Seawolf Notes
No. 20-ranked (previously #2) Sonoma State enters Friday's match coming off a split on the weekend. The previously undefeated Seawolves beat Chico State 2-1 Friday afternoon, but fell 4-1 to No. 21-ranked Cal State Stanislaus for their first loss of the season. SSU stands at 7-1 on the season and has outscored its opponents 23-to-8 and outshot them 119-to-63. The Seawolves average 14.9 shots per game, while limiting the opposition to 7.9 shots per game. ... Cara Curtain leads the attack for Sonoma State, averaging a goal a game after finishing eight goals this season, two of which are game-winners. She also leads with four assists and was named California Collegiate Athletic Association Player of the Week on Sept. 17. ... Sara Studer follows Curtain with four goals, one game-winner, and two assists. ... Alexis Sciacqua boasts a 1.00 goals against average and .733 save percentage off 22 saves and has picked up three shutouts.
Warrior Notes
No. 10-ranked (previously #21) Cal State Stanislaus comes off a successful weekend, beating both Humboldt State and Sonoma State on the road to put its record at 7-1 overall. The Warriors scored the equalizing goal against the Jacks less than five minutes after HSU's goal and capitalized again less than two minutes into the second half to win 2-1. ... Against Sonoma, Karenee Demery had her second hat trick of the season to lift the Warriors 4-1 over the undefeated Seawolves. Demery leads the team with 10 goals, half of which have proved to be the game-winner, and has had three assists. She has racked up 23 points, 16 points ahead of her fellow teammates, and was named CCAA Player of the Week this week, as announced Monday. ... Allie Dugan follows with three goals and one assist. ... Millie Brown registers a 0.75 goals against average and .824 save percentage and has kept four clean sheets on the season.
Lumberjack Notes
Humboldt State looks to build off its first win of the season after beating Chico State in a 2-1 dramatic overtime victory, improving the Jacks to 1-3 on the season.
Colette Behen scored the first goal for the Jacks and
Maddi Null found the back of the net in the seventh minute of overtime to end the game at 2-1 in favor of HSU. ... Johnson has been pleased with the offensive production his team has been creating, often getting the first goal. The Jacks have already scored five goals—half of what HSU finished with last season—in four games. Despite scoring first, Humboldt State has conceded six second-half goals, which has cost the Jacks twice, including Friday's 1-2 loss against the Warriors.
Lizzie Mitchell put the Jacks on the board first, but three minutes later the Warriors found the equalizer and two minutes into the second half, CSUS was up 2-1. ... Behen, Mitchell and
Carly Kolpin all have one goal and one assist on the season, with Null leading the team with her two goals. ... As a team, the Jacks average 14.8 shots per game, but are still slightly outshot 68-to-59. ...
Amber Woolcock and
Kelly Lukas have had to step into the net for the Jacks after
Jennie Paugh went down with an elbow injury earlier this season. Woolcock registered eight saves against Chico State for a .889 save percentage and has a 0.93 goals against average. Lukas has tallied nine saves on the season for a .643 save percentage and 3.30 goals against average. ...
Tamra James continues to impress Johnson and his staff as an outside back. James did a good job shutting down CSUS' Demery and will have her hands full again against the Seawolves and Warriors.
Injury Update
Humboldt State has had some unfortunate luck with injuries this season, especially in the defense. As Johnson says, "We have a lot of defenders hurting." Outside back
Erica McMullen left Sunday's match early with a head injury and is questionable for the weekend, after the Jacks just got back center backs
Chelsea LaRue and
Allie Swanson from head injuries. Paugh is still sidelined from her elbow injury.
Elle Reid is nursing a foot injury that has kept her sidelined for the last three games and is questionable for the weekend.
Johnson Says
"It's nice that we get to face Sonoma State at home first. They are very athletic and have good overall speed. They'll play through balls and try to dump them in over the top. Defensively, we have a good chance if we played like we did against Cal State Stanislaus. We just have to take care of the ball and create opportunities offensively. It'll be a huge test for this young team. ... Some coaches might not like having to play the same team just a week later, but I think it's good especially for our young team. We know what to expect against CSUS. We know what made us successful and what mistakes we need to correct. It's still fresh in our minds. It gives the girls good motivation because we knew we were in that game. We had dangerous opportunities to tie the game. ... It's been a challenge to get this team to believe we're good enough to win games. This last week, we put quotes up in the locker room about believing they can accomplish anything they want to get done. Winning against a quality program like Chico State alone should give them the motivation that no matter who they play, they can compete. ... There's never going to be an easy win against any opponent we face this year. The records just show our young team that any given Friday or Sunday they can win. If we play well and stick to our game, I like our chances. ... I thought Tamra [James] played a fantastic game against Karanee from CSUS. I think their second goal could have been prevented, but it was good awareness on Karanee's part. Tamra did a good job shutting her down that game though. She'll have her hands full this weekend too. ... Sonoma State has good forwards that have pace. We'll need to have good coverage in the defense, which Chelsea [LaRue] has been doing a good job giving us."
