FLAGSTAFF, Ariz. (August 30, 2018) – The Northern Arizona women's soccer team will be hosting Army on Friday, Aug. 31.  The Lumberjacks currently have a record of 3-1-0 on the season after taking both games in overtime last weekend against New Mexico State and Grand Canyon University.  The 'Jacks are currently on a three-game winning streak, as they look to push it to four this weekend.

The Lumberjacks will honor their alumni during Alumni Weekend including NAU Athletics Hall of Famers Kristi Guy and Holly Jones.

Coming into this weekend Army is 3-1-1 on the season, with their most recent game being a loss to University of Pennsylvania.  The Black Knights entered the season predicted to finish sixth in the Patriot League's preseason poll.

"I think we are going to focus on being attack oriented and not giving Army's offense early chances on us; we can't be making mistakes," NAU head coach Andre Luciano said.  "We need to manage the game for 90 minutes and use the elevation to our advantage."

2018 Notables

• Tatum Heeres leads the team in assists with three, which is currently tied for first in the Big Sky Conference
• Taryn Benham has two shutouts on the year, which leads the Big Sky Conference
• Five different players (Sam Larberg, Paige Maling, Victoria Cooper, Kayla Terhune and Kylie Kapustka) have scored one goal each
• Victoria Cooper leads NAU with three shots on goal
• Emma Robson has played in all but 30 minutes on the season

 
The Scout

Army
Day: Friday, Aug 31
Time: 7 p.m.
Location: Flagstaff, Ariz.
Coverage: Live Stats | https://bit.ly/2yMR72F

The Black Knights are coming off of a 1-0 loss to Pennsylvania on the road, marking their first loss of the season.  The Black Knights will be entering Friday's contest with a record of 3-1-1.  This will be the first time in NAU's program history which they will face off against Army.

Army's offense goes through Erynn Johns, as she leads the Black Knights in points with six, consisting of a team-high four assists.  The other offensive weapon for Army is Kalie Rosenberger, who leads the team with two goals on the season.

"They are special players that can cause trouble for us, with their ability to get in-line and get to and connect with the crosses," Luciano said.

The Army defense is held together by Sydney Witham, who was the lone Black Knight selected on the Preseason All-Patriot League team.  In goal the Black Knights return Sydney Cassalia who started all 17 games last year, including six shutouts.  Through the 2018 season, Cassalia has averaged over five saves per game, including two shutouts.

"I think that Army will be an extremely organized team defensively, in terms of their shape," Luciano said.  "They play a pretty compact line of restraint, which will
make it difficult for us to play through the middle." 

Looking Ahead

Northern Arizona will be hosting two games next weekend, starting with UNLV on Friday, Sept. 7, at 7 p.m. MST and CSU Bakersfield on Sunday Sept. 9 at 1 p.m. MST.