Horned Frogs Set For Saturday Night Showdown
10/2/2009 12:00:00 AM | Women's Soccer
Oct. 1, 2009
FORT WORTH, Texas - The TCU women's soccer program will open conference play on Saturday night under the lights at New Mexico.Start time for the match against the Lobos is set for 6 p.m. CT at the UNM Soccer Complex in Albuquerque.
Follow The Horned Frogs
Fans not able to attend this Saturday's conference match at New Mexico can follow the game live by logging onto www.gofrogs.com. There you can find links to gametracker and listen to the contest live via gofrogs.com. Both links are located on the women's soccer schedule page.
All regular season home contests will be broadcast live via webstreaming on gofrogs.com.
Scouting New Mexico
New Mexico, who will be sporting pink jerseys this weekend to support the UNM Cancer Center, comes into Saturday's contest with an 8-1-2 overall record. The Lobos, who are coming off a 2-1 setback to Northern Arizona at home last Friday night, opened the season winning six-straight before tieing Tulsa and Rice.
Following a 1-0 victory over Texas in Austin, New Mexico downed Northern Colorado before dropping its first game of the season to the Lumberjacks last weekend.
The Lobos, who are off to their best start in program history, are led on offense by sophomore Jennifer Williams. Williams has sparked the UNM offense this fall, scoring eight goals, while dishing out five assists. On defense, the Lobos' Kelli Cornell has shut out seven opponents, while recording an .818 save percentage.
Scouting TCU
The Horned Frogs, who are currently on a two-match winning streak, enter conference play with a 7-4-0 overall record. The Purple and White have posted a 2-1-0 record on the road this fall and have outscored their opponent, 9-2, in their last two outings, including a 5-2 drilling of Stephen F. Austin last Friday night.
Sophomore sensation Jordan Calhoun closed out the non-conference portion of the schedule, netting a hat trick against Stephen F. Austin. Overall, Calhoun has posted eight goals and six assists this fall, while senior forward Lizzy Karoly has recorded five goals in 11 games.
The Horned Frogs have used freshman Kira Michelson-Bartlett and junior Kelsey Walters between the posts during the non-conference portion of their schedule. Bartlett has started the last three games, recording a 2-1-0 record, while Walters has gone 5-3-0 overall. Both keepers have combined to save 36 shots this fall.
The Series Breakdown
TCU and New Mexico will battle on Saturday night for the 10th time in program history. The Lobos lead the all-time series 5-3-1, but the Frogs have won the last two meetings between the two Mountain West Conference schools. In 2007, TCU traveled to Albuquerque, dropping UNM, 1-0. Last fall, TCU dominated the contest in Fort Worth, downing the Lobos 3-1 at Garvey-Rosenthal Soccer Stadium.
Overall, New Mexico's last win against the Horned Frogs came in 2005. UNM used a steady attack to upend the Frogs at home, 3-0.
Match Notes
When breaking down the matchup this weekend, TCU has had some recent success against the Lobos, recording a 2-0-1 record against UNM in its last three outings. New Mexico owned the series from 1993-1997, dropping the Frogs by a combined score of 19-3. Under head coach Dan Abdalla, TCU has only fell once to UNM, which came in a 3-0 setback during Abdalla's first year in Fort Worth.
Looking At Similar Opponents
Both TCU and New Mexico have faced Rice and Texas this fall. The Frogs went 2-0-0 against the two Texas schools, while UNM posted a 1-0-1 record against the Owls and Longhorns.
TCU opened the 2009 season, downing UT, 2-1, while New Mexico recently blanked Texas, 1-0. The Purple and White used a late goal to defeat Rice, 2-1, in Houston, while the Lobos tied the Owls, 1-1.
Conference Openers Under Abdalla
Under Abdalla, TCU is 2-2-0 in conference openers, but has been victorious the last two seasons. The Frogs downed Air Force to open conference play in 2007 before dropping this Saturday's opponent New Mexico last fall, 3-1, at Garvey-Rosenthal Soccer Stadium. In the four conference openers, TCU has netted a total of six goals.
Calhoun Continues Hat Trick Streak
By netting three goals last weekend against Stephen F. Austin, Jordan Calhoun continued an impressive streak under head coach Dan Abdalla. The Frogs have now posted a hat trick in four of Abdalla's five seasons in Fort Worth. Overall, TCU has had a player record a hat trick seven different times in the program's history. Calhoun, Lizzy Karoly and Jackie Torda have each posted hat tricks the past three seasons.
Second Half Success
Through the non-conference portion of its schedule, TCU has fared very well during the late stages of games, outshooting its opponent 99-57 in the second half, while also scoring 14 goals during the second frame compared to 10 in the first half. In corner kicks, the Frogs have recorded a 44-13 advantage in the second half, including a 12-3 advantage in the second half during their final two non-conference matches against Stephen F. Austin and Texas Woman's.
Calhoun Honored By Mountain West Conference
TCU sophomore Jordan Calhoun was selected as the Mountain West Conference Offensive Player of the Week on Monday. Calhoun, a native of Norman, Okla., netted three goals and assisted on another to lead the Horned Frogs to a 5-2 victory over Stephen F. Austin last Friday night. With her first career hat trick, Calhoun has now posted 23 goals for her career, which moves her into No. 3 all-time in career goals. She is only the second MWC player this season to record a hat trick in a match, while also posting the second highest point total this fall in a single match in the conference.
Mountain West Statistics Update
Heading into Saturday's contest, TCU currently ranks No. 1 in the conference in shots (202), points (67), goals (24) and goals-per-game (2.18). The Frogs are No. 2 in assists (19), assists-per-game (1.73) and corners (81).
Individually, sophomore Jordan Calhoun leads the MWC in points (22), points-per-game (2.00), assists and assists-per-game with six and 0.55, respectively, on the season. Calhoun also ranks No. 2 in the MWC in shots (41), shots-per-game (3.73), goals (8) and goals-per-game (0.73). Senior Lizzy Karoly ranks No. 4 in goals (5) and goals-per-game (0.45), while Kaylie Garcia is currently No. 4 in game-winning goals (2).
Up Next
TCU will open conference play at home next Thursday against Air Force. The match is set for 11:30 a.m. at Garvey-Rosenthal Soccer Stadium.
