CHENEY, Wash. – The Eastern Washington University women's soccer team will be traveling to Idaho State on Oct. 20 and Weber State on Oct. 22 this week. The matchup at Idaho State will begin at 3 p.m. Pacific Time while the game against Weber State begins at 11:30 a.m.
The Eagles have landed themselves a spot at No. 15 in this week's United Soccer Coaches West Region Poll. They have company in teams from Stanford, Washington State, Arizona, Washington and Cal. San Jose State is ranked No. 10, as Eastern fell to them earlier this season by a score of 3-0.
Last Time Out
EWU has remained perfect in the Big Sky Conference after another 2-0 weekend against Portland State and Montana. The wins improved Eastern's conference record to 6-0-1 and 12-4-1 overall.
In their 3-0 win against Portland State, Jenny Chavez scored her sixth goal of the season giving the Eagles an early 1-0 lead. Senior Chloe Williams scored a goal in the second half, tying the Big Sky Conference record in career goals with 39. Aimie Inthoulay went on to score her third goal of the season, sealing the 3-0 victory for EWU.
Against Montana, the only goal scored was an own goal by Montana 17 seconds into the game. The Eagles had spectacular defense as they held the Grizzlies scoreless despite them outshooting Eastern 15-6.
With the last two wins, it marks the longest unbeaten streak at home in program history with seven games in a row. The Eagles have stayed unbeaten for nine games, which is second in program history and also marks the longest unbeaten streak in Big Sky competition through the Eagles' seven games. This shutout also marks the eighth shutout for EWU, which ties the program record for most shutouts in a season. The team's 35 goals also ranks them for second best in program history.
Get to Know Your Eagles
EWU is entering the road trip ranked 83rd in the RPI rankings. Eastern Washington is 12-4-1 overall and has a 9-1-1 record at home this season. The Eagles have a 3-1-0 record on the road while also going 0-2 at a neutral site. EWU is currently in first place in the conference with 19 points and a 6-0-1 record, making them the only team left undefeated in the Big Sky. The Eagles are led by senior Chloe Williams who has tallied 15 points and seven goals. Right behind her is Jenny Chavez with six goals and 12 points. Leading in assists is M'Kenna Hayes who has collected four so far this season.
Senior Emily Busselman has been handling most of the netminding duties this season as she has logged 1,060 minutes in goal. She has only allowed seven goals on 87 shots faced, making 31 saves. Busselman has a save percentage of .714 to go along with her record of 10-1-1, that includes six and a half shutouts. Her goals against average of .59 ranks 28th in the nation.
As a team, the Eagles take 18.5 shots per game, ranking 11th in the nation. The team only allows their opponents to strike an average of 8.5 times in a match.
Big Sky Leaders
Eastern Washington is currently leading the Big Sky in shots (315), points (95), goals (35), goals per game (2.06), assists (25), assists per game (1.47) and corners (120). They are also tied for most shutouts in the league with eight. As a team, they rank in the top-100 nationally in several categories including: corners per game (12th, 7.06), shots per game (11th, 18.53), goals (17th, 35), points (30th, 96), scoring offense (38th, 2.06), shots on goal per game (56th, 7.41), points per game (45th, 5.65), assists per game (80th, 1.53) and assists (54th, 26).
Individually, Chloe Williams is leading the conference in shots with 79 and shots per game with 4.65. The senior also ranks 99th in the nation with seven goals, 11th in shots per game with 4.65, and 86th in shots on goal per game with 1.59. Emily Busselman leads the league in goals against average (.59), shutouts (6.1) and shutouts per game (.51). The goalkeeper also ranks 44th in the nation with total shutouts (6.1) and 28th in goals against average (.59).
Big Sky Conference Tournament
Eastern Washington is the only team so far to clinch a spot in the Big Sky Conference Tournament. If the Eagles win against Idaho State and Portland State loses or ties its game against North Dakota on Friday, EWU will clinch the home field advantage for the tournament and will win clinch the regular season title for the first time since the 2004 season.
Last year, the tournament was held in Cheney due to Idaho's field not being playable. Eastern earned the No. 5 seed and went on to win the whole thing for the first time in program history.
Williams Looks to Become New Big Sky Leader in Career Goals
With Chloe Williams' goal against Portland State, she is now tied for the All-Time Career Goals in the Big Sky with 39 total. Tied with her is Amanda Ellsworth from Idaho State (2011-14) with 39.
Williams is currently the leader in the All-Time Career Points in the Big Sky with 97 points, the first student athlete to ever break 90 in the Big Sky Conference. She became the new leader when she scored a goal against Fairleigh Dickinson on Sept. 17, increasing her points to 89 and surpassed Ellsworth's 87 points.
All-Time Series
The series against Idaho State dates back to 1998 with the Bengals leading the series 12-8-1. Last year, the Eagles won 3-0 at home with Chloe Williams breaking the record for the fastest goal in 49 seconds. In 2015, EWU earned its first win at Pocatello, Idaho, with a 3-2 victory. Head coach Chad Bodnar is currently sitting at 2-1-0 against ISU.
Weber State is leading the series 13-8 with it also dating back to 1998. Eastern has won the last three games versus the Wildcats, putting Bodnar's record against the team at a perfect 3-0. Last year, the Eagles won 3-0 at home. Chloe Williams netted two goals and assisted on a Devan Talley score.
Knowing Your Opponent: Idaho State
Idaho State is currently 10th in the Big Sky with a 2-5 conference record, good for six points. The Bengals are 3-12-0 on the year so far. Their two conference wins were against Montana (1-0) and Northern Colorado (2-1). They are coming off a 4-0 loss at Northern Arizona.
The Bengals are led by Michaela Didericksen and Makena Bambei, who have both scored four goals and one assist, tallying up nine points on the year. As a team, they average 13.3 shots a game, while their opponents average 18.3.
Shawna Hennings has been in net for the majority of the year with a 3-11 record and a .711 save percentage.
Knowing Your Opponent: Weber State
Weber State is sitting in ninth place in the Big Sky with a 2-3-2 conference record and eight points. The Wildcats are 3-10-2 on the year so far. Their two wins in conference were against Portland State (2-0) and Northern Arizona (2-1). They are set to host Idaho prior to the matchup against the Eagles.
The Wildcats are led by Morgan Quarnberg who has six goals on the year and 12 points. As a team, they average 11 shots a game while allowing 15.7 shots from their opponents.
Sydnie Brough has been in net the most for WSU, with a 3-9-2 record and a .803 save percentage.
Up Next
The Eagles will close out the regular season on the road at Idaho on Oct. 27. The Big Sky Conference Championship is set for Nov. 1-5 at the site of the regular season champion.
