Southern Illinois University
Valparaiso University
Five Things to Know: Salukis vs. Valparaiso
02/26/2021 | 12:00:00 | Women's Soccer
CARBONDALE, Ill. – Southern Illinois' women's soccer team opens up their first Missouri Valley Conference season, against Valparaiso on Sunday, Feb. 28 at the Lew Hartzog Track and Field Complex. Kickoff is at 1pm.
1. LOOKING AT LAST YEAR: In their inaugural season, the young Salukis completed their 2019 fall 5-10-2, closing out the year with a win in its final home game, 3-1, against California Baptist, which stood as SIU's most goals in a single game. Liz Brechtel led Southern Illinois with 12 points (6G), earning the back of the net in all three goals against California Baptist. Forward attack Emma Spotak ranked second for the Salukis with five points (2G, 1A) and a .467 shots-on-goal percentage, followed by Kathryn Creedon (1G, 1A) and Madison Meiring (1G, 1A).
Goaltender Dariana Mihalache played in all 17 games for the Salukis in 2019 and completed 101 saves (.759). In September, Saluki goalies were tied for 22nd in the country for an average of seven saves-per-game, while Mihalache was third in the country with 40 saves on September 10.
2. SCOUTING VALPO: The Brown and Gold currently have a 1-1-1 record in its 2021 non-conference slate. VU have beat Chicago State 2-1, drew scoreless to UNI and fell to DePaul 2-1. Valpo has received four of the MVC's six weekly award winners in the season's first two weeks. Freshman forward Kelsie James earned MVC Freshman-of-the-Week twice, after scoring in the first seven minutes against Chicago State, and scoring on a penalty kick by the foul she drew against DePaul.
Valpo posted a 2-15-1 record in 2019 and went 2-5-0 in its third season of Missouri Valley Conference play, finishing in fifth position in the conference regular season standings and qualifying for the conference tournament. Senior Ali Quillen earned Second Team All-MVC accolades, while junior Lauren Torhorst was an Honorable Mention All-MVC selection and Kiley Dugan and Nicole Norfolk earned MVC All-Freshman Team honors.
3. LAST WEEKEND: In SIU's 2021 start, the Salukis dropped to non-conference Western Kentucky, 4-0 on Saturday. With all 21 field players seeing the field, sophomore Maddy Alaluf started her first game of her career in front of the net and brought in a save. California native, Nicole Raventos took the second half of play in goal for the Salukis, recording the most time cumulatively and achieving 5 saves in the afternoon. Defender Kathryn Creedon earned three shots on the Lady Hilltoppers, two of which on goal during the 90 minutes.
4. MOVING AROUND: Because of injury and a strong freshman class, multiple Salukis have added to their resume in position changes. Spotak will now be in back along with Creedon. Juniors Maya Warrior and Kailyn Stone have moved up front to score goals for the Salukis, while there's competition in goal for SIU.
5. SPRING SOCCER: Due to COVID-19, the traditional fall soccer season was postponed into a spring format. Southern Illinois will play its first season of conference soccer as new joining members of the Missouri Valley Conference. Along with the eight-game conference schedule, the Salukis played one non-conference contest against Western Kentucky. The MVC Women's Soccer Tournament begins April 11. The NCAA Division I Women's College Cup will begin May 13.
Live stats for the match will be available here. Capacity is limited to 250 patrons, admission is free and fans are strongly encouraged to bring a lawn chair to socially distance. Gates open one hour to kickoff.
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