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Truman State University Athletics

Team1_WJC_2013
George Barlow

Women's Soccer Tyler Madsen, AMR Assistant Director

#2 Seed Truman Enters GLVC Tourney Weekend

(#20 NSCAA) Truman Women's Soccer Weekly Notes (Match 20)
Full Notes (PDF)
Match 20 (Live Stats):
#2 seed Truman (12-3-4) vs. #3 seed UW-Parkside (12-3-3)
Date: Friday, November 8 (12:00 PM)
Location: Quincy, Illinois (Legends Stadium; 1600 Seminary Road; Quincy, IL)
Series Record: Truman leads, 5-0.
Cannon vs. UWP: 5-0 (+9 goal differential)
Last Meeting: Truman won, 2-1 (ot), on Sept. 22, 2013 (Kirksville, Mo.)
 
Admission Prices for GLVC Tournament:
$7 – Adults
$5 – Seniors over 60
$3 – Students (with ID) / Youth (Ages 7-17)
FREE – Youth (Ages 6-and-under)
 
Social Media: @TrumanAthletics || #TSUGameDay || @TrumanWS
Opening Kickoff:
After a come-from-behind victory in the GLVC quarterfinals, the 2nd-seeded Truman women's soccer team goes for a trip to the GLVC championship match this Friday afternoon when it faces No. 3 seed UW-Parkside at 12:00 pm in Quincy, Ill.
 
The Bulldogs (12-3-4) won their first GLVC tournament match with a 2-1 home win against William Jewell on Sunday afternoon, as Megan Frkovic and Kristina Weishar both scored in the second half to bring Truman back from a 1-0 deficit. The Friday opponent will be third-seeded UWP, as the Rangers (12-3-3) logged a 1-0 home win against No. 6 seed Drury on Sunday.
 
The two squads make up one half of what's left in the GLVC tournament bracket, as top-seeded and weekend-host Quincy (15-0-4) will take on the No. 4 seed Rockhurst (12-4-3) at 5:00 pm on Friday evening. The two advancing teams will meet for the GLVC championship on Sunday at 12:00 pm.
 
Sunday's victory against WJC was the second of the season by Truman against the Cardinals – a feat that the 'Dogs would like to repeat this Friday after Truman knocked off then-nationally ranked UWP, 2-1, in overtime on Sept. 22 in Kirksville. Jessica Hanson got Truman on the board first in the 37th minute, but the Rangers rallied – even down a player after a 58th minute red card – to knot the match at 1-1 in the 61st minute. Alexis Heffernan garnered the game-winner in the fourth minute of overtime, converting a Trisha Shoemaker cross to give the 'Dogs three key GLVC points.
 
On the season, the Bulldogs have been one of the best in the nation on both sides of the ball, out-scoring its opponents 29-8 and out-shooting its opposition 302-188 (147-76 on goal). Truman has been balanced both as a team and as individuals, scoring 13 goals in the first half and 15 in the second (with one OT tally), while also getting contributions in the goal column from 14 different players.
 
Leading the way has been senior forward Trisha Shoemaker, who, in 18 matches is the team-leader in goals (8) and is tied for the team-high in assists (4). Sophomore forward Alexis Heffernan has totaled 10 points (three goals, four assists), while senior midfielder Kristina Weishar ranks third on the squad with eight points (two goals, four assists). A pair of defenders – senior Suzanne Pelley and junior Lauren Seawright – have scored twice each, while the midfield duo of senior Sally Smith and junior Melanie Hunt have combined for six assists and 67 total shots.
 
Captaining the back line all season has been senior goalkeeper Emily Bozdeck, whose 0.41 goals-against average is in line for one of the top seasons in program history. She has allowed just eight goals in 1,765 minutes of work and has posted an .895 save percentage en route to 11 shutouts.
 
Leading the Bulldogs on the sideline is head coach Mike Cannon, who is in his 21st season at the helm of the Truman program. He has a 277-99-42 all-time record at Truman and is the seventh-winningest active coach in NCAA-II history. Cannon has guided the Bulldogs to nine NCAA postseason appearances.
 
Following the Bulldogs:
Full coverage of Truman women's soccer is available online at TrumanBulldogs.com, including results, upcoming match information and weekly updates.
 
When available, links to free online live stats are added to the Bulldog women's soccer schedule page as well as the top of each weekly update.
 
Keep up with the Bulldogs by tracking in-match updates (when available). Follow Truman Athletics on Twitter (@TrumanAthletics). Also be sure to sign up for Text Caster and Newsletter updates on the TrumanBulldogs.com homepage.
 
Scouting the Opponent:
Parkside checks into the GLVC semifinals winners of two straight, having closed out the regular season with a 1-0 OT win at Lewis on Oct. 30 before blanking Drury on Nov. 3. While the Rangers are a perfect 10-0 at home this season, the squad is just 2-3-3 away from its friendly pitch with a goal differential of -2.
 
The Rangers boast one of the top offenses and defenses in the GLVC, having scored 32 goals in 18 matches while surrendering just 12. Defensively, the squad has been led by freshman keeper Mallory Guerts, who was named the conference's Defensive Player of the Week on Nov. 4. She has started all 18 matches for UWP, posting a 0.65 GAA and an .844 save percentage.
 
On the offensive end, junior Kaela Hoecherl leads the team in both goals (8) and points (17), with fellow junior Emily Konior adding six tallies. Senior Alex Johnson leads the team in assists with six.
 
Troy Fabiano is in his 16th season at the helm of the UWP program, where he has amassed a 190-68-23 (.717) record.
 
Conference Tournament Protocols:
Since the conference tournament is a part of the postseason, NCAA playoff guidelines and rules are in place for Friday and Sunday action. Should the two teams finish tied throughout 90 minutes of play, plus two golden-goal overtime sessions, the squads would head to penalty kicks.
 
In a combined 22 postseason matches (17 NCAA + 5 MIAA/GLVC), Truman has never gone to PK's to decide a match and has advanced into an overtime session just twice.
 
Regional Outlook:
The third installment of the NCAA Midwest regional rankings will be unveiled on Wednesday, with Truman having been ranked third in last Wednesday's poll. All matches through last Sunday will be counted in the final regional poll leading up to Selection Monday on Nov. 1.
 
The Midwest region will receive six bids to the 2013 NCAA Div. II tournament, with the top two seeds earning the right to host first- and second-round matches. Currently, Grand Valley State and Quincy are ranked 1-2 in the region.
 
Truman is part of a five-member GLVC-bloc that includes No. 4 UW-Parkside, No. 5 Rockhurst and No. 6 Bellarmine, before GLIAC programs Ashland (#7) and Michigan Tech (#8) break the GLVC contingent. The GLVC and GLIAC leagues both receive automatic bids for conference champions, which are both determined by a post-season tournament.
 
You Can Put It on the Board…:
Soccer statisticians point to the correlation between earning at least a win/draw when scoring the game's first goal, and that has been seen this season with the Bulldog women. When Truman scores first, the purple and white are a perfect 11-0, compared to just a 1-3-1 record when the opponent scores first.
 
Truman won for the first time this season in Sunday's GLVC quarterfinal when surrendering the game's first goal.
 
Bulldogs Rise to #20:
In this week's NSCAA top-25 coaches' poll, the Bulldogs moved back to its highest ranking of the season – jumping four spots to No. 20 on Tuesday afternoon. Truman continues to be just one of two (No. 8 Quincy) GLVC squads ranked in the top-25, with fellow regional-mate Grand Valley State holding down the top spot with a 16-0-1 record.
 
Both of Truman's first weekend opponents – Minnesota State-Mankato and Winona State – are also represented in the poll at Nos. 6 and 19, respectively.
 
Up Next:
Should the Bulldogs advance (via either win or penalty kicks) against UW-Parkside, the squad would then move into the GLVC title match on Sunday, November 10. Kickoff for the conference title is set for noon at Legends Stadium in Quincy.
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