Mavs Hit Road for Last Time at Fort Wayne
Oct 25, 2013 | Women's Soccer
The Omaha women's soccer team hits the road for the last time this season when it travels to play Fort Wayne in a Summit League contest Sunday at Noon (CT). Live stats will be available at OMavs.com. After Sunday's match, the Mavs have two remaining games. Both games (Nov. 1 vs. IUPUI and Nov. 3 vs. Western Illinois) will be played at the new Caniglia Fied in the heart of the UNO campus.
The Teams
The Mavs are now 3-8-2 overall and 1-3 in league action. Omaha dropped a 3-0 league game against No. 16 Denver last Friday at home. Melanie McCormick continues to lead the Mavericks with four goals and one assist for nine points. Monica Bosiljevac also has nine points on three goals and three assists. A total of seven different Mavericks have scored a goal this season and 11 Mavs have at least one point. After scoring 14 goals all of last year, the Mavericks have already tallied 15 this season with three games to play. Goalie Meaghan Clark has played every minute and has a .737 save percentage and 1.85 goals against average. Clark has two shutouts on the season.
Fort Wayne is 4-9-1 with a 1-1-1 Summit League record entering a match Friday against South Dakota. The Mastodons are unbeaten in their last three games, winning at Western Illinois and Loyola (Ill.) and tying at IUPUI. Andie Lazzerini and Gaby Romo each have two goals and one assist to lead IPFW. Brooke Bishir also has two goals. Sam Pavlika has started all 14 games in net and has a .752 save percentage and 1.80 goals against average.
Series History
The Mavericks won the only time the teams met, last season on Sept. 28, 1-0 in Omaha. Danielle Archuleta's ninth-minute goal proved to be the game-winner.
Last Time Out
The Omaha women's soccer team fell to No. 16 Denver, 3-0, last Friday evening at the UNO Soccer Field. The Mavs dropped to 3-8-2 overall and 1-3 in The Summit League. The Pioneers improved to 13-1-1 and 4-0 in Summit League play. Nicholette Digiacomo opened the scoring in the ninth minute for Denver. She took a quick free kick from just outside the 18-yard box and passed it into the open net as the Mavs were setting up a wall. Following the goal, the Mavs had two quality chances when Melanie McCormick and Ava Doetsch both broke free in the box, but their attempts were unsuccessful. Taylor Ivins then made it 2-0 Denver in the 33rd minute off an assist from Cassidy Larson. Paige Diamond scored with 3:16 left to give Denver the 3-0 final margin. The Pioneers outshot UNO 16-8 overall and 9-2 in shots on goal. The game was the Mavs' final match at the off-campus UNO Soccer Field. On Friday it was announced that the final two Mavericks' home games will be played at the newly redesigned Caniglia Field on campus.
Up Next
UNO plays its first game at the new Caniglia Field on Friday, Nov. 1 against IUPUI. It will also be the first night game on the new pitch, as well as senior night for the Mavs' six seniors.
Revamped Caniglia Field Set to be Showcased
The Omaha women's soccer team will play its first soccer game on the newly redesigned Caniglia Field on Friday, Nov. 1 at 7 p.m. against IUPUI. The Mavericks, who have been playing their home games this season at the off-campus UNO Soccer Field, officially practiced on the new field for the first time on Oct. 24, and the wait was worth it. The brand new soccer-specific turf features a lower grain that allows the ball to move faster and an infill of ground coconut husks and cork to keep the on-field temperature lower. Because of Internet access at the new home site, the UNO soccer teams will now be streaming live video for all home contests. The video stream can be purchased for a small fee at OMavs.com.
Halfway Through Division I Transition
The Mavericks have now completed two full years of their four-year transition to Division I and are therefore ineligible to compete in the conference tournament and NCAA Tournament until the 2015 season. The 2013-14 season will see UNO's teams going through a full Summit League schedule for the second time.
Senior Class Sets Tone
After having just one senior last year, the Mavericks have an entirely different make-up this season with six seniors on the roster. Not only are there six seniors, but all six have been at UNO since their freshman seasons in 2010. Monica Bosiljevac, Jordyn Braun, Melanie McCormick, Sarah Nordstrom, Kerry Pivovar and Logan Watts have combined for 279 starts entering the 2013 season.
Transfers Add to Mavericks' Depth
Among the Mavs' eight newcomers, three are no strangers to high-level Division I soccer. UNO welcomed aboard three transfers in the offseason - Chelsi Rohloff (Nebraska), Courtney Neville (Memphis) and Marquette Pick (Iowa State). All three are sophomores for the Mavs this season and will push for significant playing time. Rohloff, a Papillion native, played in five games as a freshman at Nebraska. Neville, an Oakdale, Minn., native, played in three games for Memphis as a freshman. Finally, Pick, an Omaha native, appeared in 18 matches for Iowa State and made one start.
Mavs Picked Sixth in Summit League Preseason Poll
The UNO women's soccer team came in sixth in the Summit League Preseason Poll. The Mavs collected 20 points from the league's head coaches to finish ahead of IUPUI and South Dakota, who tied for seventh with 10 points. Denver was picked as the league favorite and garnered the maximum seven first-place votes and 49 total points, as coaches were not allowed to vote for their own team, so Fort Wayne received the only other first-place vote and finished second with 39 points. Denver's selection comes as no surprise, as the Summit League newcomer advanced to the Sweet 16 in the NCAA Tournament last season after compiling a 17-3-4 record. Denver is ranked No. 20 (TopDrawerSoccer.com) and No. 25 (NSCAA/Continental Tire) in the national preseason polls. Western Illinois (34), North Dakota State (32) and South Dakota State (30) were picked third, fourth and fifth, respectively. The Mavs went 3-15 overall last season and 3-5 in The Summit League but lost just one player from that squad, All-Summit League forward Danielle Archuleta.
