This Week
Omaha opens Summit League play against North Dakota State, the first of eight league games. Links to live stats, audio and video will be available on OMavs.com.
Omaha Quick Hits
• Omaha was picked to finish seventh in the 2016 Summit League Preseason Poll.
• The Mavericks welcome six new players into the fold in 2016 including four true freshmen and a pair of junior transfers.
• Omaha returns 19 letterwinners, including eight starters from last season.
• UNO enters the match with an overall record of 2-7-2 after dropping a pair of games in California.
• Carlie Cook leads the team with four goals, and Emily Romero is tops with three assists.
• Jessica Bollinger is the only player to start all 11 games this season. Katie Vanderzwaag leads the team with 864 minutes played.
• Haley Shelton is in the Summit League top five in saves (51), save percentage (.836) and goals-against average (1.39).
• Erin Bunker has appeared in four games this season with three starts and has a 1.39 goals-against average.
• Cook and Shelton have earned Summit League Player of the Week honors this season.
• Don Klosterman is in his 18th season as head coach.
Scouting North Dakota State
North Dakota State enters Thursday's contest with a 5-5 overall record. Last week, the Bison defeated Jamestown, 7-0.
NDSU are Summit League preseason favorites. This Bison are the 2015 regular season champions. North Dakota State returns a league-best three first team All-Summit League selections – defender Natalie Fenske, forward Lauren Miller and midfielder Amy Yang. Miller is the league's active career leader with 37 goals, leading the league with 18 last season. The Bison also will bring back three All-Freshmen Team selections.
Holly Enderle is tied for the Summit League lead with six goals and leads the Bison with 13 points. Amy Yang is tied for fourth in the Summit League with 10 points on three goals and four assists. Monica Polgar is 5-5 this season with a 1.40 goals-against average and a .736 save percentage.
Mark Cook is in his fifth season leading the Bison with a 43-39-3 record.
Series History
Friday's contest is the 11th all-time meeting between the two programs. NDSU leads the series 6-3-1.
Last Time Out
Friday, Sept. 23 at Loyola Marymount
Loyola Marymount scored the tie-breaking goal with 2:32 remaining in regulation to defeat Omaha, 2-1, on Friday at Sullivan Field.
Loyola Marymount was awarded a penalty kick in the 88th minute following an Omaha foul in the 18-yard box. Maddie Medved placed her chance into the far corner for the game winner.
The Mavericks took the first lead of the match in the 38th minute after a Lion foul in the box. Abby Meader's shot beat goalkeeper Charlee Pruitt to the right and gave Omaha a 1-0 lead.
Nikki Martino headed in a crossing pass from Pilar Torres with 5:24 remaining in regulation to tie the game.
Haley Shelton made a season-high 12 saves as the Lions outshot the Mavericks, 26-3.
Sunday, Sept. 18 at Cal State Northridge
The Omaha women's soccer team dropped a 2-0 decision to Cal State Northridge on Sunday afternoon at Matador Soccer Field in Northridge, Calif.
Camille Watson put CSUN on the board at the 39:32 mark as she punched home a shot from the left wing off an assist from Taylor Hobson. Sylvia Trinh gave the Matadors a two-goal cushion in the 82nd minute by heading home a corner kick from Brenna McCallum.
Cal State Northridge had a 27-5 lead in shots, including a 6-1 advantage in shots on goal, and a 4-2 lead in corner kicks.
Natalie Johnson and Emily Romero each had two shots, while Ava Doetsch had one attempt. Erin Bunker logged all 90 minutes between the posts and picked up four saves.
In the Summit
As a team, Omaha is third in the Summit League in goals-against average (1.40) and in shutouts (three).
On the National Charts
Goalkeeper Haley Shelton ranks in the top 75 nationally in three categories: 13th in saves per game (7.29), 58th in total saves (51) and 60th in save percentage (.836). As a team, the Mavericks rank 27th in saves per game (6.73) and 78th in save percentage (.822).
Sensational Shelton
This season Haley Shelton has made seven starts in goal for the Mavericks. Shelton is in the Summit League top five in saves (51), save percentage (.836) and goals-against average (1.39).
Mark It for Meader
Abby Meader scored her first collegiate goal last Friday in a 2-1 loss at Loyola Marymount. Meader has appeared in all 11 games with five starts.
Awesome Anders
Izzy Anders scored a goal in the 83rd minute on Sunday against Colorado State. This season Anders has four points on two goals.
Player of the Week Honors
Carlie Cook and Haley Shelton have earned Summit League Player of the Week honors so far this season.
Cook was named Summit League Co-Offensive Player of the Week for her performances Aug. 22-28, marking the weekly award was the first of her career. She scored a pair of goals during the weekend with the game-tying goal against Creighton and the game-winner against North Dakota.
Shelton collected the Summit League Women's Soccer Defensive Player of the Week award for her performance during the season-opening weekend, Aug. 19-21, which was her first career weekly accolade. She faced 17 shots and made eight saves in the win against UMKC.
Carlie is Cooking
Through 11 games this season junior midfielder Carlie Cook leads UNO with 10 points. Cook scored a goal in three straight games to start her Maverick career becoming the first player in the Division I era to accomplish the feat.
Sharing is Caring
Three players have dished out two or more assists this season for Omaha. Emily Romero has three assists to lead the team and is second in the Summit League, while Carlie Cook and Lydia Holtmann each have two assists.
Record Book Watch
Goalkeepers Haley Shelton and Katlyn Schochenmaier find themselves among UNO elite when comparing career stats. Shelton is the all-time Saves per Game leader with six, while Schochenmaier is third with 4.6.
Shelton ranks in the top 10 in five other categories. She is third in all-time saves with 174, seventh in shutouts (five) and ninth in wins (five) and goals-against average (1.69).
Schochenmaier is in the top 10 in four categories. She is sixth all-time in saves (92) and save percentage (.767), seventh in wins (six) and eighth in goals-against average (1.61).
Keepers
Three goalkeepers have seen action this season. Haley Shelton leads the way with seven starts, while Erin Bunker has three starts and Katlyn Schochenmaier has one.
Bunker and Shelton are tied with a team-low 1.39 goals-against average, while Shelton leads the team with two shutouts. Schochenmaier has a 1.59 goals-against average and a .857 save percentage.
The Youth Movement
So far this season, all four of Omaha's freshmen have seen playing time. Sophia Roux has appeared in all 11 games this season with six starts and Erin Bunker has appeared in four games with two starts.
Taylor Gelling has appeared in nine games with one start, while Mallory Edwards have made six appearances with one start.
Home-aha
Senior Nyoke Dumba, junior Natalie Johnson, sophomore Emily Romero and freshman Mallory Edwards didn't have to travel a long distance as they made the transition from high school to college. All four call the Omaha metro area home. Dumba and Edwards attended Omaha Marian, while Johnson graduated from Omaha Skutt and Romero came from Bellevue East.
Summit League Preseason Poll
Omaha was picked to finish seventh in the 2016 Summit League Preseason Poll, and senior defender Ava Doetsch appeared on the Preseason Summit League Watch List, the league office announced in August.
North Dakota State was picked as the favorite to win the Summit League title with 63 points and seven first-place votes. The Bison enter the 2016 season after claiming the league's regular-season title last year.
South Dakota State was predicted to come in second, with 56 points and the two remaining first-place votes. Oral Roberts polled in at third place, collecting 49 points. Denver came in fourth with 45 points, followed by South Dakota (35) in fifth and IUPUI (26) in sixth. Fort Wayne (18) and Western Illinois (8) rounded it out in eight and ninth place, respectively.
Tough Road Ahead
Omaha's 2016 schedule features 19 regular-season matches, and the team will play in six states across the nation. UNO will take on opponents from nine conferences, with three from the Big Sky and one apiece from the Atlantic 10, Big 12, BIG EAST, Big West, Missouri Valley, Mountain West, WAC and the West Coast Conference.
Entering 2016, the Mavericks have never faced five of their opponents: Kansas State, Dayton, Eastern Washington, Loyola Marymount and CSUN.
For Starters
Omaha returns five starters from last year's team that started at least 10 games. Included in the five returning starters are two players who have amassed 50 starts or more during their Maverick careers.
Seniors Ava Doetsch and Lauren Lawler have each appeared in 64 matches. Doetsch has 63 career starts while Lawler has 62.
Mavericks Continue Academic Excellence
Omaha earned the National Soccer Coaches Association of America Team Academic Award for the 14th straight year. As a team, the Mavericks recorded a 3.37 GPA during the 2014-15 academic year to garner the annual honor.
The Mavericks' academic effort featured 20 women's soccer student-athletes making the Summit League Academic Honor Roll and 16 recognized as distinguished scholars.
Klosterman at the Helm
Head coach Don Klosterman as the only coach the women's soccer program has ever known. In his 18 years at the helm of the Maverick program, Klosterman owns a career record of 216-110-18 and has a career mark of 268-171-27 over 25 years.
The two-time national coach of the year led the Mavericks to the Division II national semifinals four times, culminating in the 2005 NCAA Division II national championship.
Klosterman's assistants are Tim Bennett, who is in his third season, and Adam Hooi, who is in his second year on the Maverick staff.
Up Next
The Mavericks return to action next weekend hosting Oral Roberts on Friday, Oct. 7 at 7 p.m. and Fort Wayne on Sunday, Oct. 9 at Noon.
