Leading Off
The Mavericks (4-0-2) look to keep up their torrid pace this week when they head to California to face UC Santa Barbara at 7 p.m. (PT) on Thursday before returning home to host Northern Iowa on Sunday at 1 p.m.

Quick Kicks
• Omaha stayed undefeated after recording its fourth shutout of the season in a 1-0 win over Portland State last week. The Mavericks have not allowed a goal since August 22 at Southern Utah and have only given up two goals total all season.
• Making five saves to earn her first shutout of the season and 12th of her career, Mia Reedtz Rehde Olesen was named the Summit League Defensive Peak Performer of the week on Monday. The fifth-year keeper also increased her save percentage to .923, ranking her eighth in the NCAA, while her goals against average (.333) places her in 17th in the nation.
• Between Olesen and Maja Baun, Omaha's keepers own the best combined save percentage in the league at .917. This number also ranks as 11th in all of Division I competition. Likewise, the team's .667 shutout percentage places them in 25 in the country.
• Marissa Gohr remains at the top of her game, scoring Friday's lone goal to give her three on the year, along with nine points. She currently ranks second in the Summit League in both.
• Emilie Erland now has assists in back-to-back matches, while Grace Ostergaard picked up her first assist of the season on Friday to give her 11 in her career.
• Grace Crockett remains on the verge of history, coming into this week with 13 career assists. She is just one away from tying Andrea Dave for the program's Division I record for career assists.
• Over the team's last 14 games dating back to last year, the Mavericks are now 7-1-6.
• For the fourth consecutive week, the Mavericks have made the United Soccer Coaches Top 10 - West Region, placing seventh for the third week in a row.

Scouting the UCSB Gauchos
UC Santa Barbara is 1-2-4 so far this season, with the Gauchos' lone victory coming on September 1 in a 3-0 shutout vs. San Jose State. Last week they went 0-1-1 with a 0-0 tie at New Mexico and a 2-3 loss at Colorado College after allowing the go-ahead goal with just five minutes remaining.

Gauchos to Watch
Freshman forward Devin Greer is off to a hot start to her collegiate career, leading the Gauchos with three goals, six points, and 14 shots, single-handedly giving her half of the team's goals and a third of its points.

Midfielders Emma Corcoran and O'Callaghan Liu are the only Gauchos to have a goal and an assist so far, with the former also leading the team with 593 minutes played, while the latter is second on the team with 13 shots. 

Sophomore keeper Maddie Buckley already has a Big West Defensive Player of the Week award this year after back-to-back four-save shutouts against San Diego and San Jose State two weeks ago. Overall, she has 19 saves and five goals allowed on the season.

Series History
The Mavericks and Gauchos faced off for the first time ever last season, with Omaha winning at home with a 1-0 shutout. 

Scouting the Northern Iowa Panthers
UNI is currently in first place in the MVC at 5-1-1 after taking both matches last week 3-2 against St. Thomas and UT Martin. The Panthers opened their season with a 1-1- tie vs. South Dakota and suffered their one and only loss so far at Iowa State (6-1) on August 25.

Panthers to Watch
The highest scoring players on the MVC's highest scoring team are 2023 First Team All-MVC and USC All-Midwest Region selections Olivia Knoepfle and Lauren Heinsch. Knoepfle has four goals, two assists, and 10 points, while Heinsch totals four goals, one assist, and nine points. The duo is tied for first in the league in goals and is one-two in points.

Morgan Barnette and Maddie Eastus each have three goals, two assists, and eight points, earning them spots in the MVC's top 1 in goals, assists, and points. Eastus also leads the league with 21 shots.

Fifth-year goalkeeper Caitlin Richards is up to 25 saves on the season, though, she has also allowed 14 goals for a 2.28 GAA and a .641 save percentage. Six of those goals came in the team's 6-1 loss at Iowa State in which she faced 19 shots. Last week Richards made eight saves and allowed four goals in a pair of wins.

Series History
Omaha is looking for its first ever win against Northern Iowa as the Mavericks come into this game at 0-1-1 against the Panthers. The teams tied 0-0 back in 2022, before UNI scored a late goal to take last year's match 3-2.