The William Woods University women's soccer team closes out its regular season schedule on Monday night with a battle against Park University. Kickoff for the match, presented by Columbia Orthopaedic Group, is set for 5 p.m. During the match, the Owls will also be sponsoring a number of activities to raise money for a local charity involved in the fight against breast cancer.
The Matchup
WWU brings a 5-2 league record into today's match, good for fourth in the AMC. The Owls are 9-6-1 overall and are in the midst of a three-game winning streak, the longest of the season.
Park leads the AMC with a 6-0 record - the only undefeated team in league play - but have only managed a 8-6 overall record on the year.
Last Time Out
Jamie Palermo picked up a pair of goals on Saturday to lead the Owls to a 2-1 comeback win at Lyon. The Owls overcame a second-minute goal by Maria Monterroso to earn the win. Palermo tied the game in the 14th minute before claiming her third game-winning goal of the year in the 63rd minute.
WWU's defense held Lyon to just four shots on goal on the afternoon after the Scots had averaged better than 20 over their previous four games.
AMC Tournament
WWU is guaranteed to host its first match in the 2012 AMC Postseason Tournament, as the team can finish no lower than fourth. While a loss would drop the Owls to 5-3 on the year, Saturday's win at Lyon gives WWU the first tiebreaker and would set up a rematch at Firley Field on Friday. A rematch is also on tap should the Owls tie Park today, as WWU would finish level with Hannibal-LaGrange at 5-2-1 on the year but lose out on the tiebreaker.
A win tonight gives the Owls an outside chance for a first-round bye, as they will finish tied with Columbia College at 6-2 with Park needing to make up a game at Benedictine University at Springfield. A Bulldog win would result in a three-way tie for the top spot in the AMC, with the tiebreakers going to goal differential. Coming into Monday's game, the Owls are +10 on the league slate with Columbia sitting +12 and Park at a +14.
Player Of The Week Sweep
Based on their outstanding performances in WWU's 2-0 week, junior
Jamie Palermo and freshman
Danielle Wilson swept the AMC Player of the Week honors last week. Palermo picked up her first Offensive Player of the Week nod after scoring three goals and adding an assist. Wilson earned Defensive Player of the Week accolades after anchoring a WWU defense that allowed just one shot on goal over two matches.
Hot Streak
Junior
Jamie Palermo has scored 17 points (8 goals, 1 assist) in her last eight games.
Balanced Attack
The Owls have three players who have struck for eight or more goals on the 2012 campaign. Junior
Jamie Palermo leads the team with 11 on the year, with senior
Stephanie Kirvan and freshman
Jordan McNamara each scoring eight.
National Rankings
William Woods ranks in the top 30 in the NAIA in a pair of categories. The Owls are 23rd in the nation in assists per game with a pace of 2.44 and rank 27th with 39 total assists.
Conference Rankings
As a team, the Owls rank fourth in the AMC in goals/game (2.81) and are third in assists/game (2.44).
The Owls also rank individually across a number of different categories.
Jamie Palermo is tied for fifth with 11 goals on the year, with
Stephanie Kirvan and
Jordan McNamara are in a six-player deadlock in seventh with eight goals each.
Ashley Deckard is tied for fourth with nine assists on the year, with
Brittany Graue in a three-way tie for 10th with six helpers. And on the defensive side of the ledger,
Kelly Abernathy is fifth with 68 saves on the season.
A Look At Park
The Pirates stand as the only undefeated team in league play at 6-0, although they've stumbled in non-conference action and have only a 8-6 overall record.
Although Park ranks first in the NAIA in both goals per game (4.93) and assists per game (4.57), most of those have come at the expense of three teams. The Pirates posted double-digit goal totals against Friends University (12-1), Harris-Stowe State University (14-0) and Stephens College (22-0). Omitting those games from consideration, Park's torrid goal-scoring pace of 4.93 drops to a pedestrian 1.9 per match.
Dana Hemmingson and Juneille Watkins lead the Pirates with 14 goals apiece.
Previous Matchup
William Woods was unable to overcome an 11th-minute goal in the last meeting between these teams, falling 3-0 at Park on Oct. 19, 2011.
Pinkout
Tuesday's match against Park University finds the Owls raising money for a local charity involved in the fight against breast cancer. During halftime, we will hold a “closest to the pin” contest of sorts, with pink golf balls ($2 or 3/$5) available for purchase until kickoff of Tuesday's match from members of the WWU women's soccer team and coaching staff. The two closest balls thrown to the center of the field target will earn their choice of game-worn jerseys from the match. During the game, a normal raffle will also be offered, with two winners earning their choice - following the “closest to the pin” winners - of game-worn jerseys.
The remaining game-worn jerseys will be auctioned off in a silent auction following the match. Email closed bids to
randy.hall@williamwoods.edu. At the close of bidding - noon on Wednesday, October 24 - jerseys will be awarded to the highest and all matching bidders.
“Replay” On Owls Vision
Thanks to the efforts spearheaded by Steven Goodson and Jim Long, we are now able to bring you the action from today's game in near perfect quality on your smartphones and other internet-enabled devices. With the encoding and transmission process, there is a short delay between the live action at Firley Field and what you see on the broadcast, but it makes for a great “instant replay” experience at the field.
Corporate Partners
Tonight's presenting sponsor is Holiday Inn Express.
Throughout the 2012-13 season, William Woods will take many opportunities to thank our corporate partners for their support both on and off the field for our student-athletes. Thanks to Atkins Inc., Central Dairy, Coldwell Banker Niedergerke & Co., Columbia Orthopaedic Group, Cost Cutters of Mid-Mo, Jack's Gourmet Restaurant, Holiday Inn Express, Joe Machens Dealerships, Mid-City Lumber, Mo-X, PEAK Performance, Red Weir Athletic Supplies, State Farm/Don Woodson and White Dog Promotions.
For more information on the WWU Corporate Partner programs, contact the Athletic Department at 573.592.1624.
