SAN DIEGO – With games against San Diego on Friday night and at Pepperdine on Sunday afternoon, the San Diego State women's soccer team wraps up the non-conference portion of the 2019 season and look to get back into the win column heading into Mountain West play.
Up This Week
San Diego (3-2-0) at San Diego State (1-3-1)
Friday, Sept. 13 | 7:00 p.m. (PT) | SDSU Sports Deck | San Diego, Calif.
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San Diego State (1-3-1) at Pepperdine (1-3-1)
Sunday, Sept. 15 | 1:00 p.m. (PT) | Tari Frahm Rokus Field | Malibu, Calif.
Aztecs Notes
• It's West Coast Conference (WCC) week for the Aztecs as they host San Diego and then travel to Pepperdine. In 2019, SDSU plays three WCC programs (the team lost to San Francisco 0-1 on 8/29). It's the third time in coach Mike Friesen's tenure that he has scheduled the WCC three times. The first time was in 2012, when the Aztecs went 2-0-1 against the WCC, and again in 2013, when the team posted a 2-1-0 record against the WCC.
• The Aztecs have met the Toreros 18 times darting back to the 1992 season and lead the all-time series 10-7-1. In the Friesen era, SDSU is 4-3-0 against USD, including 3-0-0 on the Sports Deck.
• SDSU and Pepperdine have met nine times dating back to the 1993 season with the Waves holding a 6-3 advantage in the series. Under coach Friesen the Aztecs are 1-2-0 against Pepperdine, including 1-1-0 on the Sports Deck.
• The Aztecs game against Long Beach State on Sept. 22 has been cancelled. There is no make-up date for the game this year and no game is scheduled in its place.
• On a goal against No. 22 Texas Tech and at Miami (FL), and an assist on the Frisch game-winner against LIU, freshman Kiera Utush (Fr., MF, Rocklin, Calif.) leads the team with five points. Utush is just the second freshman in the last 10 years to score the team's season-opening goal (vs. Texas Tech). The other freshman to tally a goal in her first collegiate game in that time frame is Taylor Moorehead (So., F, Valencia, Calif.) who had the game-winner in a 1-0 victory over New Mexico State last season.
• With six shots on goal to lead the team, Malia Kaleiohi (Jr., MF/F, San Diego, Calif.) has already surpassed her single-season high of four, which she set last year. She produced two shots on goal in each of the team's first three games, which are single-game highs for her career. In addition, Kaleiohi has taken 10 shots, tied with Kiera Utush for the team lead, just shy of her single-season high of 11 which she established last season.
• Brooke Lisowski (Sr., GK, Los Gatos, Calif.), a transfer from California, has played every minute in goal for SDSU and has a 1-3-1 record. In 470 minutes, she has surrendered 10 goals (1.91 GAA) and has made 19 saves (.655 save percentage). If you remove the four goals given up in the first half of the season- opener against No. 22 Texas Tech, Lisowski's GAA goes down to 1.27 (six goals allowed in 425 minutes) and her save percentage goes up to .760 (19 saves on 25 shots which reached her line).
• Among the best in the Mountain West, Kiera Utush (Fr., MF, Rocklin, Calif.) ranks sixth in goals (2), and eighth in points (5) and points per game (1.00). Brooke Lisowski (Sr., GK, Los Gatos, Calif.) ranks fifth in saves (19) and sixth in saves per game at 3.80. In addition, Lisowski's seven saves at Miami (FL) equaled the fourth most in a game by a Mountain West keeper this year.
• So far this season the Aztecs played three Power-5 schools. Over the last 10 years, SDSU has played a minimum of three Power-5 squads per season. In 2011, San Diego State took the pitch a single-season high six times against current Power-5 schools and posted a 4-2 record. Among those four wins, SDSU notched victories over Arizona (1-0), Minnesota (2-1) Texas (1-0).
• Outside of the first half of the season-opener, in which No. 22 Texas Tech tallied four goals, the Aztecs defense has been up to the challenge giving up slightly more than one goal per game (1.27). However, the offense is what has been missing. Due to several factors, SDSU has found the back of the net just three this year. With the Kiera Utush (Fr., MF, Rocklin, Calif.) goal at 43:22 at Miami (FL), the team snapped a 225:06 scoreless drought dating to the game-winner against LIU, which came at the 88:22 mark.
• Head Coach Mike Friesen is in his 13th campaign leading the Mountain West's most dominant women's soccer program. Friesen has guided his squads to nine Mountain West championships (five tournament and four regular season), and five NCAA Tournament appearances. In 12 seasons of conference play, Friesen has a 72-19-15 record. His 72 victories are double that of the next closest conference coach...Wyoming's Peter Cuadrado and Boise State's Jim Thomas have won 36 games each in Mountain West play.
• Friesen's 141 victories (141-85-33) since the start of the 2007 season, the year he took control of the program, are the most by any coach in the Mountain West. Colorado College's Geoff Bennett ranks second on the list with 129 victories through last weekend.
Opponent Notebook
San Diego
The Toreros enter the game against San Diego State with a 3-2-0 record after defeating Cal Poly, 1-0 on Sunday afternoon... San Diego is undefeated in three games at home this year, but have yet to break through on the road, being outscored 5-1 away from home... The Toreros were picked to finish in seventh place among 10 teams in the preseason WCC coaches poll... Preseason All-WCC selection Milan Moses leads the team with three goals and six points... The defense is anchored by keeper Amber Michel, who has started each of the team's five games and has as 1.00 GAA and a .737 save percentage with three shutouts and a 3-2-0 record.... USD is coached by Louise Lieberman, who is in her third season as a head coach and brings a 16-20-1 record into the 2019 season.
Pepperdine
The Waves enter the week with a 1-3-1 record and host No. 3 Stanford on Friday afternoon before welcoming the Aztecs on Sunday... Pepperdine was picked to finish in third place among 10 teams in the preseason WCC coaches poll... The Waves opened the season with a victory, but haven't found the win column in its last four games... Brie Welch and Leyla McFarland lead the team with two goals and an assist for five points each... The Waves have played two keepers in their five games with Zoe Clevely posting a 1-1-1 record, 0.91 GAA and .700 save percentage in 295:27 minutes and Kinsey Ehmann who is 0-2-0 with a 1.55 GAA and .700 save percentage in 174:33 minutes... Pepperdine is coached by Tim Ward, who is in his 22nd season as a head coach and brings a 245-123-56 record, all with the Waves, into the 2019 season.