Women's Soccer Sep 6

Mustangs Battle at No. 7 BYU Thursday

Kickoff slated for 8 p.m. CT/7 MDT; Game can be seen on BYUtv

SMU (3-1-0, 0-0-0 The American) at No. 7 BYU ( 4-1-0, 0-0-0 WCC)
Date / Kickoff Time	Thur., Sept. 8 at 8 pm CT /7 MDT
Location	South Stadium / Provo, Utah
Video / Audio	BYUtv / Audio
Live Stats	Live Stats
Game Info	Game Notes (.pdf)
Facebook	SMU WSOC \| SMU Mustangs
Twitter	@SMUSoccerW \| @SMUMustangs

THIS WEEK: The SMU women's soccer team has a quick turnaround as it heads to Provo, Utah, to take on No. 7/15 BYU Thursday. The match is slated for 8 p.m. CT/7 MDT, and can be seen on BYUtv, heard on the BYU IMG Sports Network or tracked via live stats.

ABOUT SMU: The Mustangs enter the match with a 3-1-0 record after splitting a pair during the Hoosier Challenge Cup. SMU fell to Butler, 2-1, to open the tournament, before knocking off Indiana, 2-1, to finish the tournament. Entering the week, SMU leads all NCAA DI programs in scoring offense (5.0 per game), points per game (13.5) and shots on goal per game (13.75), while tied for first with Miami in total goals (20.00). The Mustangs check in at No. 2 in shots per game (24.5), No. 3 in assists per game (3.5) and fourth in total points (54.0). SMU leads the American Athletic Conference in points, goals, goals per game, assists, and assists per game.

SCOUTING NO.7 BYU: The Cougars are 4-1-0 overall, and move from No. 10 to No. 7 in the NSCAA national ranking after topping Tennessee, 5-2, on Friday and Utah, 2-0, on Monday. BYU topped No. 5 and last season's national champion, Penn State, 3-2 on Aug. 26. On the offensive attack, the Cougars are averaging 2.40 goals on an average of 15.8 shots. Ashley Hatch leads all DI players in goals (8), goals per game (1.6) and shots per game (6.2). Defensively, BYU is averaging 1.20 goals, while allowing an average of 14.0 shots. Nadia Gomes was named West Coast Conference Player of the Year last season and is on the watch list for the Hermann Trophy, college soccer's top individual award.

SERIES: This is the third meeting all-time between the Mustangs and Cougars. SMU won the first meeting, 2-0, in 1997, when the Mustangs hosted BYU in the Western Athletic Conference tournament. In the last meeting, the Cougars topped SMU, 3-0, in 2014.

                    SMU vs. BYU All-time History
                         H: 1-1, A: 0-0, N: 0-0
1997    November 8      H*        W         2-0
2014   September 27      H           L         0-3
                                                * WAC Tournament

UP NEXT: After BYU, SMU opens a three game homestand starting Sunday at 7 p.m. against Abilene Christian. The Mustangs will get a few days off before hosting Saint Louis, Friday, Sept. 16 at 6:30 p.m., and Washington at 7 p.m. on Sunday, Sept. 18. All three games can be seen on PonyUp TV or followed via live stats on SMUMustangs.com.

BIG WINS: SMU scored eight goals in its season opener over Northwestern State and nine against Texas A&M-Corpus Christi marking the 58th and 59th times in program history that the Mustangs have scored five or more goals in a game. When SMU scores at least five goals, the Mustangs hold an undefeated 59-0-0 record, and have posted a clean sheet 36 times. The last time SMU scored nine goals was on Aug. 29, 2003 when the Mustangs scored 10 goals at Sam Houston State. SMU went on to win the game, 10-1.

HEAD COACH CHRIS PETRUCELLI: Two-time National Coach of the Year and 1995 NCAA Championship Coach Chris Petrucelli enters his fifth season (2016) as SMU Head Women's Soccer Coach. A veteran of 20-plus years as a head coach, Petrucelli was named the NSCAA National Coach of the Year in both 1994 and 1995 and was lauded as the NSCAA Central Region Coach of the Year in both 2002 and 2006. In 26 years as a head coach, Petrucelli has compiled a 373-152-44 (.699) record. His record at SMU is 33-42-8 (.446).

ALLIE THORNTON: Freshman forward Allie Thornton leads the team with four goals and nine points. Thornton enters the week ranked 11th-nationally in goals per game (1.0) and 18th in points per game (2.25). Among those in the American Athletic Conference, Thornton is ranked tied for first in goals per game, second in points per game, tied for third in goals, tied for fourth in points and tied for eighth in shots per game.

VANESSA VALADEZ: Vanessa Valadez leads the team in shots (17), shots on goal (10) and is tied for first in assists (3). The redshirt sophomore cracks the top-25 nationally in assists per game (21st) and shots on goal per game (23rd), while sitting 30th in assists. In The American, she ranks tied for first in assists and assists per game, while coming in at third in the shots per game rankings.

WESTCOTT FIELD: Since opening in 1994, SMU holds a .715 winning percentage (149-54-18) at Westcott Field. In 22 seasons at Westcott, the Mustangs have finished .500 or better in 20 seasons, with three perfect seasons.

POSITION PLAYER CAREER GOALS/ASSISTS:
Player                      Goals   Assists Points
Claire Oates                12           2           26
Vanessa Valadez        11           7           29
Paige Jacobs               7            3           17
Lauren Guerra             7            2           16
Kelsey Gorney             7            1           15
Taylor Barg                  5           10          20
Haley Thompson         4            3           11
Allie Thornton              4            1            9
Hannah Fleet               4            0            8
Bari Kesner                  2            2            6
Taylor Jackson            2            1            5
Blair Thorpe                 2            6           10
Lauren Harrington       1            2            4
Robyn Maurer             1            0            2
Jessica Cooley            0            3            3
Avery Ortmann            1            1            3
Hailey Bishop               0            1            1
Katina Tsapos              0            1            1

GOALKEEPER CAREER STATS:
Player                     Games Minutes    GA      GAA   W-L
Catie Brown                 8        607:55      11       1.63    4-2
Brooke Kuempel          2         26:27        0         0.0     0-0

ROSTER: Of the 25 woman roster, 16 members are in their freshman or sophomore year of eligibility, while sporting just five seniors. The Mustangs brought in 10 freshman. SMU returns eight starters including five (Vanessa Valadez, Claire Oates, Taylor Barg, Taylor Jackson and Kelsey Gorney) who started every game in 2015. Hannah Fleet returns to the pitch in 2016 after suffering a season ending injury last season. Fleet, a redshirt freshman, has scored three goals this season.

SCHEDULE: The SMU women's soccer team will play 19 regular season games, with 11 at Westcott Field. The Mustangs will face six opponents that appeared in the 2015 NCAA Tournament, Butler, BYU, Washington, UCF, Connecticut and Cincinnati.

AAC POLL: The SMU women's soccer team has been picked to finish eighth in the American Athletic Conference for the 2016 season. SMU received 20 votes and finished ahead of Houston in the poll. Defending champion Connecticut was the unanimous selection for first place, garnering 81 total points, and nine first-place votes. For the second season in a row, junior Claire Oates was named to the AAC Preseason All-Conference team.

2015 SEASON REVIEW: In 2015, the Mustangs finished 5-10-3 overall, and ninth in the American Athletic Conference with a 2-6-1 conference mark. SMU recorded all five victories (5-5-1 record) at Westcott Field, where the Mustangs converted 19 of its 25 goals. While at Westcott, the Mustangs topped opponents in goals (19-15), shot attempts (154-82), goals scored per game (+.37) and shots per game (+6.5). Vanessa Valadez was named to the AAC All-Rookie team after leading the Mustangs in goals (8), points (20), shots (42) and shots on goal (20), while tying Blair Thorpe and Lissi Lonsberry for the most assists (4). Claire Oates earned All-AAC Second Team honors.

SMU ATHLETICS, SOCCER PROGRAMS TO SEE FACE LIFT: SMU recently announced plans to construct a new Indoor Performance Center, an outdoor natural grass football practice field and a new soccer stadium, another sign of the University's commitment to competing at the highest level of intercollegiate athletics. These plans come on the heels of amazing success during SMU's Second Century Campaign, when SMU Athletics secured more than $191 million in gift commitments, and after 18 months of careful planning and design. The new soccer stadium, to be used by SMU's men's and women's soccer teams, will be located on Mockingbird Lane, the site of the current practice fields.

Keep up with all the latest news and information on the Mustangs by following SMU women's soccer on Twitter at @SMUSoccerW, on Facebook at Facebook.com/SMUSoccerw, and on Instagram at Instagram.com/SMUSoccerW. Twitter at @SMUMustangs or Instagram at SMU.Mustangs.

--SMUMustangs.com--

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Players Mentioned

#19 Lissi Lonsberry: Forward; 5' 8"; SR; SR-3L

#3 Taylor Barg: D; 5' 5"; SR; JR-2L

#1 Catie Brown: GK; 5' 9"; SO; FR-HS

#12 Hannah Fleet: MF/F; 5' 10"; RS FR; FR-HS

#9 Kelsey Gorney: MF; 5' 3"; SR; JR-2L

#8 Lauren Guerra: F; 5' 8"; JR; SO-1L

#16 Lauren Harrington: D; 5' 4"; JR; SO-1L

#7 Taylor Jackson: D; 5' 7"; SR; JR-2L

#19 Paige Jacobs: M; 5' 8"; SR; JR-2L

#24 Bari Kesner: F; 5' 10"; SR; JR-2L

#18 Claire Oates: MF; 6' 0"; JR; SO-1L

#11 Haley Thompson: D; 5' 9"; SO; FR-HS

Players Mentioned

#19 Lissi Lonsberry
: 5' 8"; SR; SR-3L
: Forward

#3 Taylor Barg
: 5' 5"; SR; JR-2L
: D

#1 Catie Brown
: 5' 9"; SO; FR-HS
: GK

#12 Hannah Fleet
: 5' 10"; RS FR; FR-HS
: MF/F

#9 Kelsey Gorney
: 5' 3"; SR; JR-2L
: MF

#8 Lauren Guerra
: 5' 8"; JR; SO-1L
: F

#16 Lauren Harrington
: 5' 4"; JR; SO-1L
: D

#7 Taylor Jackson
: 5' 7"; SR; JR-2L
: D

#19 Paige Jacobs
: 5' 8"; SR; JR-2L
: M

#24 Bari Kesner
: 5' 10"; SR; JR-2L
: F

#18 Claire Oates
: 6' 0"; JR; SO-1L
: MF

#11 Haley Thompson
: 5' 9"; SO; FR-HS
: D