Tech Battles No. 23 Utah In NCAA Opening Round Match

Saturday, November 12

Salt Lake City, Utah

2:00 P.M.

Texas Tech Athletics

Utah

Tech Battles No. 23 Utah In NCAA Opening Round Match

November 11, 2016 | Women's Soccer

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The Red Raiders will square off with the Utes for the first time in program history on Saturday.

LUBBOCK, Texas – The Texas Tech soccer team opens the 2016 NCAA Soccer Championship with a first round contest in Salt Lake City, taking on No. 23 Utah on Saturday, Nov. 12, at 2 p.m. CDT at Ute Soccer Field.

This year's berth marks the fifth-straight season the Red Raiders have clinched a spot in the NCAA Tournament, but will be the first time to start it on the road. Tech put together a 9-8-2 overall record during the 2016 season.

Saturday's contest will also be the first time the Red Raiders and the Utes have met in the two program's histories. It will also be the first time Tech has faced a Pac-12 opponent in the NCAA Soccer Championship. Utah is 7-1-1 at home this season and this match will be the fourth time the Utes have hosted an opening round contest.

"When we've we played in Lubbock, the crowd has played a major factor," head coach Tom Stone said. "Other teams have just been like, 'What is going on at Texas Tech?' We won't have that for us, we'll have that kind of against us, but since we play in a conference with a lot of big crowds, we're used to it. Our team plays really well on the road, we enjoy the road and we aren't worried about that aspect of it.

"We won't have any trouble getting them up for this one. It would be a little worrisome if they were 1-7 at home. Getting our team up for this one shouldn't be an issue. Second life is a powerful thing. We weren't sure where we were going to land and if we were going to land in the tournament, and since we did, the team is certainly invigorated to give this thing a run."

Utah (11-3-5) put together a 6-1-4 record in Pac-12 action this year, capping its best season in the conference with a 1-1 draw last weekend at No. 22 Colorado. Including the Buffaloes, the Utes finished their season facing five top 25 teams, with the first four all against teams ranked No. 10 or better, producing a 1-1-3 record during that stretch. Utah also checks into the latest National Soccer College Coaches Association of America (NSCAA) at No. 23.

The Utes are led on offense by sophomore forward Hailey Skolmoski, who recorded 13 goals and three assists in 2016. Sophomore goalkeeper July Mathias has the fifth-best single-season goals-against average in Utah history at 0.68, which also ranks top 30 in the nation. Utah is 9-5-2 against Big 12 opponents all-time, last playing against a Texas Tech conference foe in 2014. The Red Raiders are 5-3-3 against members of the Pac-12, excluding Colorado, who was a member of the Big 12 until 2011.

Texas Tech is 5-3-1 all-time in the NCAA Championship over its four years of postseason appearances. The Red Raiders are 4-0-0 in first round matchups, outscoring opponents by an impressive 14-0 margin. Tech has advanced to the second round in all four of their NCAA Championship appearances, while making it to the Sweet 16 in 2014.

Last week, the Red Raiders dropped a 3-0 decision to No. 1 West Virginia in the quarterfinal of the Big 12 Soccer Championship in Kansas City. It was only the second time Tech had faced the Mountaineers in the conference tournament, defeating WVU, 1-0, the year before en route to their first Big 12 title. It was the first time Tech entered the championship as the No. 8 seed.

FORMATION
Through 19 matches, the Red Raiders have trotted out 16 different starting lineups. The opening night starting XI was repeated in the third match of the year against Arizona. The other two times where there was the same lineup came during the middle of the year when the Red Raiders were on the road at Loyola Marymount & in the Big 12 opener at Kansas and in their last two conference contests at home against Oklahoma & at the Big 12 quarterfinal against No. 1 West Virginia.

IRON WOMEN
The Red Raiders have had 13 different players log all 90+ minutes of action in at least one match this season. Leading the way is senior keeper Lauren Watson, who has been in goal for every minute of every contest in 2016. Defenders Rebekah O'Brien and Brooke Denesik follow closely behind in full-matches played with 14 each. The other 10 competitors to have accomplished the feat so far include: Cassie Boren (9), Carly Wickenheiser (7), Jade Dapaah (3), Mary Heiberger (3), Jordan Duke (2), Jordie Harr (2), Gwennie Puente (2), Cassie Conarty (1), Jade King (1) and Margaret Begley (1). Included in those 13 are five who have played in all 103+ minutes of Tech's three overtime contests this season, as Watson & O'Brien played the entirety all three.

-3.5
Senior goalkeeper Lauren Watson posted her sixth shutout of the season on Oct. 28 after a 1-0 victory at Oklahoma on senior night. Her total ranks third in the conference standings. Already sitting in second place in the all-time records at Texas Tech in career shutouts, she is now 3.5 behind school record holder Victoria Esson for the lead in the category with 25.5.

BUILDING A WALL
Watson entered the season with 168 career saves, needing only seven to move into No. 5 on the career saves list at Texas Tech. After recording nine against Arizona and two more in the win over Northeastern, along with her four in the opening weekend, she took sole possession of the fifth spot in the standings. Her nine saves against Arizona on Aug. 26 are tied for the most in a single-match by a Big 12 goalkeeper this season. Last week, she added five more saves in Kansas City in the Big 12 Soccer Championship quarterfinal vs. No. 1 West Virginia, giving her 82 this season for a career total of 250. In the Iowa State match, she passed Victoria Esson for fourth all-time at Texas Tech at 213. The third-place keeper, Megan Knauss, put together a career mark of 266 saves from 2002-05. Her nine saves against the Longhorns are the most for a Big 12 keeper in a conference match this season.

SPREADING THE WEALTH
Tech has had nine different goal scorers in 2016. On Sept. 23 in Lawrence, No. 9 came from junior defender Cassie Conarty, who found the ball at midfield against Kansas, dribbled it up near the Jayhawk box, then fired a shot to the right-side of the goal for the score.

CAREER FIRSTS
Seven Red Raiders have notched their first career goals during the 2016 season. The last to do so was sophomore midfielder Jordan Duke, who tallied the lone goal over ORU on Sept. 9 with a header after locating a corner kick from sophomore defender Margaret Begley from the far side of the field. While three are freshman, the other half have come from two juniors (Rebekah O'Brien & Natalie Schmutz) and two sophomores (Cassie Boren & Duke).

YOUNG FIREPOWER
Texas Tech freshmen have put up nine of the team's 20 goals this season. Six have come from the team-leader in goals, forward Jade King, while midfielder Jordie Harr and redshirt freshman defender Gabbie Puente have posted two and one scores, respectively, in 2016.