FLAGSTAFF, Ariz. (September 4, 2024) – With sights set on the win column, Northern Arizona soccer will host the Utah Tech Trailblazers on Thursday night before heading on the road for a Sunday afternoon matchup with the Air Force Academy.
Thursday's game is set for 7 p.m. MST, is free to the public, and will feature 'Beach Day' in Lumberjack Stadium where fans can expect beach themed raffle items including a cooler, NAU Hawaiian shirt, and a Bluetooth speaker. Live stats can be followed here, and the match can be streamed through ESPN+.
Beginning a two-week road stretch, the Jacks will travel to Colorado Springs for a 12 p.m. Sunday match with the Falcons. Live stats can be followed here, and the match can be streamed through the Mountain West Network.
The Lumberjacks welcomed fans for their home opener in Lumberjack Stadium last Thursday, Aug. 29 to host the Pennsylvania Quakers for the first time in program history. NAU found the go-ahead goal from
McKenzie Coleman, tabbing her first-career goal with the Lumberjacks, in the 78
th minute. In the final seconds of the match, the Quakers applied pressure inside the box before taking a penalty kick awarded following a header situation. Leah Finkelman converted on the PK opportunity with one second left in the match to end things with a 1-1 draw.
NAU is holding opponents to a .184 shooting percentage through three regular-season contests. Both Lumberjack goals this season were scored by transfers hitting their first career goals in NAU uniforms, as
Deniah Wells grabbed the first goal of the season for the Jacks at ASU to earn the 1-1 draw. In goal, NAU has grabbed 15 saves total while
Trinity Corcoran leads the Jacks with 13, coming in at fourth in the Big Sky Conference.
Utah Tech is entering the week with a 2-0-2 record, coming off a 1-0 Western Athletic Conference victory to Westminster College. The Trailblazers have a 2-0 start to league play, adding a 3-2 win over UNLV to open WAC play. UTU has seen one Big Sky opponent in action already this season, taking on Weber State in the season opener, finishing with a 1-1 draw in Ogden.
Lacy Fox earned WAC Offensive Player of the Week on Aug. 27 after recording a second-half hat trick in Utah Tech's come-from-behind victory over UNLV. Fox scored all three goals in a 12:55, marking the second-fastest hat trick in UTU's NCAA era. Fox became the eighth player in the last four years of UTU's NCAA recognition to record a hat trick, and just the second to do so under Division-I status. Brianna Frey was tabbed WAC Goalkeeper of the Week after going 1-0-1 in two starts while holding opponents to two goals in 180 minutes on the pitch.
This Thursday's meeting will be just the third all-time in the series with the Lumberjacks leading at a 2-0 advantage. The Jacks picked up their first victory over the Trailblazers in 2021 in 2-0 fashion while earning a 1-0 win in last season's matchup. Corcoran played a full 90 minutes in goal in last season's matchup, recording five saves in the shutout.
Air Force opened 2024 with a 3-0 start, defeating Northern Colorado (4-0), California Baptist (1-0) and Hawaii (3-0) - all in shutout fashion. Three-straight shutout wins for Air Force marked the program's first such occurrence since the 1995 season, when the Falcons earned five-straight.
Freshman
Mai Mateaki was named Mountain West Freshman of the Week, the league announced on Monday. Mateaki led the Air Force attack in week three, scoring two goals against Hawaii and leading the Falcons in shots (4) against GCU. The award marks Mateaki's first weekly superlative awarded by the Mountain West and the Falcons' second earned in 2024.
Tabbed for a ninth-place finish in the Mountain West Preseason rankings, Air Force currently boasts the third-best record in the conference, behind Utah State (5-0-0) and Boise State (3-0-0). Air Force, sporting just 16 competitors from the 2023 season, brought in a freshman class nine strong, forming out an Air Force roster composed primarily of underclassmen for 2023. With nine true freshmen on the roster, Air Force has the second-most in the league behind Fresno State.
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