After losing their last two games, the Southern Utah University women’s soccer team faces a pivotal two-game stretch this week. Southern Utah will travel to take on Abilene Christian University on Thursday, Oct. 17, at 6 p.m., followed by a matchup against Tarleton State University on Sunday, Oct. 20, at 11 a.m.
Both games are on the road and can be streamed on ESPN+.
Abilene Christian
Abilene Christian University enters this week 2-6-6 overall and 0-4 in the Western Athletic Conference. A win against Southern Utah would propel ACU into the top six and put them in a position to play in the WAC tournament.
The Wildcats have struggled all season to score points. ACU is averaging only 0.71 goals per game while giving up an average of 1.74 goals. Peyton Hill and Chayse Thorn lead the Wildcats with two goals apiece.
Junior goalkeeper Lili Ross has started and appeared in 11 of the 14 games. Ross has recorded 51 saves and has a 77.3 save percentage.
Tarleton State
TSU comes into this week 7-6-3 overall and 1-3 in conference play. The Texans currently hold the No. 5 spot in the WAC, one spot above the Thunderbirds.
Unlike Abilene Christian, Tarleton State has blossomed on the offensive side. TSU is averaging 1.56 goals per game and has a 51.9 shot-on-goal percentage. Lauren Grissom leads the team with four goals, followed by Sam Liaty with three.
Defensively, Mikayla Kendall has been fantastic in front of the net. The junior out of Orange, California has 88 saves on the year and is second in the WAC with an 87.1 save percentage.
Southern Utah
As today stands, Southern Utah is No. 6 in the WAC and would qualify for the WAC Tournament. The Thunderbirds are 2-8-4 overall and 0-3-1 in conference play.
Outside of Whitney Gardner and Sarah Assumma, SUU has struggled to find any rhythm on offense. Gardner and Assumma have accounted for seven of SUU’s 12 goals on the year. Gardner also leads the team with three assists.
Darya Mosallaei has received most of the playing time, starting in 13 of the 14 games. Although Mosallaei has started most of the games, freshman Stacy Barresi has seen more playing time recently, including her first career start against Utah Valley University on Oct. 6.
Southern Utah is 1-0-1 all-time against Abilene Christian and 2-0 against Tarleton State.
Author: Jack Paul
Photographer: Gannon Lovisa
Editor: SUU News Copy Editor