BILLINGS, Mont. – The longest home stand of the season continues this week for the Montana State University Billings women's soccer team, which will reach the midway point of the Great Northwest Athletic Conference schedule with a pair of matches on tap.
 
The Yellowjackets (5-4-2, 2-3-1 GNAC) host Northwest Nazarene University on Thursday afternoon at 2 p.m., before turning the corner into the second half of conference play on Saturday with a rematch against No. 8 Seattle Pacific University at 1 p.m. Live video for the matches will be available online here and live statistics will be available online here. "Thursday's game is massive for us, and the team knows that," said MSUB head coach Stephen Cavallo. "We are tied on points right now with NNU, and we know they are a team we will be competing with for a GNAC playoff spot."
 
The Yellowjackets are tied for fifth place with the Nighthawks in the GNAC standings, with the top-four teams at the end of the regular season advancing to the GNAC Championships. Both MSUB and NNU sit just one point behind fourth-place Western Oregon and two points behind third place Simon Fraser, as this weekend could prove to cause pivotal movement at the midway point of the season.
 
MSUB is coming off an inspirational overtime win last week, topping Simon Fraser 2-1 in extra time at home to bounce back after a tough 4-0 defeat at the hands of No. 6 Western Washington. "Having that win against Simon Fraser really uplifted our spirits a little bit, and it gives us some great momentum going into this week," said freshman outside back Sydney Wate. "In overtime we step it up, and that extra little edge of intensity is so strong. We have gotten some great results out of it, and it is nice to see the win."
 
After this week's home matches, MSUB takes to the road to face Simon Fraser on Oct. 21 in Canada and No. 23 Western Washington on Oct. 23 in Bellingham, Wash. "We had a great win Saturday rebounding from a tough loss Thursday, and the mood of the team was lifted well," Cavallo said. "Any time you get an overtime win, it is a huge morale booster to be on the end of that. Our team also takes a lot of strength from our three overtime performances this year. We continued to fight and I think the team really believed that they were going to win that game no matter how they got it done. That was a big three points for us, and I think the team takes a lot of strength from that game."
 
SPRING TEASER: While neither side played an official GNAC game last year, both MSUB and NNU got a taste of conference play with a home-and-home series during the modified 2021 spring season. The Nighthawks proved the better side in the most recent meetings between the teams, claiming 4-0 victories both in Nampa, Idaho and at Yellowjacket Field last spring. "We got our butts kicked by them in the spring, and I know all of our returning players have had this date circled in their calendars," Cavallo commented on Thursday's match. "I think we are a new team compared to where we were in March and April of last year when we played them for the first time. We are looking forward to welcoming them to Billings, and it will be a big game Thursday."
 
TORRES GOLDEN IN OT: Sophomore forward Sydney Torres had the magic shot in Saturday's match, ending the affair in the 93rd minute as her third goal of the season sneaked over the line for the golden goal. Torres tied Liberty Palmer for the most goals on the team, and helped the Yellowjackets keep their scoring average slightly above 1.0 with 12 goals in 11 matches played. It also helped the team remain undefeated in overtime play this season, as MSUB drew University of Mary 1-1 on Sept. 6 and Western Oregon 1-1 on Oct. 2 before emerging with the win last weekend.


 
FINDLAY STEPS IN AND SHINES ON BACK LINE: Earning her first start in a Yellowjacket uniform on Saturday, Ally Findlay delivered a critical performance in her role as center back. She put the team ahead just six minutes into the match with her second-career goal and first at MSUB, tapping home a corner-kick cross to make the score 1-0. She went on to play the full 93 minutes in the overtime victory and was a major reason the team emerged with three points.


 
WATE FINDING HER OWN AT OUTSIDE BACK: Wate has elevated her play at the outside back position as of late, starting each of the last four matches and playing crucial minutes including all 110 in the team's double-overtime affair at Western Oregon. After averaging just 34.4 minutes per game off the bench over the team's first seven matches, Wate is averaging 81 minutes per match over the last two weeks with effective play on the flank. "It's obviously a defensive position, but also getting in on the attack and running that line," Wate described her role as an outside back. "We have a lot of depth on the back line which is nice to see. It has been great getting to know how each individual center back plays, and adjusting how I play with them."
 
"I'm really proud of Sydney this year, and she really had to fight and scrap to earn minutes," Cavallo commented on the second-year freshman. "I'm proud of her for putting in the extra work to get onto the field. She's very difficult to beat in 1v1s, and she is really just stepping up for the team right now."
 
ROE SUPPLIES ANOTHER ASSIST: Torres's golden goal came after a drop pass from Jordan Roe, who turned in her second assist of the season and her sixth total point. Roe has started seven straight matches since easing into the year coming off an injury, and upped her total to five goals and three assists for 13 total points through her first 19 college matches.
 
SWEDISH CONNECTION: MSUB has relied on its four international players – all from Sweden – throughout the course of the season as well. Goalkeeper Tuva Sallvin improved her record to 3-0 after playing all 93 minutes and making four saves in the win over SFU. Sallvin has conceded just one goal in her 285 minutes played, for a goals-against average of 0.32 on the season. Vendela Andersson has played a key role at center back, starting 10 of 11 matches and averaging 68 minutes per game on the back line. Midfielders Clara Lindberg and Emelie Moberg have each seen time as well, with Lindberg playing in nine matches off the bench and Moberg seeing time in seven games thus far. Watch a full-length interview with the four Swedish players on the MSUB Sports YouTube channel online here.


 

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Northwest Nazarene University Nighthawks
Thursday, October 14, 2021 – 2 PM – Yellowjacket Field – Billings, Montana
2021 Record: 4-3-2, 2-3-1 GNAC
Head Coach: Mary Ybarguen, 9th season
2019 Record: 6-10-2, 3-7-2 GNAC (7th place)
 
After losing three straight conference matches, NNU responded well last week with a 2-0 win over Saint Martin's and a 2-2, double-overtime draw against Western Oregon in a pair of home matches. The Nighthawks will play at Central Washington on Saturday after the match against MSUB on Thursday.
 
Reigning GNAC Player of the Week Madison Grande scored twice and had an assist last week, and leads the team with four goals and an assist for nine total points. McKenzie Buell and Sierra Sanchez have each scored a pair of goals for NNU, which has found the net 13 times in its nine games this season.
 
More than half of the starting lineup has remained identical throughout the season, with six different Nighthawks starting all nine games under veteran head coach Mary Ybarguen. Alexis Montoya has started all nine games in goal, and has made a GNAC-leading 51 saves for an average of 5.67 saves per match.
 
The Series: MSUB is 19-10-2 all-time against NNU and is 12-2 in home matches against the Nighthawks. NNU is 6-9 over the last nine meetings dating back to the 2015 season.
 
Last Time Out: NNU cruised to a 4-0 win in Nampa on March 18, before repeating the feat with a 4-0 blanking on April 8 in Billings as the teams met twice during the modified spring season.
 

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No. 8 Seattle Pacific University Falcons
Saturday, October 16, 2021 – 1 PM – Yellowjacket Field – Billings, Montana
2021 Record: 8-1, 5-1 GNAC
Head Coach: Arby Busey, 5th season
2019 Record: 12-8, 9-3 GNAC (2nd place)
 
The Falcons rocketed into the top-10 in the latest United Soccer Coaches national poll, after becoming the first team to defeat Western Washington University with a 1-0 result in overtime last Saturday. The dramatic finish extended the Falcons' win streak to three matches – all of which have been shutouts. SPU starts this week at Central Washington on Thursday before Saturday's game in Billings.
 
Claire Neder was Saturday's hero, with her first goal of the year counting as the game's golden goal. AJ DePinto and Lauren Forster lead the team with four goals and two assists apiece, while Sophia Chilczuk has a team-high five assists and Neder has contributed four.
 
Defensively, the Falcons are tied for No. 1 in the country with just two goals conceded and a team goals-against average of .219 in their nine matches this year. Goalkeeper Riley Travis has started all nine matches and has made 24 saves while recording five shutouts.
 
The Series: MSUB is 4-23-2 all-time against SPU and is 2-9 in home matches against the Falcons. SPU has won five games in-a-row and is unbeaten in the last 10 games dating back to the 2014 season.
 
Last Time Out: The Falcons handed the 'Jackets a 5-0 defeat in the GNAC opener on Sept. 23 in Seattle, with Forster scoring two of her four goals this season in the match.