ABILENE – The ACU soccer team welcomes the Aggies of New Mexico State University for a non-conference match at Elmer Gray Stadium on Sunday, Sept. 2 at 1 p.m. in their lone game of the week. The Wildcats look to bounce back from a close 1-0 loss at Texas Tech last time out on Aug. 26.
"From what I know, they're [New Mexico State] an excellent team," said head coach
Casey Wilson. "They are a well-organized group. I expect them to be like the solid, quality groups like UTEP's and the UTRGV's we've played. They have a lot of quality athletes, and they are going to play good soccer. It's a matter of us being able to rise to the occasion and to be able to play them tough."
THE SERIES... ACU and New Mexico State will meet for the first time on the soccer field. The Aggies play in the Western Athletic Conference (WAC), and reside in Las Cruces, N.M.
HOME SWEET HOME... The Wildcats won another overtime match at the friendly confines of Elmer Gray Stadium on Friday, Aug. 24 against the UTRGV Vaqueros. After a scoreless regulation, senior
Dylan Owens scored two minutes into overtime to secure the 1-0 victory, their second such win at home this season. ACU is 2-0 with 1-0 wins over UTEP and UTRGV.
GOALKEEPER OF THE WEEK… Redshirt junior
Rachel Johnson was named Southland Goalkeeper of the Week by the league's sports information directors after registering her second shutout of the season and third of her career in the 1-0 overtime win against UTRGV. The Coppell native allowed her first goal of the season on Sunday at Texas Tech, but was outstanding once again with seven more saves, to bring her total to 15 for the week while facing 34 shots. Johnson leads the Southland in saves (31), goals against average (.241), and shutouts (2).
STARTING ON THE RIGHT FOOT… ACU's calling card so far in 2018 has been defense, especially early in games. The Wildcats have yet to allow a first-half goal through four matches, including a pair of shutouts on the road at No. 15 Baylor and Texas Tech of the Big 12 Conference. The offense, however, has also yet to score in the opening 45 minutes of games. ACU has been in four scoreless affairs at halftime in 2018.
SCOUTING THE AGGIES… New Mexico State hosts Northern Illinois in Las Cruces on Friday afternoon before traveling east to Abilene Sunday. The Aggies (0-4) have three losses this season by one goal, including an overtime defeat to Northern Arizona. Samantha Afonso and Aileen Galicia pace the NMSU offense with two goals apiece in 2018, while Mia Montano and Dmitri Fong have split time in net.
