Oct. 7, 2008
SAN DIEGO -
Complete Release in PDF Format
THIS WEEKEND
San Diego State will hit the road this week as it heads to the Beehive State for a pair of Mountain West Conference games. The Aztecs are set to face Utah on Thursday, Oct. 9, at 6 p.m. (PT), before making their way to Brigham Young two days later for a 7 p.m. (PT) contest with the Cougars.
SERIES HISTORY VS. UTAH
SDSU trails in its all-time series with Utah by a 3-10-2 count and dropped the last meeting between the two teams, 2-1, in Salt Lake City (Oct. 28, 2007). The Scarlet and Black is 2-3-1 when playing on the road against the Utes, with its last win at Utah coming in 1998.
SCOUTING THE UTES
Utah (4-7-2 overall; 0-1 MWC) is coming off its first conference-opening loss since 2004 as it suffered a 5-0 defeat at the hands of Brigham Young last Saturday (Oct. 4). On the season, the Utes are led by junior forward Kelly Isleib, who has tallied five goals (10 points). Sophomore Morgan Skeen has also been a key player on offense with two goals and an assist. Junior Emalee Rogers has been manning the net for the Utes with 49 saves and a 1.35 goals against average.
SERIES HISTORY VS. BRIGHAM YOUNG
The all-time series between San Diego State and Brigham Young is tied at 8-8-3. The two teams met twice last year as the Aztecs emerged victorious during the regular season, claiming a 2-0 victory at SDSU Sports Deck. BYU came back to defeat the Scarlet and Black by the same margin in the semifinals of the MWC tournament.
A GLANCE AT THE COUGARS
Brigham Young (8-5-0 overall; 1-0 MWC), the defending MWC tournament champions, picked up a pair of victories last weekend, defeating Utah State, 2-0, before downing Utah, 5-0. Freshman Lauren Anderson and senior Katie Larkin are currently tied for the team lead with 13 points apiece. Larkin has paced the Cougar offense with six goals, while Anderson has compiled seven assists and three goals of her own. Freshman McKinzie Olson and sophomore Aleena Shelton have shared time in front of the net for BYU. Olson leads the way with a 0.89 goals against average and is second in the conference with an 81.1 save percentage. Shelton, meanwhile, has 19 saves and a 1.73 GAA in 469:09 of action.
LAST TIME OUT
San Diego State dropped its Mountain West Conference opener to UNLV, 2-1, on Friday, Oct. 3. It was the Aztecs' first home loss of the season as they saw their seven-match winning streak at the SDSU Sports Deck come to an end.
The Aztecs took a 1-0 lead just over three minutes into the game when freshman Megan McQueeny drilled the ball into the upper left corner for her first collegiate goal. UNLV then started to put pressure on the Aztec defense and finally broke through at the 16:07 mark when Ashleigh Shoughro found the back of the net. The Rebels' Haley Partridge eventually scored the game-winner in the second half.
Two days later, SDSU battled Loyola Marymount to a scoreless tie in its final non-conference game of the season. The Aztecs were in control for most of the game with a 12-6 advantage in shots, while also leading in corner kicks, 9-2. Sophomore Cat Walker led the Scarlet and Black with a game-high four attempts, including one on goal, while freshman Tiffany Hurst and senior Alicia Piz each had a pair of shots.
RECORD WATCH
San Diego State returns its top goalkeeper from a year ago in sophomore Aubree Southwick. The Danville, Calif., native started 20 games in 2007, playing in all but 82 minutes during the season. Southwick wasted no time in etching her name in the SDSU record books, racking up a single-season leading 106 saves. On the career charts, Southwick is second with 13 shutouts and ranks fifth among SDSU's all-time leaders with 150 career saves.
McQUEENY IN THE SPOTLIGHT
Freshman defender Megan McQueeny scored her first collegiate goal in a nationally televised game on The Mtn. (vs. UNLV). The Rohnert Park, Calif., native created her own shot and drilled a beauty into the upper left corner from 20 yards out.
VANDEVANTER SHINES
Junior forward Heather Vandevanter found her way into the scoring column in back-to-back games two weekends ago. The Alamo, Calif., native scored at CS Fullerton and vs. San Jose State and is tied for second on the team with three goals. She also recorded an assist in both games at the Villanova Classic (Sept. 5-7) to rank second on the squad with eight points.
WALKER BACK ON TRACK
After missing the entire 2007 season due to injury, Cat Walker has returned to her old ways, recording a team-leading four goals. She had a three-match scoring streak from Aug. 31-Sept. 7. Walker also ranks first on the squad in points (9) and shot attempts (23).
AMMAN IN THE MIX
Freshman defender Gretel Amman has already been thrown into the mix in just her first year on The Mesa. The Santa Rosa, Calif., native has started every match this season and is tied for third on the team with two tallies. Her first collegiate score was the game-tying goal vs. UC Riverside as the Aztecs went on to defeat the Highlanders, 3-1. Amman also found the back of the net vs. SJSU.
GUARDING GORDON
Guarding junior forward Jessica Gordon has proved to be a tough task for opponents. After being limited to only five appearances in 2007 due to an injury, she has already compiled a career-high three goals this season, notching her first multiple-scoring game with two tallies vs. Loyola (Sept. 7). Gordon is currently third on the team with seven points.
COUNT ONE FOR CANATSEY
Freshman forward Taylor Canatsey made her first collegiate goal one to remember. With the score knotted at one vs. Arizona State (Aug. 31), the Garden Grove, Calif., native headed in the game-winner on a corner kick play with 2:23 left in regulation.
PIZ ON THE ATTACK
Senior forward Alicia Piz is second on the team with 21 shots this season. The Morrison, Colo., native has compiled two goals and an assist and tied her career-high with six attempts vs. Loyola (Sept. 7).
FOLLOW AZTEC SOCCER ON THE WEB
Live Stats for this weekend's games are available by clicking on the Game Tracker link inside the calendar sidebar on the main page of GoAztecs.com.