Undefeated Owls to start C-USA season tonight
After narrowly escaping San Marcos with a 1-0 win over Texas State University last Friday, the undefeated soccer team begins its conference schedule with two games at the Rice Track/Soccer Stadium this weekend. Rice (8-0-1) will take on the University of Central Florida tonight at 7 p.m. and the University of Southern Mississippi Sunday at 1 p.m.
Last season, the Owls rode a four-game unbeaten streak into their match against the Golden Knights, who at the time had the best record in Conference USA. In that game, UCF pounced on Rice, scoring two goals in the first 11 minutes en route to a 3-0 victory. Tonight’s game will be the second meeting ever between the two teams.
Head coach Chris Huston said her team is more focused on playing the Golden Knights this year, especially with an undefeated record to defend.
“Starting off against a team that beat us 3-0 at their place last year will only help our team,” Huston said. “We haven’t been beaten yet, so why start now?”
UCF (4-4-1) enters tonight’s contest following a 2-1 victory over the University of California-Santa Barbara last Sunday. Before that, the Golden Knights endured a brutal three-game stretch against Arizona State, then-No. 2 Florida State and then-No. 18 Kansas. Their offense has been atrocious in non-conference play — they rank 11th out of 12 teams in C-USA in goals per game, assists per game and total shots. Forward Roberta Pelarigo, UCF’s leading scorer from last year, has just two goals through nine games this year.
The Owls head into tonight’s game ranked 9th in the Soccer America poll and 30th in Soccerbuzz Magazine’s National Top 30, their first-ever appearance in that poll. In addition to the team recognition, senior goalkeeper Amy McClintock was named co-defensive player of the week by C-USA for the second time Tuesday. McClintock’s 0.23 goals against average is third best in the country, and her current streak of six consecutive complete-game shutouts is the longest in Rice soccer history.
As with UCF, the Owls’ meeting with Southern Miss (4-4-1) will be the second-ever between the two schools. Last season, Rice followed its loss to the Golden Knights with a 2-0 win over the Golden Eagles, thanks to a pair of goals from sophomore forward Caitlin Robbins. Southern Miss has not been a good team on the road this year, going 1-3-1 with a 1.4 goals per game average — as opposed to a 3.0 average at home. The Golden Eagles will face the University of Houston Friday night before their game against Rice. UCF will play UH Sunday afternoon.
After surviving the scare against Texas State, the Owls will avoid taking their first two C-USA opponents lightly. The Owls could not muster any offense in the first half despite having the wind at their backs during the entire half. For the contest, Rice tallied 20 shots, but only 5 of them were on goal. The Owls won the game in the 82nd minute when junior midfielder Samantha Conn converted a penalty kick. Even though their poor record indicated the game would be a blowout, the Bobcats played a tough match. Huston said the Owls’ undefeated record made them a target.
“We’ve been talking about how we are a marked team, but I don’t know if the team is really buying into that yet,” she said. “Hopefully, this was an eye-opener for them.
Ian White/ Thresher staff
Freshman defender/midfielder Katelyn Ostendorf is tied for fourth on the team with three goals this season. Rice, undefeated in non-conference play for the first time in its six-year history, will take on its first two C-USA opponents this weekend, facing UCF tonight at 7 p.m. and Southern Miss Sunday at 1 p.m. Both games will be held at the Rice Track/Soccer Stadium.
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