It is officially Big Sky Soccer season for the Southern Utah University soccer team and they will look to keep things rolling this weekend when they host the Idaho Vandals before traveling to Cheney, Washington to face the Eastern Washington Eagles.
The Thunderbirds opened Big Sky play last weekend against the Portland State Vikings and the Montana Grizzlies. After playing a scoreless 70+ minutes in both matches, Southern Utah eventually fell 2-0 to the Vikings and 1-0 to the Griz.
Alanna Carbonaro made a career-high 10 saves against the Vikings and Kaitlyn Caldera made six while allowing just one goal against Montana.
The Vandals will come into Cedar City with a 4-5-2 overall record on the season. They opened Big Sky play last weekend with 2-1 overtime loss to Northern Arizona and a 0-0 double overtime draw with Sacramento State. Junior Makayla Presgrave has started all 11 games in goal for the Vandals, allowing just 17 goals and recording four shutouts in 2017.
The Thunderbirds hold a 0-3-1 all-time record when facing the Vandals. The two teams met in Moscow last season as the Vandals shutout the Thunderbirds on their way to a 2016 Big Sky Regular Season Championship.
The Eagles will get Friday off before hosting the Thunderbirds on Sunday for their third Big ky game of the season. The 2016 Big Sky Tournament champions hold a 7-4-1 overall record so far in 2017. They opened Big Sky play last weekend with a 0-0 double overtime draw with Sacramento State and a 4-0 win over Northern Arizona. Reigning Big Sky Offensive Player of the Year Chloe Williams leads the Eagles once again in 2017 with five goals on the season.
The Thunderbirds are 2-3-1 all-time when matched up with the Eagles. Last season the Thunderbirds hosted the Eagles to a 3-3 draw, with all of the scoring occurring in the first half.
Friday’s match in Cedar City is set to kick off at 4:00 p.m. Admission is free to all fans and a live stream of the game will be available on PlutoTV Channel 236. Sunday’s match in Cheney is set to begin at 1:00 p.m. Mountain time (12:00 p.m. Pacific). A live stream of the game will be available on PlutoTV Channel 234 and live stats will be available at goeags.com.
Stay up to date during the 2017 Thunderbird Soccer season by following them on Twitter and Instagram and by liking their page on Facebook.
Story By
SUU Athletic Strategic Communications
