DAYTON, Ohio - The nationally-ranked University of Dayton women’s soccer team continues its five-game road swing with Atlantic 10 matchups against Duquesne and St. Bonaventure. The Flyers, winners of 11 consecutive games, take on the Dukes Friday, Oct. 22 at 7 p.m. in Pittsburgh and the Bonnies on Sunday, Oct. 24 at 1 p.m. in Olean, NY. At 6-0 in A-10 play, the Flyers are first in the conference standings and the only team without a conference loss. UD has outscored A-10 opponents 19-1 and is ranked third in the nation in goals against average (.43).
SERIES INFORMATION
Dayton is 12-1 all-time against Duquesne, its only loss a 3-2 setback in 1999 at home. Last season, the Flyers downed the Dukes 4-1 on the road. Colleen Williams, Tori Oelschlager, Lauren MacCormick and Alli Giner each scored goals. UD is 11-0-2 all-time against St. Bonaventure. The two ties came in 2003 and 2007. Last year UD won 3-0 in Olean, NY.
FLYER NOTES
• The Flyers are 14-2-0, and 6-0-0 in the Atlantic 10. They are unbeaten in 20 consecutive A-10 regular season games, not conceding a conference loss since 2008.
• Dayton is ranked No. 16 in the TopDrawerSoccer Tournament 64 rankings, No. 33 in the NCAA RPI, No. 29 in the NSCAA poll and No. 32 in CollegeSoccer360. The Flyers are No. 2 in the NSCAA Mid-Atlantic Region.
• Dayton leads the A-10 in shots (291), points (110), goals scored (36), assists (38), goals allowed (7), goals against average (.43), shutouts (10) and corner kicks (99).
• Sophomore Colleen Williams leads the Flyers with 33 points (13 goals and 7 assists). Her 33 points lead the Atlantic 10 and are fourth in the nation. She is also seventh in the nation in goals scored.
• Senior keeper Lisa Rodgers is 10-0 with eight shutouts for the Flyers. Her 0.29 GAA is tops in the A-10 and fourth in the nation. Her .919 save percentage is also fourth.
SCOUTING THE OPPONENTS
DUQUESNE
• Duquesne is 7-6-1 overall and currently third in the A-10 with a 4-1-0 mark. The Dukes’ lone conference loss was a 3-0 setback to Charlotte on Oct. 10. Three of their five non-conference losses went to overtime.
• Seniors Lauren Ott and Kristin Vinicky and freshman Meghan Long have each scored three goals to pace the Dukes.
• Freshman Bridget Lynch leads the team with three assists.
• Twelve different players have scored goals for Duquesne.
• Senior Gabby Morrin leads the team with 55 saves in 10 games played, while freshman Ashley Szalwinski has a 1.34 GAA in five starts.
ST. BONAVENTURE
• The Bonnies are 8-7-0 overall and 2-3-0 in the A-10. St. Bonaventure won 3-1, handing Charlotte its first loss at home since 2007 on Oct. 8. Their other conference win came against Fordham, 4-2.
• Senior Anna Cunningham leads SBU with 19 points (8g, 3 a), which is fourth in the A-10.
• Senior Courtney Bosse has notched four assists to lead the Bonnies in that category. She also has four goals for 12 points.
• Three goalkeepers have played for the Bonnies this season but senior Nicole Markert leads the way with 11 games played, 28 saves and a 1.04 GAA.
UP NEXT
UD wraps up the regular season at local rival Xavier on Friday, Oct. 29 at 7 p.m.
SUCCESSFUL SENIORS
CollegeSoccer360 has compiled a list of the winningest women’s senior classes (2007-’10) and the Flyers come in at No. 14 in the nation with 58 wins. When the current seniors were freshmen the Flyers posted a 13-4-4 record. As sophomores they went 15-6-1, and as juniors only lost one game, going 16-1-6. The seniors are 14-2 so far this season.
HIGH RANKING FLYERS
Dayton is ranked No. 16 by TopDrawerSoccer.com, No. 29 by the NSCAA and No. 32 by CollegeSoccer360 and No. 33 in the NCAA RPI. The Flyers are also ranked No. 2 in the NSCAA Mid-Atlantic Region. In the most recent NCAA statistical rankings, Colleen Williams comes in at seventh in the nation for goals scored (13) and fourth for total points (33). Senior goalkeeper Lisa Rodgers is ranked fourth in the nation in goals-against average (.29) and fourth in save percentage (.919).
WILLY’S WISH
Sophomore Colleen Williams has a heart as big as her scoring ability. She has started Willy’s Wish - Dollars for Dayton. She is asking for Flyer fans to donate just $1 to help a Dayton family in need. “It may seem like a small contribution from your pocket, but put together with several others willing to help someone in need, this will change this family’s life,” said Williams. Fans can send their $1 donation to: University of Dayton Women’s Soccer Offices, 300 College Park, Dayton, OH 45469-1220.
FLYER SUCCESS
The Dayton women’s soccer program owns an overall record of 354-149-41 (.688 winning percentage) since it became a varsity program in 1984. The Flyers made NCAA Tournament Appearances in 1998, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004 and 2009.
DAYTON’S SHUTDOWN “D”
The Flyers return every player on their defense that posted a school-record 15 shutouts in 2009. The Dayton defense had the second-best goals against average (GAA) in the nation at .406 and was paramount in Dayton reaching the 2009 NCAA second round after posting a shutout against No. 23 Marquette. A-10 Defensive Player of the Year Katherine Boone posted a .41 GAA, breaking the A-10 record set by former U.S. National Team goalkeeper Briana Scurry. The Flyers have a league-high 10 shutouts to their credit this season. Their goals against average of .432 is third in the nation and their shutout percentage of .625 is ninth in the nation.
FLYERS PICKED TO WIN IT ALL
For the second consecutive year, Dayton has been selected to claim the Atlantic 10 women’s soccer title in voting conducted by the league’s head coaches. The Flyers posted an impressive 16-1-6 overall record en route to the program’s sixth A-10 title and second round appearance in the NCAA Championship. Under the direction of reigning A-10 Coach of the Year Mike Tucker, Dayton returns five All-Conference selections including 2009 Defensive Player of the Year Katherine Boone, along with Rookie of the Year Colleen Williams. The six-team A-10 Women’s Soccer Championship will be held Nov. 4-7 at the URI Soccer Complex in Kingston, R.I.
TERRIFIC TUCKER
Head Coach Mike Tucker’s Flyer squads are 127-22-8 in A-10 play. He is the only active coach in the A-10 to achieve more than 100 women’s soccer A-10 wins. In 2009, the Flyers claimed the A-10 tourney title and advanced to the second round of the NCAA tournament. Tucker was named the NSCAA All-Mid-Atlantic Region Coach of the Year. The Flyers earned a league record 13th consecutive trip to the 2008 Atlantic 10 Women’s Soccer Championship and dealt Fordham a 2-1 loss in the semifinals to give Tucker his 200th career victory. He went on to be named the Ohio Coach of the Year. UD has won nine of the 15 conference regular season titles. In addition, his teams have won the A-10 Tournament Championship six times (1996, 1999, 2001, 2003, 2004, 2009). He has never had a losing season as head coach of the Dayton Flyers.
