Red Raiders Primed for Big Opening Weekend

Friday, August 17

Lubbock, Texas

7:15 p.m.

Texas Tech Athletics

New Mexico

Red Raiders Primed for Big Opening Weekend

August 15, 2018 | Women's Soccer

Tech to welcome regional rival New Mexico, nationally-ranked Pepperdine for first games of the season.

By: Jeremy O'Brien

LUBBOCK, Texas – Texas Tech soccer will open the 2018 season at home Friday with the New Mexico Lobos coming to town before playing host to Pepperdine.

It has been an annual affair between the Red Raiders and Lobos recently, as the regional rivals have faced off at the beginning of the last four seasons. The Red Raiders have won each of those matches while outscoring the Lobos 6-1 in the process.

"There's a lot of familiarity there," head coach Tom Stone said of New Mexico. "We've beaten them in the spring and they've beaten us in the spring. It's a back-and-forth affair, so we just know that for opening night we've got our hands full."

"We're familiar with New Mexico because we play them every year, but at the end of the day they always bring a really good team," said senior captain Carly Wickenheiser. "They play really hard and are a well-coached team."

The Lobos are coached by Heather Dyche, who has extensive experience with the U.S. Women's National Team and is a well-respected name in soccer.

"We have incredible respect for the New Mexico staff," said Stone. "I think she [Dyche] is one of the best coaches that we'll go against all year."

Dyche's Lobos are coming off a 12-8-2 season in 2017 where they made it to the finals of the Mountain West tournament. Midfielder Jessie Hix will return for her junior season after ranking second on the team in points (16), goals (8) and shots on goal (20).

In Sunday's faceoff with Pepperdine, the Red Raiders look to avenge the 3-0 loss they suffered to the Waves last year in Malibu.

"We all want to get the game back from last year, and we're going to focus on our play and how we need to play to get the job done," said Wickenheiser.

"Sunday we're playing one of the best teams in the country," Stone said of the Waves. "Pepperdine is a loaded team that's going to go a long way this year."

The United Soccer Coaches ranked the Waves 18^th nationally in their preseason poll last week.

Texas Tech is returning nearly all of its key pieces from the 2017 season. Ally Griffin will return after leading the team in points (13), goals (6), game-winning goals (5), shots (58) and shots on goal (28) last season as a freshman. Also returning on the attacking front will be senior forward Gwennie Puente, who was named Second Team All-Big 12 in 2017 after scoring three goals and having two assists for the Red Raiders. She has scored eight goals in the 60 games she has played for Stone, including the game-winner in the 2015 Big 12 Championship. The only player on the roster with more appearances is second-year captain Carly Wickenheiser, who has played in 61 matches and returns to an experienced defensive backfield. She will be joined by fellow captain Brooke Denesik, who was integral to Tech's seven shutouts in 2017.

The experienced Red Raider squad had the chance to step onto the field with their newest teammates last weekend in an exhibition with Denver. Tech won the match, 1-0, and outshot the Pioneers 24-5. The lone goal came in the 80^th minute off the foot of Kirsten Davis. The chemistry between the returning players and newcomers has already been noticeable.

"It's really exciting to see all the chemistry that is building between the players – especially up front where we have a lot of offensive threats," said Wickenheiser.

Junior Savanna Jones said, "It was fun to finally see it all come together at Denver. Everyone works extremely hard for each other and it's a really fun team to play with."

One such threat on the offensive front is freshman forward Charlotte Teeter. The Alpharetta, Ga., native tallied a goal in the unofficial extra time Tech and Denver played following their exhibition on Saturday. She lifted a shot into the top-right corner of the net from 60 feet out for the lone score of the additional period.

Other newcomers that will get into the mix will include Oregon transfer Jayne Lydiatt, who brings two years of Pac-12 experience to the Tech midfield. On defense, the Red Raiders tout a speedy six-footer in Cassandra Hiatt. The two are joined by several other new Red Raiders that complement the Tech lineup nicely.

Friday's home opener against New Mexico will begin at 7:15 p.m. at the John Walker Soccer Complex. On Sunday, kickoff with Pepperdine will be at 7:00 p.m. Admission for both games is free for all fans in honor of Fan Appreciation Weekend.