Oklahoma State University Athletics
Cowgirls Set To Battle Texas Tech Friday Night
October 14, 2009 | Cowgirl Soccer
Oct. 14, 2009
Oklahoma State (8-7-0, 2-5-0)
at Texas Tech (8-6-1, 3-2-1)
Friday, Oct. 16 • 7 p.m.
John Walker Soccer Complex (1,500)
Oklahoma State
Oklahoma State heads to Lubbock, Texas, for its final road match of the regular season Friday night against Texas Tech. Coach Colin Carmichael's squad is coming off a 1-0 win over Texas last Sunday, a victory that snapped a four-game losing streak for the Cowgirls. OSU is 8-7-0 overall and in a tie with Oklahoma for eighth place in the Big 12 standings with a 2-5-0 league record.
OSU, which has suffered six of its seven losses this season by one goal, has outscored its opponents 29-12 on the season, and 11 different players have collected goals. Annika Niemeier leads the scoring attack with five goals, while four Cowgirls have recorded four goals apiece. Freshman goalkeeper AD Franch leads the Big 12 with six shutouts, two of those coming in league play.
Texas Tech
The Red Raiders are 8-6-1 overall and tied for third in the Big 12 standings with a 3-2-1 mark. OSU leads the all-time series with Texas Tech by an 8-5-1 count, which includes two wins last season -- a 5-1 triumph in Stillwater and a 3-0 victory in the first round of the Big 12 Soccer Championship in San Antonio.
Players To Watch: MF Dawn Ward, MF Taylor Lytle
In The Polls
OSU and Texas Tech are both unranked in the national polls. The Red Raiders are tied for 10th in the NSCAA/adidas Central Region Rankings, while the Cowgirls are receiving votes.
Live Scoring On The Web
Fans can follow Friday's game by accessing GameTracker live stats via the internet at the official OSU Athletics website: www.okstate.com. The link for live stats can be found under the Schedule/Results link on the soccer home page.
The Defense Never Rests
One of the biggest reasons for OSU's increased success over the last several seasons are defenses that have been among the best in the Big 12 Conference.
Through 15 games of the 2009 season, OSU leads the Big 12 with eight shutouts. The Cowgirls also sport a 0.79 goals against average and have allowed just 12 goals, both of which rank second in the league.
In 2008, OSU allowed just 18 goals and recorded 10 shutouts. The Cowgirls ranked third in the Big 12 in goals allowed and goals against average (0.75).
The Cowgirls tied a school record with 12 shutouts in '06, and that total also tied OSU for the most blankings by a Big 12 team. Opponents attempted just 255 shots against the Cowgirls and only 16 of those found the back of the net. OSU ranked first in the league in goals allowed, and its 0.66 goals against average was also tops in the conference.
OSU recorded 10 shutouts in 2007, which once again tied for the most in the Big 12, and the Cowgirls ranked among the conference's best in goals allowed (20), goals-against average (0.84) and save percentage (82.1).
Terrific Trio
OSU's 2009 senior class -- Siera Strawser, Kasey Langdon and Bridget Miller -- has had quite a successful career during its time in Stillwater. On the current list of the winningest senior classes in Division I soccer, OSU's trio ranks 14th with a record of 57-17-10 (.738). Among Big 12 Conference teams, only Texas A&M's senior class has more wins over the last four seasons with 62.
Records Are Made To Be Broken
A pair of Cowgirls are climbing the OSU career charts and are on the verge of vaulting to the top of several of those lists.
• Siera Strawser has 30 career goals and needs five to reach OSU's all-time mark, which is held by Yolanda Odenyo and Jolene Schweitzer.
• Strawser is OSU's career leader in shots with 258.
• With 17 career assists, Strawser needs just two more to move into the top five on OSU's all-time list.
• Kasey Langdon needs just one assist to move into second all time at OSU. Langdon has racked up 24 assists in her first three seasons in Stillwater.
• Langdon has 23 career goals, leaving her only one shy of moving into the top five on the Cowgirls' career list.
• Strawser and Langdon rank fourth and sixth on OSU's all-time scoring list with 77 and 70 points. Odenyo's 90 points top the list.
1-2 Punch
Seniors Kasey Langdon and Siera Strawser give OSU one of the top scoring duos in the Big 12.
Last season, Langdon and Strawser combined for 24 goals and 21 assists, accounting for 34 percent of OSU's scoring. They have combined for eight goals and four assists through 15 games this season.
Both players rank among the top six on OSU's career charts in goals, assists and points.
Importing Offense
Junior Annika Niemeier leads the Cowgirls with five goals, three of those game winners. The German also leads the squad in scoring with 12 points and is tied for second with a pair of assists.
With 14 career goals, Niemeier needs just two to move into the top 10 on OSU's all-time list, and she is only one assist shy of moving into the top 10 in that category.
Fabulous Freshmen
OSU leads the Big 12 with eight shutouts and ranks second in goals against average (0.79), and goals allowed (12).
A big reason for OSU's staunch defense is a pair of freshmen -- goalie AD Franch and defender Carson Michalowski. Franch leads the Big 12 with six shutouts, and her 0.73 goals against average ranks second. Franch is poised to shatter the OSU record for season GAA by a freshman (min. 900 minutes), which is held by Breanna Truelove (1.37 GAA in 2004). Michalowski has started every game at defender in her first season in Stillwater.
A freshman is also tied for second on the team lead in goals as Megan Marchesano has four. She is fifth on the team in scoring.
