Live Video l Live Stats l 2018 SRU Stats l 2018 Walsh Stats

SLIPPERY ROCK, Pa. – The Slippery Rock University women's soccer team will open the 2019 season on the turf at Mihalik-Thompson Stadium with a non-conference matchup against Walsh University 7 p.m. Thursday.

WATCH ON YOUR TV - "ROCK ATHLETICS DIGITAL NETWORK" APPS
• Fans can watch the game live and on-demand for free on the Rock Athletics Digital Network, created and operated by the SRU athletic communication office.

• Search for Rock Athletics Digital Network in the app stores on Amazon Fire TV, Apple RV, Roku and Android TV devices. The streaming web player linked above will also integrate with Chrome Cast devices to allow viewers to cast the game to those devices.

MATCH DETAILS
Opponent: Walsh University
Date: Thursday, Sept. 5 – 7 p.m.
Location: Mihalik-Thompson Stadium
Live Stats: Link
Live Video: Link
In-game Updates: Twitter (@Rock_Athletics)
All-Time Series: Walsh leads the series 2-1
Last Played: Sept. 8, 2018 (1-0 Rock victory)

LAST MEETING
The Rock earned a 1-0 victory on the road against Walsh a season ago on Sept. 15, 2018. Skye Kramer delivered a pass to Madison Johnson who headed in her first goal of the 2018 season in the 77th minute. It would prove to be the game-winner as goalkeeper Emma Yoder would record eight saves on 14 shots faced.

SERIES HISTORY
Walsh leads the all-times series against The Rock, 2-1. The Cavaliers recorded a 4-2 victory on Sept. 10, 1994 and a 1-0 victory on Sept. 23, 1995. The Rock's 1-0 victory in 2018 was the programs first against Walsh.

SLIPPERY ROCK PRIMER
2018 Record: 12-5-2
2018 PSAC Record: 10-4-2
Postseason: PSAC Tournament berth
2018 Home Record: 7-1-1
2018 Away Record: 5-4-1
Last Five Games of 2018: 4-1
2019 Preseason Poll: Picked to win the PSAC West
Head Coach: Jessica Griggs l Fifth season at SRU (45-25-6)
 
SCOUTING THE ROCK 
• ​​​SEASON OPENERS – Slippery Rock has a 15-11 (.577) record in season openers since their inaugural season in 1993. The Rock defeated No. 22 West Virginia Wesleyan in the 2018 season opener 1-0 on a Kaitlyn Barackman goal in the 10th minute.

• SUSTAINED SUCCESS – SRU has established itself as one of the top programs in all of NCAA Division ll with 23 consecutive winning seasons. The streak is the seventh longest in NCAA history. Slippery Rock has registered 21 straight years with at least 10 wins as well as seven NCAA tournament appearances in the last 12 seasons. SRU is coming off a 2018 campaign that ended with a 12-5-2 record.

• MINDA RETURNS– Reigning PSAC Freshman of the Year Jordyn Minda returns to Slippery Rock after leading The Rock's offensive attack in 2018. Minda, the first to garner PSAC Freshman of the Year honors in program history, scored a team-high seven goals in 19 games.

• STRONG SENIOR CLASS – SRU returns a senior class that includes All-PSAC honoree Madison Johnson, Kaitlyn Barackman, Miranda Gallucci and Tyler Spence. Johnson returns after starting all 19 games in 2018. Barackman tied for third in goals scored (4) and fourth in points (8) last season for SRU. The Rock have compiled a combined 32-19-5 (.616) in the class's first three seasons.

• ROCK SOLID DEFENSE – Slippery Rock ranked fourth in the PSAC in goals allowed in 2018 with 17 and ranked fifth in save percentage at .843. Goalkeepers Kylie Downs and Emma Yoder led the way with a combined 90 saves, an .841 save percentage and 0.87 goals against average.

• FRIENDLY CONFINES OF MIHALIK-THOMPSON STADIUM– The Rock have recorded a 51-8-6 (.831) record, along with outscoring opponents 137-50 since 2004 in games held at Mihalik-Thompson Stadium.

NEXT FIVE GAMES
Sept. 8 (7 p.m.) at West Virginia Wesleyan
Sept. 11 (7 p.m.) at Clarion
Sept. 14 (2 p.m.) at Pitt-Johnstown
Sept. 18 (1 p.m.) vs Seton Hill
Sept. 21 (7 p.m.) at Mercyhurst

THIS WEEK IN ROCK HISTORY
•  Sept. 1, 2018 - The Rock record a 1-0 overtime win on the road against Kutztown. The game-winner was scored by Jordyn Minda, her first collegiate goal. Minda would go on to become the first Rock women's soccer player to earn PSAC Freshman of the Year honors.

•  Sept. 4, 1994 - SRU records the first home win in program history, a 2-0 win over SUNY Potsdam. The win marked the first shutout victory in program history.

•  Sept. 2, 2010 – Ashley Paganie scores two goals off the bench along with Dana O'Neill recording a shutout with four saves in a 2-0 win over West Virginia Wesleyan.

WALSH PRIMER
2018 Record: 15-5-1
2018 G-MAC Record: 11-2-1
Postseason: NCAA Tournament Second Round
2018 Home Record: 8-1
2018 Away Record: 5-3-1
Last Five Games of 2018: 3-2
Preseason Poll: Picked to win G-MAC
Head Coach: Lauren Lewicki l 5th season at Walsh (first as head coach) l 16-34-5 (.336)

SCOUTING THE CAVALIERS
•  The Cavaliers return four 2018 first-team All-Great Midwest team selections including Brianna Sanborn, Olivia Peters, Hannah Bowman and Mickey McClanahan.

•  Sanborn compiled a team-high 33 points last season on 13 goals and seven assists. She added 27 shots on goal, good enough for a .540 shot on goal percentage.

•  Walsh recorded ten shutouts last season, averaging less than a goal per game at 0.80 and a .137 shot percentage. Goalkeeper Mickey McClanahan returns after allowing less than a goal per game at 0.66 while recording a .824 save percentage.

•  On offense, the Cavaliers average over two goals per game (2.43) in 2018 to go along with an average of 17.7 shots per game.

•  Lauren Lewicki takes the reigns of the Cavalier women's soccer program after five seasons as an assistant coach. Walsh finished the 2018 season with a 15-5-1 record with a 11-2-1 record in the G-MAC, reaching the second round of the NCAA Tournament.

UP NEXT
Slippery Rock will hit the road for a key early-season Atlantic Region matchup against West Virginia Wesleyan 7 p.m. Sunday.


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