BILLINGS, Mont. – Heading to the West Coast for a pair of Great Northwest Athletic Conference games this weekend, the Montana State University Billings women's soccer team resumes league play.
 
The Yellowjackets (4-2-1, 1-1 GNAC) will play at Saint Martin's University at 1 p.m. Pacific/2 p.m. Mountain time on Thursday afternoon in Lacey, Wash., with live video available online here and live statistics available online here. The 'Jackets will then head down I5 to Monmouth, Ore., to square off against Western Oregon University on Saturday with an 11 a.m. Pacific/noon Mountain kickoff. Live video for the match against the Wolves will be available online here with live statistics available online here.
 
MSUB split its first two conference matches of the season, enduing a 5-0 loss to then-No. 23 Seattle Pacific before rallying to beat Central Washington 2-1 in its conference home opener. "Over the first GNAC weekend of play we had 20 players make their conference debut, and we learned as a team exactly what this conference can bring us," said MSUB head coach Stephen Cavallo. "I am most proud of the team's response to the humbling defeat at SPU. We were able to put that result behind us and focus on performing well against Central. We started the game really well, and got an early goal which is something we have been working for. The game was very up and down after that, but we saw out the result and it is a game I think our team can really grow from."
 
The Yellowjackets will look to get a pair of results on the road this week, before returning home to face No. 10 Western Washington University next Thursday and Simon Fraser University next Saturday at Yellowjacket Field. "I want our team to play freely," Cavallo said. "I know what we are capable of when we are clicking and playing as a unit. We are going to really be tested this road trip, but we are excited and ready to take on Saint Martin's on Thursday. I can see that they are improving, and we will need to play well to get a positive result against them."
 
'JACKETS REMAIN IN REGIONAL RANKINGS: After debuting in the United Soccer Coaches West Region poll at No. 10 last week, the Yellowjackets climbed one spot to No. 9 in the latest rankings released on Tuesday.
 
KEENAN SAVES THE DAY: Second-year goalkeeper Clare Keenan was at the root of Saturday's win over Central Washington, making nine stellar saves to help the Yellowjackets' 2-1 score line hold up. Keenan faced a season-high 17 shots in the match against the Wildcats, and constantly made diving stops and 1-on-1 denials that limited the persistent CWU offense to one late goal. Keenan leads the GNAC in saves per game with 5.4, making 27 total stops in her five matches played this season.
 
GNAC Women's Soccer Saves Per Game Leaders (as of Sept. 29, 2021)

Rank	Player	School	Games	Saves	Per Game
1	Clare Keenan	MSUB	5	27	5.4
2	Alexis Montoya	NNU	6	32	533
3	Megan Fox	CWU	5	26	5.2
4	Ali Campigotto	SMU	4	16	4.0
5	Darien Walton	WOU	6	20	3.33
	Kelsey Fisher	SFU	6	20	3.33
7	Natalie Dierickx	WWU	7	20	2.86
8	Sophie Mendoza	SMU	3	8	2.67
9	Riley Travis	SPU	5	11	2.2

 
PALMER KEEPS PACE AMONG SCORING LEADERS: Freshman Liberty Palmer scored her third goal of the season in the win over the Wildcats, helping her keep pace with the early GNAC scoring leaders. Palmer is tied for third in the league in total goals scored, and is fourth in the conference with seven total points for an average of 1.0 points per game. No one in the conference is a more accurate shooter than Palmer, as her 14 shots on goal are the most in the league and her shots-on-goal percentage of 70.0 is the highest among any player who is averaging at least two shots per game.
 
GNAC Women's Soccer Shots-On-Goal Percentage Leaders (as of Sept. 29, 2021)

Rank	Player	School	Shots	SOG	SOG%
1	Liberty Palmer	MSUB	20	14	.700
2	Tera Ziemer	WWU	17	11	.647
3	Sophia Chilczuk	SPU	11	7	.636
4	Chloe Gellhaus	SPU	12	7	.583
5	Sydney Lowe	CWU	14	8	.571
6	Maddie Smith	MSUB	18	9	.500
	Madison Grande	NNU	16	8	.500
	Carolyn Moravec	NNU	12	6	.500
9	Makinzie Packwood	CWU	17	8	.471
10	Makena Rietz	SPU	11	5	.455

 *Minimum 2.0 shot attempts per game
 
ROE NETS ANOTHER GAME-WINNER: Second-year freshman Jordan Roe scored her fifth-career goal in the win over CWU, and made it three game-winning finishes among her five strikes. Through the first 15 matches of her collegiate career Roe has recorded a dozen points for an average of 0.8 points per game.
 
SMITH CHIPS IN ANOTHER ASSIST: Freshman Maddie Smith served up the corner-kick cross that led to Roe's game-winning header goal, as she delivered the second assist of her young career. Smith ranks third on the team with four points through her first seven college games, and earned her first-career start in the match against the Wildcats. Smith has shown similar accuracy to Palmer in the shooting department, ranking sixth in the conference in shots-on-goal percentage at 50.0 including a GNAC-third best nine shots on target.
 
CLARK COLLECTS FIRST POINT: Freshman Leila Clark picked up the first point of her college career, providing the assist on Palmer's goal against CWU last week. Clark has seen action in all seven of the Yellowjackets' games, and made her second start in the match against the Wildcats.
 

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Saint Martin's University Saints
Thursday, September 30, 2021 – 1 PM (Pacific) – SMU Soccer Field – Lacey, Washington
2021 Record: 2-4, 1-1 GNAC
Head Coach: Heather Cato, 5th season
2019 Record: 4-13-2, 2-10 GNAC (8th place)
 
Like the Yellowjackets, the Saints split on their opening weekend of conference play. After beating Western Oregon 2-0 in the GNAC opener, SMU fell 2-1 at the hands of Simon Fraser University in its most recent match. The Saints will host No. 7 Seattle Pacific University on Saturday after Thursday's match against the 'Jackets.
 
Six different Saints have found the back of the net this season, with Kiersten Madsen leading the way with a pair of goals. Madsen is looking to get back to her 2018 form, when she was an honorable mention all-GNAC pick after leading the team with five goals and three assists.
 
While the Saints have managed just seven goals in their first six games of the year, they have relied on a stingy defense that has conceded just six goals thus far. Payton Aselton, Jordyn Jolley, and Salma Perez are the three SMU players who have started all six matches this season. In goal, Ali Campigotto and Soph Mendoza have split time and have combined for a pair of shutouts.
 
The Series: MSUB carries a 13-9-2 all-time record against the Saints into Thursday's game, and the 'Jackets are 7-3-2 in road contests. SMU is 4-2 over the last six meetings between the teams dating back to the 2016 season.
 
Last Time Out: In the final match before the coronavirus pandemic began, the Yellowjackets cruised to a 5-1 victory over the Saints to end the 2019 season on a positive note in Washington.
 

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Western Oregon University Wolves
Saturday, October 2, 2021 – 11 AM (Pacific) – WOU Soccer Field – Monmouth, Oregon
2021 Record: 1-5, 0-2 GNAC
Head Coach: Kacey Bingham, 3rd season
2019 Record: 10-6-3, 7-3-2 GNAC (3rd place)
 
The Wolves dropped their first two conference games of the season, falling 2-0 to Saint Martin's before a narrow 2-1 defeat against then-No. 8 Western Washington last week on the road. WOU plays No. 7 Seattle Pacific on Thursday before hosting the Yellowjackets on Saturday. The Wolves' lone victory of the year was a 1-0 triumph over Humboldt State University on Sept. 12, as WOU looks to get back to its 2019 form when it took third in the GNAC in Kacey Bingham's debut season in charge of the program.
 
WOU has managed just three goals in its first six matches of the year, with Jada Foster scoring twice and Piper Matson adding the third. Matson also has an assist, while Hannah Rispler and Concordia transfer Chloe Smith each have an assist as well.
 
WOU has used consistency within its lineup, with 7 of 11 players starting all six matches this fall. In goal, Darien Walton has made all six starts with 20 saves and one shutout to her name while holding a goals-against average of 1.60.
 
The Series: MSUB is 11-10-4 all-time against WOU and holds a record of 3-7-2 in matches played in Monmouth. The series has been even at 2-2-2 over the last six meetings dating back to 2016.
 
Last Time Out: WOU claimed a 3-1 victory over MSUB the last time the teams played, on Oct. 17, 2019 in Oregon.