Titans to Face Blugolds in First Round of WIAC Tournament
OSHKOSH, Wis.- The sixth-seeded UW-Oshkosh Titans women's soccer team (5-8-5, 1-3-3 WIAC) will face the third-seeded UW-Eau Claire Blugolds (11-5-2, 4-2-1 WIAC) in the first round of the WIAC tournament in Eau Claire at 5 p.m. on Tuesday.
How They Got Here
The Titans made their way into the playoffs as the sixth seed with a 2-1 victory over UW-River Falls on Saturday. Junior Rylie Kaufmann scored her sixth goal of the season at the 25th minute to put the Titans up 1-0. After a Falcon goal in the 62nd minute to tie the match, Mackenzie Bennett scored her second goal of the year in the 88th minute to end River Falls' season for the second year in a row. She also scored the game winning goal against the Falcons last year, forcing them out of the playoff picture.
Last Matchup
The Titans and Blugolds last met in their regular season meeting on J. J. Keller Field at Titan Stadium. Oshkosh would fall to Eau Claire by a score of 1-2. Oshkosh's Mackenzie Stein stuck early, scoring the first goal of the match in the 8th minute. Unfortunately, the Blugolds would score the next two goals, in the 37thminute, and the 53rd. The Titans forced goalkeeper Kennedy Boll to face five shots on goal, but she saved four. Titan goalkeeper Mallory Kerhin faced eight shots on goal, saving six. Senior midfielder Emma Stange led the Blugolds with seven shots in the match, with four on goal. Mackenzie Bennett led the Titans with two shots. Five Titans had shots on goal.
Titan Leaders
Oshkosh scores 2.056 goals per game, good for second in the WIAC. Forwards, Greta Steines, and Rylie Kaufmann are tied for team lead with six goals each. Gabby Born leads the Titans with six assists on the season. Mallory Kerhin has started most matches between the posts for the Titans, allowing 1.39 games per match and saving 67 shots on the season.
Blugold Leaders
Junior Sydney Spencer leads the Blugolds with nine goals on the season and a 0.409 shooting percentage. Emma Stange tops the team with seven assists. Kennedy Boll allows 0.93 goals per game and has recorded five shutouts this season, tied for second with two other goalkeepers.
Looking Forward
With a win on Tuesday, the Titans would head out to La Crosse for the second time in three weeks to play the WIAC regular-season champion and No. 16 nationally ranked Eagles at 6 p.m. on Thursday.
The homepage for the tournament can be found here.