CLARKSVILLE, Tenn. – For the final time in the 2013 regular season, Austin Peay State University women's soccer team will host an Ohio Valley Conference foe at Morgan Bros. Field, 7 p.m., Friday, when Morehead State visits Clarksville. The Lady Govs then begin a three-game road trip to conclude the OVC slate with a 12 p.m. (CT), Sunday visit to Eastern Kentucky.
After splitting their matches against Eastern Illinois and SIU Edwardsville last weekend, the Lady Govs sit at second in the conference with a 4-1-1 OVC mark and 9-2-2 overall, behind the Panthers and ahead of UT Martin – Austin Peay has handed both the Panthers and the Skyhawks their only conference losses this season. As of Thursday, the Lady Govs and Panthers would have first-round byes at the OVC Tournament, with UT Martin facing Southeast Missouri and SIU Edwardsville squaring off against Morehead State in the first round.
The Lady Govs made a statement in last Friday's 3-0 drubbing of Eastern Illinois, which gave Austin Peay control of first place in the OVC. Those heights were short-lived however; Sunday's 1-0 loss to SIUE dropped the Lady Govs back into second place.
Austin Peay looks to return to the form that made it the top-scoring squad in the conference after suffering its second shutout loss of 2013 in last Sunday's matchup against the Cougars. Austin Peay leads the conference in scoring at 2.23 goals per game, a mark that ranks 34th nationally. Senior Tatiana Ariza is a major reason for those high marks; she moved into the national lead in points per game (2.5) and ranks third in the nation in goals per game (1.1) entering play this weekend. Among active NCAA players, Ariza ranks fourth in career goals (50) and fifth in career points (123).
Sophomore netminder Nikki Filippone also broke into the top 10 nationally in goals-against average this week; her 0.46 mark leads the OVC.
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October is National Breast Cancer Awareness Month and the Austin Peay women's soccer team is showing its support for the thousands of women diagnosed with breast cancer by wearing pink during today's match.
Members of the local YMCA's ABC (After Breast Cancer) program will be on hand and recognized at the game. ABC is open to anyone who has had a breast cancer diagnosis and funded entirely by grants and the YMCA's annual giving campaign, making it a no-cost program for participants. Included in the program are lymphedema education and screenings by a physical therapist specializing in lymphedema and monthly educational meetings and support groups for survivors.
Representatives of the Lady Govs soccer programs will be taking a collection at halftime for the ABC program, and pink Let's Go Peaynk t-shirts will be available for purchase at Friday's match. Before the match, all breast cancer survivors in attendance are invited to join the Lady Govs on the field for their pregame walk to midfield and will be recognized again at halftime.
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Morehead State (4-9-1, 3-2-0 OVC) comes into the contest having won two of their last three matches, with a loss to UT Martin sandwiched between victories against SIUE and Southeast Missouri. A brutal non-conference schedule – the Eagles lost to then-23rd-ranked Ohio State, 11th-ranked West Virginia and American Athletic Conference-leading Louisville and earned a draw against Northeast Conference leader Saint Francis (Pa.) during non-OVC play – has provided some grit to the squad. Freshman Angela Black scored twice and added an assist in Sunday's match against Southeast Missouri en route to Co-Offensive Player of the Week honors, while Jade Flory ranks third in the OVC with 19 points (seven goals, five assists).
Eastern Kentucky (2-10-2, 1-3-1 OVC) was picked to finish fourth in the preseason poll but has struggled to score and stop opponents from scoring – the Colonels rank last in the OVC in goals (seven) and goals against (34). Through five OVC contests, the Colonels have just two goals scored but have tightened the defense up and sit just four points out of a tournament spot entering the weekend.
Austin Peay continues its regular-season ending road trip next weekend with a 3 p.m., Sunday, Oct. 27 tilt at Jacksonville State.
Last Time Against This Weekend's Opponents
Austin Peay closed out the 2012 season with wins at Morehead State and against Eastern Kentucky, securing the No. 2 seed and a first-round bye in the OVC Tournament. Emily Perkins' 20th-minute goal at Jayne Stadium was the gamewinner in the Lady Govs 1-0 win at Morehead State (Oct. 26); she scored again and assisted on Tatiana Ariza's 12th 2012 goal in the 2-1 win aginst Eastern Kentucky (Oct. 28), earning her OVC Player of the Week honors.
Keep An Eye On…
Moving Up the Chart: With 127 career points, Tatiana Ariza needs to average 5.5 points over her final four regular-season contests to tie Eastern Illinois' Beth Liesen's (2000-03) 149 career points. In seven career games against Eastern Kentucky and Morehead State, Ariza has eight career points (1.1/g).
The Lady Govs are 3-7-2 all-time against Morehead State. Last season's win snapped a four-match losing streak to the Eagles and was Austin Peay's first victory at Jayne Stadium. This will be Austin Peay's first home match against Morehead State since 2009.
Austin Peay is 2-3-2 all-time against Eastern Kentucky, and are unbeaten in three of the last four meetings between the two squads. The Lady Govs seek their first victory at Eastern Kentucky – Austin Peay is 0-3-0 all-time at EKU Soccer Field.
With one more goal, senior Andy Quiceno would tie Jessica Hosse (2004-07) and Emily Perkins (2011-12) for third all-time with 14 career goals.
With one more assist, senior Natalia Ariza would pass Adonia Bivins (2003-06) for third all-time with 13 assists.
Senior midfielder Morgan Zigelsky needs one assist to tie Erin Mitchell (2002-04) for fifth on the career charts with nine.
Lady Govs Online
Be sure to follow all the Lady Govs action at LetsGoPeay.com, and check them out on Twitter (@AustinPeaySocr) and by liking the Austin Peay Women's Soccer Official Page on Facebook. Live stats will be available prior to the match at LetsGoPeay.com, and streaming video will be available for free on the OVC Digital Network (http://www.ovcdigitalnetwork.com).
