Women's Soccer | October 05, 2016

KALAMAZOO, Mich.- The Western Michigan women's soccer team continues Mid-American Conference play this weekend, traveling to defending MAC Regular Season champions, Ball State, on Thursday at 5 p.m. and hosting Miami on Sunday at 1 p.m. for Starving Student Day. 

The Broncos split a pair of conference road matches last weekend, beating Ohio 2-0 and falling at Kent State 5-1. The Cardinals defeated Eastern Michigan and tied Central Michigan in its MAC games, while the RedHawks fell to the Chippewas and tallied a victory over the Eagles..

"Ball State and Miami are two very talented teams," commented WMU head coach Lauren Sinacola. "They bring different challenges to the table and this weekend is a true test to see how the team responds. We had a disappointing end to last weekend and it is an opportunity to show our team's character and resilience."

FOLLOW THIS WEEKEND
Live stats will be available for both games this weekend. CLICK HERE for live stats at Ball State on Thursday, Oct. 6. CLICK HERE for live stats vs. Miami on Sunday, Oct. 9. Sunday's game against MU will also be streamed for free online at www.wmubroncos.com/watch. In-game Twitter updates can also be seen by following @WMUWomensSoccer.

WESTERN MICHIGAN AT A GLANCE // 8-4-0, 2-2-0 MAC
Last Friday, the Broncos travelled to Athens, Ohio, rolling to a 2-0 victory over the Bobcats. Junior defender Tiffany Buckler netted both goals for the Broncos while sophomore midfielder Alyssa Burke dished out the lone assist. Burke sits second overall in the MAC for total assists with four.

Western Michigan remained on the road, heading to Kent State on Sunday. After starting goalkeeper Stephanie Heber was issued a red card after a challenge in the box, the Broncos played a player down for the remaining 75 minutes. Keeping the Golden Flashes from scoring again, the Broncos trailed 1-0 heading into halftime. Kent State capitalized just five minutes into the second and continued to a 5-1 victory. Despite the loss, WMU outscored their opponent 13-6 while senior midfielder Liz Abro notched the lone goal for the Broncos. 

WMU is currently ranked first in the MAC in total goals with 22, second in total points with 60 and second in total assists with 16 this season. Twelve different Broncos have scored this season with senior captain Mackenzie Barber leading the way with nine points on four goals and one assist. Abro has tallied eight points for WMU with three goals and two assists. Five other Broncos have tallied two goals apiece this season including Buckler, Kendall Juhnke, Emma Kahn, Alexis Shamoun and Candice Uhl.

BALL STATE AT A GLANCE // 8-2-2, 3-0-1 MAC
After winning the 2015 MAC Regular Season title, the Cardinals are off to a fast start in 2016. Ball State enters Thursday's contest with an 8-2-2 record including a 3-0-1 start to conference play sitting atop the MAC West.

Using a strong second half, the Cardinals took a 3-1 road victory over Eastern Michigan on Friday, Sept. 30. Continuing the road trip, Ball State headed to Central Michigan on Sunday, Oct. 2. After two regulation halves and two overtime periods, the score ended in a 0-0 draw. The tie extended the Cardinals unbeaten streak to six in a row.

Ball State holds a 6-0-1 record at home this season while allowing their opponents to only three goals in those seven games. As a team, the Cardinals have outscored their opponents 20-9 throughout all 12 games on the season. Nine different Ball State players have scored this season with sophomore midfielder Lauren Roll leading the way with four goals. Junior goalkeeper Alyssa Heintschel logs the most minutes between the posts on the season holding a 0.92 goals against average.

MIAMI AT A GLANCE // 5-5-1, 2-1-1 MAC
After playing in two double overtime matches last weekend, the Redhawks split a pair of conference games on the road. Miami fell at Central Michigan (1-0) on Friday, Sept. 20 and won in dramatic fashion at Eastern Michigan (3-2) on Sunday, Oct. 2.

The RedHawks have scored 10 goals this season, led by midfielder Olivia Winnet. The freshman has tallied three goals in the 11 matches for MU. Miami has proven to have a knack for scoring in the final minutes of the game, scoring eight in the second half including five in the final 15 minutes or overtime.

Prior to Sunday's matchup in Kalamazoo, Miami plays host to Northern Illinois on Friday, Oct. 6 at 4 p.m. 

STARVING STUDENT DAY
Western Michigan will provide free pizza to students prior to Sunday's game against Miami while supplies last.  

NEXT UP
Western Michigan continues MACtion at home next weekend, playing host to Buffalo Friday, Oct. 14, with a 4 p.m. kickoff. Akron will come to the WMU Soccer Complex Sunday, Oct. 16, with first touch slated at 1 p.m.