Cowgirl Soccer Hosts No. 6 Texas Before Bedlam Showdown

September 26, 2018 | Cowgirl Soccer

Game Notes

#12 Oklahoma State (10-1-0, 2-0-0)
vs. #6 Texas (9-0-1, 1-0-0)
Fri., Sept. 28 • 7 p.m. • Stillwater, Okla.
Neal Patterson Stadium (2,500)
•••
at Oklahoma (5-5-1, 1-1-0)
Sun., Sept. 30 • 2 p.m. • Norman, Okla.
John Crain Field (3,500)

About Oklahoma State
     • OSU opened Big 12 Conference play last weekend with road wins at Kansas State and Kansas as the Cowgirls improved to 10-1-0 on the season. The 12th-ranked Cowgirls have won seven in a row, their longest winning streak since 2011, and host No. 6 Texas Friday night before a Bedlam showdown with Oklahoma Sunday afternoon in Norman.
     • OSU is coming off a 16-4-3 season in 2017 in which it claimed the sixth Big 12 championship in program history (third regular season title) by going 8-1-0 in league play. The Cowgirls tied a program record for conference wins along the way and also advanced to the second round of the NCAA Women's Soccer Championship for the first time since 2011.
     • OSU's 16 wins marked its highest win total since 2011 and the fifth highest in program history.
     • The Cowgirls return 15 letterwinners in 2018, including 10 players who started at least 12 games last season, and 76 percent of the players who accounted for OSU's Big 12-best 45 goals in 2017 are also back.
     • The 2018 season marks the 23rd in the history of the Cowgirl Soccer program; over the first 22 years, OSU compiled a 238-141-44 (.615) record. Head coach Colin Carmichael entered his 14th season at the helm with a 180-74-37 mark.

What A Way To Kick Things Off
     OSU opened its new $20 million stadium in grand fashion on Aug. 19, 2018, when the Cowgirls bested rival Oklahoma, 2-1, in front of a record 4,122 fans in their season opener.
     A few notables from the first match in Neal Patterson Stadium:
     • The crowd of 4,122 was a record for an OSU home match, far surpassing the previous high of 2,660 which came at the Cowgirls' NCAA Women's Soccer Championship quarterfinal game against Notre Dame at the Cowgirl Soccer Complex on Nov. 26, 2010.
     • OSU sophomore Kim Rodriguez recorded the first goal in the stadium's history when she converted a penalty kick at the 14:43 mark.
     • Cowgirl freshman Elena Brynjarsdóttir's goal in the 29th minute proved to be the game winner.

Making History
     OSU's 1-0 double overtime victory over No. 4 Florida marked only the second time in program history the Cowgirls have beaten a top-five ranked team. The other came on Oct. 14, 2007, when OSU won at No. 5 Missouri.
     Marlo Zoller's golden goal off a Julia Lenhardt assist in the 103rd minute gave OSU the win over the Gators.

This Week's Opponents
     Texas owns a 9-0-1 record and opened Big 12 play with an overtime win against Baylor last Friday in Austin. Junior Cyera Hintzen leads the league with eight goals. OSU sports an 11-10-6 all-time record against UT and is unbeaten in its last six matches against the Longhorns (4-0-2) dating back to 2012.
     Last 5 Meetings
     2017 - OSU 1, UT 0 - OT (Austin)
     2016 - OSU 2, UT 1 - 2 OT (Austin)
     2015 - OSU 0, UT 0- 2 OT (Stillwater)
     2014 - OSU 2, UT 1 (Austin)
     2013 - OSU 2, OSU 1 (Kansas City - Big 12 Championship 1st round)
     Oklahoma is 5-5-1 overall and 1-1-0 in the Big 12 entering a Friday match at home against Texas Tech. OSU is 24-8-3 all time against OU and has won four straight against the Sooners, including a 2-1 victory in the season opener in which Kim Rodriguez and Elena Brynjarsdóttir netted goals.
     Last 5 Meetings
     2018 - OSU 2, OU 1 (Stillwater)
     2017 - OSU 2, OU 1 (Kansas City - Big 12 Championship 1st round)
     2017 - OSU 4, OU 1 (Stillwater)
     2017 - OSU 2, OU 1 (Norman)
     2016 - OU 2, OSU 0 (Stillwater)

Winning Is A Habit
   Now in its 23rd season, Oklahoma State soccer has built itself into an established winner.
     • OSU has earned a berth in the NCAA Women's Soccer Championship 10 of the last 12 years (beginning in 2006) and four of the last five.
     • From 2006-11, the Cowgirls earned six-straight NCAA tourney bids and advanced to at least the second round each time, including back-to-back Elite Eight appearances in 2010 and 2011.
     • From 2008-11, OSU celebrated four consecutive Big 12 championships — two regular season (2008, '11) and two tournament ('09, '10).

Home Sweet Home
     OSU is off to a 5-0-0 start at the new Neal Patterson Stadium. The Cowgirls were 9-0-1 on their home field in 2017, which marked the sixth time in program history they have gone undefeated at home. OSU went 84-16-10 (.809) at the Cowgirl Soccer Complex from 2008-17 and was 142-40-17 (.756) all time on its former home turf.

Quick Kick
     OSU came in at No. 12 in this week's official NCAA RPI. Texas is 10th, while OU is No. 66. The Big 12 is the top RPI conference in the NCAA this season.
Rare Company
     Forward Haley Woodard became the fourth All-American in Cowgirl Soccer history and first since 2012 when she was named to the United Soccer Coaches All-America Third Team as a junior in 2017.
     Woodard joined three-timers Yolanda Odenyo (2006-08) and AD Franch (2010-12) and twice-honored Melinda Mercado (2010-11) on the list of OSU All-Americans.

Preseason Pub
     • Oklahoma State was picked to finish second behind West Virginia in the 2018 Big 12 Conference standings in a preseason vote of the league's head coaches; the Cowgirls received one first-place vote. Last season, OSU was picked sixth in the preseason before going on to win the league.
     • Senior forward Haley Woodard was the lone Cowgirl named to the 2018 Preseason All-Big 12 Team.
     • Woodard is listed at No. 35 on the TopDrawerSoccer.com Women's National Top 100 players for 2018.
     • Defender Anna Lawler was named to the 2018 TopDrawerSoccer.com Women's Preseason Best XI Freshman Team.

Got Back, Time To Stay Awhile
     On Aug. 29, 2017, OSU entered the national rankings for the first time in five years on when the Cowgirls checked in at No. 19 in the United Soccer Coaches poll. The last time OSU had appeared in the rankings was Oct. 1, 2012, when it was No. 22 in the NSCAA poll.
     The Cowgirls remained in the national rankings for 13-straight weeks, peaking at No. 9 in late October, and finished as high as No. 17 in the final TopDrawerSoccer.com poll.
     OSU ran its streak of appearing in the national polls to 20 weeks this week as the Cowgirls are ranked as high as 12th by Soccer America; OSU is also ranked 13th in the United Soccer Coaches poll and 17th by TopDrawerSoccer.com. The Cowgirls are No. 2 in the United Soccer Coaches Midwest Region rankings.

Leading The Attack
     Forward Haley Woodard was named the 2017 Big 12 Offensive Player of the Year after scoring eight goals and posting three assists. Her eight goals ranked third in the league with her 19 points ranking fifth, and she led the league lead with four goals and nine points in conference-only games.
     Woodard played in just 18 games last season due to injury and averaged 0.44 goals per game. She racked up 17 goals in 52 games in her first three seasons in a Cowgirl uniform.
     Woodard was the second-straight Cowgirl to be named the Big 12 Offensive Player of the Year (Courtney Dike in 2016) and the third in program history (Yolanda Odenyo in 2008).
     In 2018, Woodard has tallied five goals and an assist, and her 22 career goals is two shy of cracking OSU's top 10.

How I Spent My Summer Vacation
     Kim Rodriguez was named to the 2017 Big 12 All-Freshman Team after scoring a pair of goals and tallying three assists while showcasing the versatility to play in the midfield and back line in her first collegiate season.
     This summer, Rodriguez continued to shine in Mexico's national team system as she started all three matches at defender for Mexico at the FIFA Under-20 Women's World Cup in France in August. She previously played for Mexico at the youth national team level at the 2014 and 2016 FIFA U17 World Cups.
     Rodriguez is tied for second on the Cowgirls in scoring this season with 11 points on three goals and five assists.

Two-Headed Monster
     The Cowgirls have employed an unconventional two-goalie rotation in 2018 with sophomore Dani Greenlee and redshirt freshman Hannah Warner splitting time in goal. The two alternate starts and generally, each plays a half of each match.
     The two-goalie system has paid dividends, with OSU posting five shutouts and allowing only seven goals through 11 games. The two have combined for 40 saves, a 0.63 goals against average and an .851 save percentage.

Save The Best For Last
     Senior Marlo Zoller is enjoying a career year in her final collegiate season.
     The forward leads OSU with a career-high six goals, a total that is tied for second in the Big 12, and four of those goals have been credited as game winners, which is tied for the league lead and ranks fifth nationally. She has also tallied a pair of assists to give her a team-leading 14 points, and 58 percent of her shots (15-of-26) have been on goal.