Oklahoma State University Athletics
Oklahoma State University
West Virginia
Cowgirls Conclude Regular Season Home Slate
October 21, 2015 | Cowgirl Soccer
Oklahoma State (8-6-2, 1-2-2)
vs. #2 West Virginia (14-1-1, 5-0-1)
Fri., Oct. 23 • 7 p.m. • Stillwater, Okla.
Cowgirl Soccer Complex (1,450)
vs. Kansas (8-6-1, 3-2-0)
Sun., Oct. 25 • 1 p.m. • Stillwater, Okla.
Cowgirl Soccer Complex (1,450)
Oklahoma State
Oklahoma State puts its five-match unbeaten streak on the line this weekend with its final two home contests of the regular season at the Cowgirl Soccer Complex as the Cowgirls host No. 2 West Virginia Friday at 7 p.m. before a Sunday showdown against Kansas at 1 p.m. Winners of three-straight games, OSU is 8-6-2 overall and tied for seventh place in the Big 12 Conference standings at 1-2-2.
OSU is coming off a 2014 season in which it earned a spot in the NCAA Women's Soccer Championship for the second-straight season. The Cowgirls compiled a 10-10-1 overall record, which included a 5-2-1 mark and second-place finish in the Big 12 standings.
The Cowgirls return 10 starters and 17 letterwinners from 2014, including four All-Big 12 performers in forwards Courtney Dike and Madison Mercado, midfielder Allie Stephenson and defender Natalie Calhoun.
The 2015 season marks the 20th in the history of the OSU women's soccer program. Over their first 19 seasons, the Cowgirls compiled a 229-132-42 (.620) record, and head coach Colin Carmichael entered his 11th season at the helm with a 146-52-29 mark. The Cowgirls have earned a berth in the NCAA Women's Soccer Championship in seven of the last eight years and have claimed Big 12 titles in four of the last seven seasons.
About The Opponents
West Virginia is 14-1-1 on the season and atop the Big 12 standings with a 5-0-1 league mark. The Mountaineers' lone loss came Aug. 23 against Virginia Tech, and they tied Oklahoma on Oct. 9.
OSU is 0-4-0 all time against West Virginia, with each match being decided by one goal.
Kansas enters a Friday match at Texas Tech with an 8-6-1 record and is in fourth in the Big 12 standings with a 3-2-0 mark. OSU is 9-9-3 all time against Kansas; the Jayhawks were 2-1 winners over the Cowgirls last season in Lawrence.
On The Air & The Web
Fans wishing to follow this weekend's matches can do so in a variety of ways. Both matches will stream free online on YouTube, with the link available at www.okstate.com/live, and live stats will be also available at www.okstate.com (link is available under the Schedule tab on the Cowgirl soccer page). Radio calls also air online and on Stillwater Radio KGFY 105.5 FM, with Bill Van Ness calling the action.
Home Sweet Home
The Cowgirls are 5-1-2 on their home field in 2015. OSU is 69-10-9 (.835) at the Cowgirl Soccer Complex since 2008 and is 127-34-16 (.763) all time on its current home turf.
Milestone For Carmichael
Oklahoma State head coach Colin Carmichael recorded career win No. 150 on Sept. 18 against Arizona State. Now in his 11th season as the Cowgirls' head coach, Carmichael has been on the OSU coaching staff since the program's inception in 1996.
Stat Speak
Oklahoma State ranks second in the Big 12 in goals (31), shots (281) and corner kicks (97). Of OSU's 281 shots this season, 126 have been on goal for a .448 shots on goal percentage; its opponents own a .335 shots on goal percentage.
She Shoots, She Scores
Courtney Dike quickly established herself as a prolific scorer at the collegiate level as a freshman in 2013, and she has continued that scoring production for the Cowgirls.
The forward from Edmond, Okla., ranked second in the Big 12 in 2013 with 13 goals and 30 points and earned All-Big 12 Second Team and All-Newcomer Team honors. Her 13 goals tied for the fourth most in a single season in OSU history, three shy of Yolanda Odenyo's record 16, while her 30 points was the eighth highest single-season total all time.
Dike recorded three two-goal performances — vs. Vanderbilt, Oklahoma and Missouri State — which marked the most multi-goal games by a Cowgirl since 2010, and of her 58 shots, 30 of those (52 percent) were on goal. She was named the Big 12 Offensive Player and Newcomer of the Week on two occasions in 2013.
In 2014, Dike recorded three goals, two of them game winners, and three assists in 19 games. This season, she ranks in the top six in the Big 12 in goals (5), assists (6) and points (16).
Dike's 21 career goals is tied for 10th on OSU's all-time list, and she is just outside the career top 10 in assists (13) and points (55).
Senior Scoring Sparks
Two key members of OSU's offensive attack the last several years are back for their senior seasons in 2015. That duo of Allie Stephenson and Madison Mercado has combined for 34 goals and 25 assists in their careers.
Stephenson has started 77 career games and has racked up 18 goals and 12 assists. As a junior, she led OSU's attack as she played a role in nine of the Cowgirls' 22 scores (41 percent). The midfielder recorded six goals — two via penalty kick — and three assists and ranked in the top 10 in the Big 12 in goals, points (15) and shots (60). She led the squad with 23 shots on goal.
Mercado has notched 16 goals and 13 assists in her first three-plus seasons. She recorded four or more scores in each of her first three seasons, and she ranked second in the Big 12 with seven assists as a sophomore in 2013.
New Faces
Only five newcomers joined the OSU roster in 2015, but four of those have become immediate contributors.
Freshmen forwards Marlo Zoller and Haley Woodard have combined for seven goals and two assists, while JUCO transfer Christina Jean-Charles has started all 16 games and is second on the Cowgirls with four assists. Another freshman, Morgan McDougal, has seen action as a reserve in 13 matches.
Scoring & Sharing The Wealth
Through 16 games this season, OSU has recorded 31 goals and 20 assists. In 21 games in 2014, the Cowgirls had 22 goals and 15 assists.
Thirteen different Cowgirls have collected goals in 2015, with six of those having three or more scores, and nine different OSU players have collected assists.
OSU has scored multiple goals in nine matches this season, easily surpassing its total from 2014. A year ago, the Cowgirls did not score more than two goals in a game — they've done it four times this season.
