49ers Close Out Road Trip at CS Northridge
Lone Match This Week is in the Valley
October 9, 2007 PDF VERSION OF THE RELEASE HERE LIGHT WEEK FOR THE 49ERS
The first place 49ers (9-4-0, 2-0-0 Big West) will look to remain in first place as the battled and bruised 49ers will have a light schedule with just one match this week, at CS Northridge (2-8-1, 0-2-0 Big West) on Sunday at 2:30 p.m. The match will close out a three-game road trip for the 49ers, who began conference play last weekend. The roadtrip began with back-to-back one-goal wins at Pacific (3-2) and at UC Davis (1-0), but also saw two starters fall due to injury. LBSU has been on a hot streak as of late, winning seven of their last eight. The 49ers are one win away from their third-straight 10-win season.
PICKED TO WIN IT AGAIN
The 49ers, who were 5-1-1 in conference play in 2006, received five of the nine first place votes and 77 points overall in the pre-season coaches poll. Cal Poly, which upset the 49ers in the first round of the Big West Tournament in Long Beach, and UC Santa Barbara, also a Big West Tournament team, were picked to finish second with 63 points (two first place votes). UCSB and LBSU are the only teams at 2-0-0, while UCR, Pacific and Cal Poly are each 1-1-0. CS Fullerton, UC Davis and CSUN have each dropped two matches, while UC Irvine gets going this weekend for the first time.
A LOOK AT THE OPPONENT
CS Northridge dropped identical 2-1 decisions at UC Davis and at Pacific (overtime) last week to fall to 0-2-0 in the Big West and 2-8-1 overall... the Matadors have lost four straight after beating Hawaii and Baylor 2-1 over a week span in mid-September... Susie Mischenko has a team-best three goals, while Salma Tarik has two goals and two assists for CSUN, who have been outscored by their opponents 25-to-9 on the season, including 15-to-3 in the first half... the Matadors lead the all-time series 5-4-1 and the series is 3-2-1 in CSUN's favor in Big West play, winning two of the last three meetings.
AT THE HELM
The 49ers quick emergence as a regional and national threat has come at the hands and feet of Head Coach Mauricio Ingrassia. Ingrassia, who has gone 41-23-7 over three-plus seasons, has brought in three top-40 recruiting classes, including the 15th-best class in the nation in 2005. That class, now juniors, is the core of this year's team. LBSU has gone 10-4-2 over the last three-plus seasons in the Big West. Ingrassia previously won five state titles at nearby Long Beach City College, the most of any California coach. He finished his LBCC career winning the last 55 in a row.
IN THE TOP-25
Prior to Mauricio Ingrassia's arrival, the 49ers were never in the regional polls, let alone the national polls. This year's team for the second straight year was ranked in the top-30 to start the year, ranking a pre-season high of No. 25 in Soccer Buzz' annual poll. The 49ers were as high as No. 21 last season. The team's No. 8 regional ranking was one spot away from the program's best mark, set last year.
BANGED UP IN STOCKTON, DEPTH TO BE TESTED
The 49ers scored two second half goals to up-end Pacific 3-2, but also lost two of their starters in the process. Starting defender Grace Shevlin (ankle) left the game late in the first half and was taken to the hospital for x-rays, which were negative, while forward Kristen Kiefer (ankle), the team's leading scorer, left the contest late in the second half. Both are being re-evaluated this week. With starting defenders Julie Megorden (knee, season) and Tiffany Vaught (leg, week-to-week), the team's depth was tested.
QUICK AS A CAT
Long Beach City College transfer Cat Gray (La Palma) had played in just 138 minutes prior to this weekend, but because of the team's injury situation, especially in the back, Gray played 78 minutes and scored the goal to tie it at 1-1 at Pacific, before starting and playing all 90 minutes at UC Davis.
DEPTH PLAYS KEY ROLE
The team's new look defense on Sunday at UC Davis featured starter Sara Baca, and reserves Amanda Perry, Jenn Brooks and Cat Gray. The quartet combined to allow just one shot over the first 77 minutes and four for the contest. On Friday, reserve forward Katelyn Quaresma scored the game-winner in the 78th minute, while Gray scored her first career goal.
PILES OF ZEROES
Junior goalkeeper Liz Ramos (Bakersfield), the all-time shutout leader at LBSU with 27.5 shutouts, is now fourth all-time in the Big West in scoreless matches. Ramos has 5.0 shutouts this season and has set the school-record for goals against average and shutouts the last two years. Her goals against average this season is 0.75.
SILOS KEEPS RACKING UP POINTS
Junior forward Kim Silos (Ontario), with seven assists heading into the weekend, is just one of just two modern day players to have seven or more assists in a season. Hayley Bolt's freshman total of eight and Silos' nine in 2006 are the others. Silos is now second all-time in assists (21), five away from the LBSU record. Silos is also second on the team with five goals.
WINNER CAN COME FROM ANYWHERE
Over the past two seasons, it was nearly automatic that either Hayley Bolt or Kim Silos was going to take the final shot (a combined 21 game-winners between them). This year LBSU has had six different players score game-winners, led by two a piece by Silos, Bolt and Dana Farquhar.
RECORD CROWDS
The team's match against the Women of Troy brought out a record 1,204 fans on September 28. Prior to that match, an LBSU soccer match had never drawn more than 1,000 fans. The last two years have seen some of the highest attendance numbers in school-history.
MEGORDEN OUT FOR THE SEASON
Starting defender Julie Megorden (Los Alamitos) is out for the season after suffering a knee injury against Oklahoma on September 14. Megorden had 43 career caps to her credit.
RECORD BREAKING COUPLE OF YEARS
The 49ers have had the two best seasons in school history, going 12-5-3 in 2005 and 14-5-1 in 2006. Both times they broke the school record for victories and shutouts, as the team has produced 26 scoreless contests over two-plus seasons. They just missed the NCAA Tournament in 2006 after winning the Big West's regular season title.
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