THIS WEEK IN PEACOCK WOMEN'S SOCCER... The Upper Iowa women's soccer team will wrap up their first home stand of the season with two more NSIC matches this weekend at Pattison Field. The Peacocks will host the Golden Eagles of Minnesota Crookston on Friday afternoon before facing off with the Bemidji State Beavers on Sunday. UIU is looking to build some early-season momentum after upsetting No. 13 Winona State last Friday. Upper Iowa is 2-1-1 all-time against UMC, including a 2-0 loss at home last season. The Peacocks will take a 5-7 all-time record against Bemidji State, and look to avenge last season's 1-0 loss on Senior Day. Both of the matches this weekend will be broadcast live on
KCRG TV 9.2.
PEACOCKS UPSET NO. 13 WARRIORS... Upper Iowa earned their first conference win of the season after shutting out the No. 13 Winona State Warriors last Friday afternoon at Pattison Field. It was an afternoon that started sunny, then turned to rain showers halfway through, and finished with a light drizzle. Fayette had been hit with heavy rain all morning, making the field conditions at Pattison Field difficult. Despite it being tough to gain your footing, the Peacocks scored right away to take the early lead, and added a second goal 11 minutes before halftime. The visitors held the advantage in shots and corners earned, but UIU held on in the second half for a 2-0 shutout victory.
FRESHMAN SUCCESS... Freshman
Birgit Rijnders has been a big part of the Upper Iowa scoring so far in 2016. The Berlaar, Belgium native picked up her first goal of her career against Winona State, thirty seconds into the match. Earlier in the season Rijnders tallied two assists off of well-placed corner kicks that were both converted into goals. The midfielder is tied for the team lead with four points on the young season, and looks to continue her hot start to the year this weekend.
CASHING IN ON OPPORTUNITIES... Despite not getting as many opportunities as their opponents, the Peacocks have scored as many times as their opponents. UIU opponents have taken 45 shots on the year, 15 more than Upper Iowa. However, the Peacocks are posting a .138 shot percentage to just .089 for the opposition. The Peacocks trail their opponents in shots placed on goal (21-13) and corners earned (19-9). But Upper Iowa is cashing in on their opportunities through the first poriton of the season.
CONTINUED HOME SUCCESS... Pattison Field has been a tough environment for road teams over the last few seasons. Since 2012, Upper Iowa is 32-7-3 at home, including a 23-6-3 record in NSIC home matches. Upper Iowa defeated No. 13 Winona State at home last weekend, and looks to continue their success against UMC and BSU.
NSIC PLAY... Over the last four seasons, the Peacocks have been among the conference's best when it came to league-play. Upper Iowa has won double-digits games in three of the last four conference seasons, amassing a 39-17-4 mark overall. During that span, the Peacocks have finished top three in the conference three consecutive years (2012-14) and have made an appearance in the NSIC/US Bank Tournament semi-finals in those seasons. UIU is off to a 1-0 start in conference play in 2016.
ABOUT THE OPPONENTS...
vs. MINNESOTA CROOKSTON... The UMC soccer team played their final nonconference game of the 2016 season where they were defeated 1-0 by Missouri Western State University, in St. Joseph, Mo. The Golden Eagles are led by Lindsey Danl who has two goals on the year.
vs. BEMIDJI STATE... The Beavers are coming off a weekend in which they went 1-1 against non-conference teams. Bemidji State began with a 4-0 win over Northern Michigan Friday night. Sunday, the Beavers lost a hard fought 2-1 game against Michigan Tech.
