SAN ANTONIO – Looking to extend its win streak, UTSA soccer (2-1-1) will hit the road for the first time this season, heading to the Centennial State for a pair of Mountain West Conference matchups. Kickoff is 8 p.m. CDT on Thursday for the first, facing Colorado State (3-0) at CSU Soccer Field in Fort Collins. The game will be streamed live on Mountain West Network.
Following the action
Thursday’s road matchup will be streamed live on Colorado State’s MW Network page. Bobby Muaro (play-by-play) and Kaleb Allen (color) will be on the broadcast call.
Colorado State Athletics will provide LIVE STATS from Fort Collins.
About the Roadrunners
The Roadrunners earned back-to-back victories last week, securing a convincing 3-0 win over San Antonio’s St. Mary’s on Thursday, then trading regulation penalty kicks with UTSA triumphant over Lamar on Zoë May’s 81st-minute PK goal – while Jasmine Kessler made a clutch save on Lamar’s PK with :01 on the clock.
The junior goalie, Kessler was named American Conference Goalkeeper of the Week, while senior midfielder May earned American weekly Honorable Mention for her scoring and play toward UTSA defense allowing just eight on-target shots and no goals for the week.
The Roadrunners opened with an 0-1-1 record, holding a rising Houston squad to a 0-0 draw and then No. 9 TCU slipped out of San Antonio with a 1-0 win. Across the four-game homestand, UTSA logged 3,100 fans in attendance, ranking the Roadrunners 18th in national attendance after two weeks.
Typical for a Derek Pittman-coached team, Kessler is leading a UTSA defense that ranks 12th nationally on a conference-leading 0.25 GAA, 13th on an American-high .936 save percentage and is 11th nationally with a .750 shutout percentage – leading the American as well. Kessler just tied UTSA’s record with her 12th career solo shutout and is 25th nationally in save percentage (.950) and 27th in GAA (0.27), topping the American in both stats. May, freshman Brooklyn Bailey and redshirt sophomore Aaliyaiah Durden each have a goal to pace UTSA. Junior Michelle Polo leads the team with eight shots, while redshirt freshman Leah Varela and Bailey each have six attempts apiece – the Roadrunners average 13.3 shots per game.
About the Colorado State Rams
In the fifth season under Keeley Hagen, the Rams are off to 3-0 start after opening on a 2-1 win over Utah Tech, then hitting the road to topple Stetson (3-0) and then coming out of Tampa with a 1-0 win over American Conference foe South Florida. With two shutouts on the year, CSU is right up there with the Roadrunners on a 26th-ranked 0.33 GAA and 22nd-ranked .929 save percentage. The Rams take 9.3 shots per game, accurately landing 4.7 on target.
Two-time All-Mountain West senior forward Olivia Fout has 3-of-6 goals from the Rams, one in each outing, adding two assists and a team-high seven shots (five on goal). Junior midfielder Michaela McGowan, freshman defender Piper Carlson and sophomore forward Kaja Dionne each have a goal so far – McGowan also logging two assists and five shots. A sophomore transfer from Miami, Gray Willson has played every minute in goal, allowing one score for a 0.33 GAA, grabbing 13 saves so far.
Series history
Returning the game on last year’s inaugural meeting, the Roadrunners and Rams meet for the second time and in back-to-back years. Last time around, UTSA came out with a 1-0 result on a 49th-minute Tyler Coker goal that Polo assisted. The Rams kept Kessler busy in the second half, registering all five of her saves in that period. Pittman registered his 50th career win in that game.
UP NEXT: The Roadrunners remain in Colorado and on the Mountain West swing, heading to Colorado College on Sunday for the Roadrunners’ first day game of the season. UTSA will next play in San Antonio on Sept. 4 with the Hometown Showdown against UIW at Toyota Field.
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