The Colorado College women's soccer team kicks off its second five-game home stand of the season when the Tigers play host to Southern Illinois University in their final non-conference match of the season on Sunday, Sept. 22. Kickoff is scheduled for 1 p.m. MT on Washburn Field.
Fans can watch this week's games for free on the Tiger Sports Network (
https:// https://cctigers.com/watch/) or the Mountain West Network (
http://www.themw.com/index.aspx).
Colorado College enters Sunday's contest against Southern Illinois with a 4-1-0 record after dropping a 2-0 decision at the University of Illinois last Sunday. So far this season, the Tigers are 4-0 at Washburn Field, where they have outscored their opponents 12-3. Southern Illinois takes a 4-4-1 record into Thursday's home game against Lipscomb University. The Salukis are 0-2-1 away on the road this season, where they have been outscored 11-1.
CC and the Salukis are meeting for the first time. So far this season, the Tigers are 3-0 against first-time opponents with victories over Siena College (3-1), Saint Francis University (4-0) and Western Michigan University (3-1).
Colorado College averages 2.4 goals per game and concedes just 1.0. Junior midfielder
Jenna Wilt, who owns two goals and a team-leading six assists, leads the team with 10 points. Sophomore forward
Jacqui Hand is first with four goals and second with nine points, while sophomore forward
Kiley Suter is second with five assists and third with seven points.
The Tigers' back line of juniors
Camille Weaver and
Tayla Wheeler, sophomores
Kayla Montoya and
Toni Tsamasfyros and Wheeler, along with holding midfielders
Madeline Stesney and
Johanna Hamblett, have been impressive during the first five games of the season.
CC has conceded just five goals, one of which was an own goal, and rank among the Mountain West team leaders with a 1.0 goals-against average. Colorado College's opponents have combined for just 44 total shots, compared to 92 for the Tigers.
In the offensive third, Wheeler has a pair of goals, Tsamasfyros notched the first of her career against Saint Francis and Porter earned her first collegiate point against Siena.
Southern Illinois averages 0.89 goals per game and allows 1.89. Freshman forward Emma Spotak leads the Salukis with five points and shares the team-lead of two goals with fellow freshman forward Liz Brechtel. Senior midfielder Andrea Rodriguez has a team-best two assists.
Freshman Dariana Mihalache leads SIU's goalkeepers with nearly 563 minutes and owns a 2-2-0 record along with a 1.92 GAA and .803 saves percentage.
CC is 12-1-1 in its last 14 games at Washburn Field, the program's home away from home. Since splitting a pair of Conference USA games against UTEP in 2009 and 2010, the Tigers are undefeated in their last 12 contests (11-0-1) on Washburn. Stewart Field, CC's primary pitch, is undergoing a facelift and should be ready for games in late September.
Regardless of whether Colorado College plays on Stewart Field or Washburn Field, the Tigers have enjoyed a significant advantage when playing at an elevation of 6,035 feet. Including its 4-0-0 record at home season, CC now is 260-59-28 (.789) in 347 all-time matches on its own campus. That includes a 100-30-15 mark (.746) at the two venues during Bennett's 16-year reign as head coach.
Next week, Colorado College kicks off its 11-game Mountain West schedule next week when San Jose State and Fresno State visit Colorado Springs on Friday night and Sunday afternoon, respectively.
