Aug. 18, 2012

MU-FSU Match Notes

The No. 16/14 Marquette University women’s soccer team (1-0-0) welcomes No. 4/6 Florida State (1-0-0) to Valley Fields for a 1 p.m. CT matchup on Sunday, Aug. 19.

The Golden Eagles and Seminoles will be meeting for the fourth time, with FSU owning a 2-1-0 advantage in the all-time series. Florida St. has won each of the last two meetings (2010, 2011), while MU claimed a 1-0 decision in 1995.

Marquette will be celebrating its 20th anniversary on Sunday, with over 50 former players expected to return to campus for the festivities. It’s also $1 day at the concessions stand, with several items available at that price while supplies last.

Efficiency, Balance Lead To First Win: Marquette found the back of the net on each of its first three shots of goal and cruised to a 4-0 victory over St. Bonaventure Friday night in the season opener. Senior Rachel Sloan, who hadn’t played since Sept. 11 of 2011 because of a knee injury, opened the scoring at the 6:30 mark on a header from 10 yards out. Junior Taylor Madigan and senior Rachel Brown followed with scores and MU owned a 3-0 advantage at the intermission. Sophomore Mary Luba capped the scoring with a goal at the 88:09 mark. The Golden Eagles collected 20 shots total, with 12 different players tallying at least one attempt.

Miller, Kelly Earn Preseason Accolades: Senior Ally Miller has been named the Preseason BIG EAST Defensive Player of the Year and was also named preseason all-league in a survey of the conference’s head coaches. Kelly joined Miller on the squad and was also tabbed to the 2012 MAC Hermann Trophy Watch List. Miller was named All-BIG EAST Third Team in 2011 while Kelly garnered first team accolades.

Schunk Takes Over In Net: Sophomore netminder Sofie Schunk was forced to make just one save in the season opener, but she did collect her first career victory and shutout in the win over St. Bonaventure.

Potential Starting Lineup Features Experience: Marquette’s probable starting lineup features just one player (Schunk) who isn’t at least competing in her respective junior campaign. Eight of the players own at least 30 career starting assignments and that group has combined for 69 total goals.

• Marquette is now 11-7-2 all-time in season openers, including an 11-5-1 mark under head coach Markus Roeders.
• The Golden Eagles have collected 16 consecutive winning seasons, which ranks 10th all-time in NCAA Division I history and is tied for the nation’s seventh-longest active streak.
• Head coach Markus Roeders and associate head coach Frank Pelaez are in their 17th season at the helm. The duo, college teammates at UNC Asheville, has never suffered a losing season.
• The Golden Eagles have won three-straight BIG EAST American Division titles (2009, 2010, 2011) and have earned four consecutive NCAA Championship appearances (2008, 2009, 2010, 2011), which matches a program-best streak. Overall, Marquette has earned 10 NCAA Championship berths.
• The Golden Eagles welcome back 22 letterwinners and nine starters from a team that a season ago captured MU’s third-straight BIG EAST American Division title and advanced to the second round of the NCAA Championship. Six newcomers will join the squad in 2012.
• Led by Maegan Kelly and Taylor Madigan, MU’s top returning scorers who combined for 57 points on 22 goals and 13 assists, Marquette returns 82.7 percent of its scoring from last season. Marquette ranked second in the league with 2.36 goals per game.
• Since the 2009 season, Marquette is 28-3-2 in BIG EAST Conference play.

Up Next: The Golden Eagles welcome crosstown opponent Milwaukee to Valley Fields to wrap up a three-match homestand. The MU men’s team will face the Panthers at 6:30 p.m. CT and the women’s team will take on UWM at approximately 8:30 p.m. CT. All Marquette fans are encouraged to participate in a “Navy Nightmare” by wearing navy to the matches.