BILLINGS, Mont. – The Montana State Billings women's soccer team is looking to write the next chapter in the program's history this week as they take on Northwest Nazarene University with a possible trip to the NCAA Division II Women's Soccer Tournament at stake.
The Yellowjackets, entering the weekend at 11-5-1 overall and 8-5-0 in the Great Northwest Athletic Conference, currently sit in the fifth spot of the west region rankings. Only the top six move on to the national tournament where the Jackets could play in either Seattle, Hawaii, or San Diego.
Northwest Nazarene comes into Billings with a 5-12-0 record on the season and is 3-10-0 in the conference. NNU is just 1-6-0 away from Nampa with the only win coming at Saint Martin's.
MSUB found themselves in prime position for a berth into the tournament after defeating Western Washington 1-0 last week at home, just the second victory over the Vikings in school history and the first season sweep. The Jackets then fell at home 1-0 to a very good Simon Fraser team, but coupled with other losses by teams in the region, MSUB moved up two spots from the previous week's poll.
In the Western Washington match, MSUB controlled the game from the get go, dominating possession and forcing six corner kicks while allowing just two. The Jackets eventually broke through after halftime as sophomore Jaucelyn Richter (Billings, MT) made a run down the middle, feeding the ball to senior Kari Foreman (Lakewood, CO) on the left, who then got the ball to freshman Heidi Greenback (Woodinville, WA) in front of a wide open net for the score.
The Simon Fraser match looked almost identical in the way the Jackets controlled much of the match and had many opportunities to put the Clan away early, but SFU hung around long enough to get an awkward goal that was allowed by the referee for the 1-0 victory.
Greenback has scored three goals in the last three matches, and leads the team with seven goals and three assists for 17 points. Greenback, who typically comes of the bench for head coach Don Trentham, has scored a team-high four game-winners this season.
Foreman has also been having a tremendous season, scoring 14 points off of five goals and four assists. Richter and fellow sophomore Jennifer Larsen (Mesa, AZ) are both tied with 11 points this season, Larsen scoring five goals and an assist, while Richter has three goals and five assists.
The backline has been dominate almost all season, posting seven quality shutouts and allowing teams to shoot just .116 in total shots and .479 with shots on goal. That tenacity by the defense has allowed freshman goalkeeper Sabrina Grandke-Bawab (Kirkland, WA) to amass an 8-3-1 record and record six shutouts. Grandke-Bawab has a 0.83 goals against average, placing her 49th nationally.
As a team the Yellowjackets have scored 28 goals this season and allowed just 17. They are shooting .154 in shots and .610 in shots on goal. The Jackets have taken 10.7 shots per game this season and have 42 more corner kicks (94-57) than their opponents. MSUB is also scoring 1.65 goals per match.
As Northwest Nazarene comes into the match, they are led by Sarah Starapoli, tallying 10 points this season with three goals and four assists. Julianne Steele and Autumn Yturbe each have nine points apiece with three goals and three assists.
NNU has dropped seven of their last eight, including three straight. The Crusaders are shooting .138, while opponents are shooting .148. The defense has allowed 35 goals this season as the offense has scored 24.
In the first match on Oct. 9, the Crusaders and Yellowjackets played into overtime. Grandke-Bawab made a punt that bounced over the Crusader defense where it was taken by Greenback who found Richter for the game-winner.
The Jackets outshot NNU 14-12 overall, but dominated shots on goal with an 8-2 advantage. MSUB also held a 5-4 edge in corner kicks and Grandke-Bawab made three saves.
Saturday's match is not only huge because of the playoff implications it holds for MSUB, but Saturday is also senior day and parent's day for the MSUB team. For the last time at home, six seniors will suit up in their uniforms and tighten up the laces one last time.
Fans are encouraged to bring anyone and everyone to the game on Saturday, or if they are unable to attend, watch the game live on JacketVision, MSUB's webstream, available at: http://msub.nmtvsports.com/.
