INDIANAPOLIS – Three league matches highlight a busy weekend for Horizon League women’s soccer, while Valparaiso heads to the West Coast for a pair of non-conference contests.
Cleveland State (3-5) and Loyola (4-4-1) kick off Horizon League play tonight as the Ramblers host an 8 p.m. EDT matchup. CSU and Loyola represent opposite ends of the spectrum so far this season in goals scored: the Vikings are in a three-way tie for the most tallies (13) in the league while Loyola has netted a league-low seven goals. Cleveland State’s Vickie Havas leads the Horizon League with 10 points.
Saturday will see the teams that shared the top spot in the preseason poll open League play. Detroit (3-4-1) and Milwaukee (1-5-1) both earned 44 points to tie atop the preseason poll; Milwaukee received five first-place votes to Detroit’s two.
The preseason-favorite Panthers host Wright State at 2 p.m. EDT on Saturday, in a rematch of last season’s League Championship. Milwaukee has dropped five straight matches, at times struggling without superstar Sarah Hagen, who now plays professionally in Germany with Bayern Munich of the women's Bundesliga. The Panthers will try to right the ship at Engelmann Stadium, but it won’t be easy against Wright State. The Raiders (4-2-3) have posted four shutouts and goalkeeper Brooke McCurdy leads the Horizon League with 45 saves. Offensively, WSU’s Emilie Fillion leads the conference with four goals.
Before Milwaukee and Wright State face off, Detroit visits Green Bay (3-5) at 1 p.m. EDT on Saturday. Despite being ranked No. 7 in the preseason poll, Green Bay has scored 11 goals this season, just two fewer than the trio of league-leading teams that includes Detroit and Milwaukee.
There are also four non-conference matchups this weekend, starting when top-ranked Valparaiso visits San Francisco at 10 p.m. EDT tonight in the first match of a two-game trip west. The Crusaders, who have posted a league-high five shutouts so far this season, will also visit St. Mary’s at 4 p.m. EDT on Sunday.
While having never faced San Francisco, Valparaiso lost to the Gaels 1-0 in extra time during a 2007 trip to California.
In other non-league action this weekend, Youngstown State (4-3) will visit Butler at 5:30 p.m. EDT on Saturday in Indianapolis. Picked last in the preseason poll, Youngstown has posted four wins and is tied for the second-most goals with 11 so far.
After opening the conference schedule tonight, both Cleveland State and Loyola will play a second weekend match on Sunday as CSU travels to Duquesne and the Ramblers visit Indiana State. Both games start at 1 p.m. EDT.
Friday, Sept. 21:
Cleveland State @ Loyola – 8 p.m. EDT
Valparaiso @ San Francisco - 10 p.m. EDT (non-conference)
Saturday, Sept. 22:
Detroit @ Green Bay- 1 p.m. EDT
Wright State @ Milwaukee - 2 p.m. EDT
Youngstown State @ Butler – 5:30 p.m. EDT (non-conference)
Sunday, Sept. 23:
Cleveland State @ Duquesne – 1 p.m. EDT (non-conference)
Loyola @ Indiana State – 1 p.m. EDT (non-conference)
Valparaiso @ St. Mary’s - 4 p.m. EDT (non-conference)
