Women’s Soccer Set to Return for 30th Season
OSHKOSH, Wis.- The UW-Oshkosh women's soccer team will celebrate their 30th season in 2023 as they compete for the third WIAC regular season title and fourth WIAC tournament title in program history.
UW-Oshkosh tallied a 5-9-5 (1-3-3 WIAC) record in 2022, scoring six points in the WIAC.
Twenty letterwinners are returning for the Titans this season, including 2021 All-WIAC First Team member and Newcomer of the Year, Molly Jackson and 2021 All-WIAC First selection, Rylie Kaufmann.
Head coach Erin Coppernoll, the winningest coach in UW-Oshkosh women's soccer history and the third-winningest in the WIAC, returns for her 19th season leading the Titans with a record of 188-133-39.
Coppernoll is the only head coach that has led the team to a conference championship and the NCAA Division III Tournament, with a program-best Second Round finish in 2011.
The Titans were picked to finish fourth in the WIAC in 2023, two places higher than they took in 2022. UW-La Crosse, the defending conference champions, were picked to win the league for the second year in a row. UW-Eau Claire was placed second, and UW-Whitewater was placed third to fill out the spots above UWO. UW-Stevens Point, UW-Platteville, UW-Stout, and UW-River Falls filled out the remaining four spots in order.
"Coach CJ and myself are looking forward to this season," Coppernoll said. "We had a great spring season with the returners and the incoming freshman class is very talented. Our schedule will certainly challenge us this season, but it will prepare us well for WIAC play."
The Titans will host four WIAC foes in 2023 – UW-La Crosse on Sept. 30, UW-Stout on Oct. 7, UW-Stevens Point on Oct. 18, and UW-River Falls on Oct. 21. The team will travel to UW-Whitewater (Oct. 4), UW-Eau Claire (Oct. 14), and UW-Platteville (Oct. 28) for the remainder of their WIAC schedule.
Besides UW-La Crosse, who was ranked No. 13 in the United Soccer Coaches preseason poll, UWO will matchup against four teams that competed in the 2022 NCAA Division III postseason. They open their season with games against No. 6 Christopher Newport University (Va.) and No. 4 Virginia Wesleyan University on Sept. 1 and 3, respectively, in Virginia Beach, Va. Their last nonconference match before league play begins will be against No. 15 Loras College (Iowa) at home on Sept. 27. In UW-Oshkosh's penultimate match of the regular season, they will travel to Mequon and face Concordia University Wisconsin on Oct. 24.
The WIAC Tournament (presented by Culver's) begins with a pair of opening-round games on Oct. 31 and concludes with semifinal round games on Nov. 2 and the final on Nov. 4. The winner of the tournament will receive an automatic NCAA bid.