.7 percent (62-of-75) of the points (62.7 percent (47-of-75) by freshmen)
*The UAT have taken 89.1 percent (212-of-238) of the shots (64.3 percent (153-of-238) by freshmen)
*The UAT have taken 87.4 percent (90-of-103) of the shots on goal (59.2 percent (61-of-103) by freshmen)
*The UAT have scored 90 percent (9-of-10) of the game-winning goals (80 percent (8-of-10) by freshmen)
What A Difference A Year Makes
After 19 games in 2005, SDSU's 10-7-2 (.579) record is .079 percentage points better than last year's record of 7-7-5 (.500) after 19 matches. However, the improvement doesn't only stop in the win-loss column, but in virtually all the statistics as well. The Aztecs' 2005 team has scored 11 more goals through 19 games than last year and has 13 more assists. Attendance at the SDSU Sports Deck in 2005 is also up 42.4 percent.
Strength Of Schedule
The coaching staff certainly didn't make things easy for a young squad with a schedule that features six opponents that advanced to the 2004 NCAA soccer tournament. Here is a look at how far those teams advanced: *NCAA quarterfinals: Portland (20-4), Washington (17-5-1)
*NCAA third round: Nebraska (14-9)
*NCAA second round: San Diego (12-8)
*NCAA first round: UNLV (12-5-2), Utah (13-6-3)
*Combined 2004 record of the six teams: 88-37-6 (.694)
*Combined 2004 record of SDSU's 2005 opponents: 195-160-46 (.544)
*Combined 2005 record of SDSU's 2005 opponents: 172-137-28 (.552)
Depth Is The Key To Winning
SDSU has started 21 different players so far this season and only senior Alexis Solovij has started all 19 games for the Aztecs.
*The Aztecs have had 14 different lineups and only three lineups have started more than one game together.
*SDSU has had 15 players register at least one point.
In Swiader We Trust
Despite starting as a defender in all 18 games she has played this season, senior Amanda Swiader is tied for third on the team with points off three goals and two assists. With a helper on an Erika Sutton game-winning goal in a 2-1 win over Hawai'i on Oct. 1, Swiader became the active SDSU career scoring leader with 19 points. She added a penalty kick goal in a 1-1 tie with No. 16 BYU on Sunday to give her 21 career points.
Swiader is also tied with fellow captain Alexis Solovij as the SDSU active leader in games (75) and starts (71).
*In her career, the Aztecs are 10-2-2 (.786) when Swiader scores at least one point and 4-0-1 this season.
Solovij The Workhouse
Senior Alexis Solovij, the 2004 Mountain West Conference Defender of the Year and two-time all-MWC first team selection, knows a thing or two about playing hard the whole game. *Solovij has started 56 consecutive matches and has played every minute for the Aztecs this season. The last game she didn't start was Sept. 4, 2003, a 2-0 SDSU win over Long Beach State. After Solovij, sophomore Cat Burson and freshman Erika Sutton have the next longest streak of starts with six matches.
*Solovij is tied with classmate Amanda Swiader as the active Aztec leaders in games (75) and starts (71).
*SDSU is 31-30-10 (.507) in games which Solovij starts.
SDSU Vs. UNLV
The Aztecs 6-3 (.667) all-time against the Rebels, but have lost the last three in the series, including a 3-0 defeat last year at the SDSU Sports Deck.
*In last year's game, SDSU outplayed UNLV, outshooting the Rebels, 13-5, for the match and 8-1 in the first half. UNLV managed only four shots on goal in the game, with three of shots finding the back of the net.
Heather Killoch (25:52), Angie Inzana (61:48) and Katie Carney (87:03) each had goals for the Rebels, while Jenna Huff played all 90 minutes and made eight saves for her eighth shutout of the season. UNLV's first goal was the first by an Aztec opponent in 595 minutes, 44 seconds, an SDSU record. Jennifer Klunder led the Aztecs with four shots (two on goal). Then-Aztec Noelle Jouglet, current senior Amanda Swiader and current sophomore Casey Davidson contributed two shots apiece.
*The Aztecs have put up 20 goals in the nine meetings, while allowing 12 (1.7-1.3). *Five of the last six meetings have been decided by one goal.
*SDSU is 2-1 (.667) against UNLV in Las Vegas.
*The Aztecs are 4-2 (.667) all-time in Las Vegas and 5-2 (.714) all-time in the Silver State.
*SDSU (3-3-3) and UNLV (4-4-1) are both .500 against common opponents this season.
*The Aztecs are 9-6-1 (.594) all-time in their final regular season match.