CHENEY, Wash. – The Eastern Washington University women's soccer team closes out the regular season at Idaho on Oct. 27 at 7 p.m.
The Eagles have landed themselves a spot at No. 12 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. 11, 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 Idaho State and Weber State. The wins improved Eastern's conference record to 8-0-1 and 14-4-1 overall.
In their 4-2 win over Idaho State, Chloe Williams, Devan Talley, Jenny Chavez and Saige Lyons all scored goals for the Eagles. With Williams' goal, she became the Big Sky's All-Time leader in career goals. The previous record was held by Amanda Ellsworth (2011-14) from Idaho State who had 39.
With the victory, the Eagles clinched the Big Sky Regular Season Title and will now be the host of the Big Sky Conference Championships on Nov. 1 – 5. EWU earned a No. 1 seed at a first-round bye. Their first match will take place in the semifinals on Friday, Nov. 3 against the No. 4 or 5 seed.
Against Weber State, EWU won 2-1 with two more goals from Williams, extending her career goals to 42. With the win, the Eagles set a program record for wins in a single season. Eastern has also stayed unbeaten for 11 games, which is now the best in program history and also marks the longest unbeaten streak in Big Sky competition for the Eagles in nine games.
Get to Know Your Eagles
EWU is entering the road trip ranked 89th in the RPI rankings. Eastern Washington is 14-4-1 overall and has a 9-1-1 record at home this season. The Eagles have a 5-1-0 record on the road while also going 0-2 at a neutral site. Eastern is in first place in the conference with 25 points and a 8-0-1 record, making them the only team left undefeated in the Big Sky. With a win at Idaho, Eastern will become just the second team in BSC history to total 28 points. The Eagles are led by senior Chloe Williams who has tallied 22 points and 10 goals. Behind her is Jenny Chavez with seven goals and 14 points. Aimie Inthoulay leads the team with five assists.
Senior Emily Busselman has been handling most of the netminding duties this season as she has logged 1,240 minutes in goal. She has only allowed 10 goals in 102 shots faced, making 33 saves. Busselman has a save percentage of .767 to go along with her 12-1-1 record, that includes six and a half shutouts.
As a team, the Eagles take 18.5 shots a game, ranking ninth in the nation. The team only allows their opponents to strike an average of 8.4 times in a match.
Big Sky Leaders
Eastern Washington is currently leading the Big Sky in shots (351), points (112), goals (41), goals per game (2.16), assists (30), assists per game (1.58) and corners (126). 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 (18th, 6.63), shots per game (9th, 18.47), goals (8th, 41), points (21st, 113), scoring offense (27th, 2.16), shots on goal per game (38th, 7.68), points per game (32nd, 5.95), assists per game (63rd, 1.63) and assists (33rd, 31).
Individually, Chloe Williams is leading the conference in shots with 89 and shots per game with 4.68. She is tied for first in the league with 10 goals. The senior also ranks 35th in the nation with 10 goals, 12th in shots per game with 4.68, and 60th in shots on goal per game with 1.74.
Emily Busselman also ranks 62nd in the nation with total shutouts (6.1) and 48th in goals against average (.726).
Big Sky Conference Tournament
Eastern clinched the Big Sky Regular Season Title with its win over Idaho State. The Eagles are set to host the Big Sky Conference Tournament on Nov. 1-5 in Cheney. With EWU having a first round bye, the team does not play until Nov. 3 in the semi-final game at 1 p.m. against the No. 4 or 5 seed.
Williams Becomes New Big Sky Leader in Career Goals
With her goal at Idaho State, Williams now holds the record of the most career points and goals in the Big Sky. With two more goals against Weber State, the senior has 104 points and 42 career goals. Amanda Ellsworth (2011-14) from Idaho State previously held both of the records. After her successful weekend, she was awarded the Big Sky Player of the week for the fifth time in her career.
All-Time Series
Eastern is currently tied 11-11-1 overall with Idaho. Head coach Chad Bodnar is 4-1-1 against the Vandals. Last time the Eagles took on UI was in the Big Sky Tournament when they won 1-0 to advance to the championship game. In the regular season, EWU won 2-1 in overtime at home, with Williams netting the gamewinner.
Knowing Your Opponent: Idaho
Idaho is sitting in ninth place in the Big Sky with a 3-5-1 conference record and 10 points. The Vandals are 7-9-2 overall while going 3-5-2 at home. Idaho is coming off a 2-1 win at Idaho State.
The Vandals are led by Bridget Daley who has scored six goals and tallied four assists. As a team, they average 15 shots a game while allowing 10.4 shots from their opponents.
Makayla Presgrave has been in net for UI, with a 7-9-2 record and a .711 save percentage.
Up Next
The Big Sky Conference Championship is set for Nov. 1-5 in Cheney. The Eagles will play the No.4 or 5 seed on Nov. 3 at 1 p.m. in the semifinals round. The championship game is set for Nov. 5 at 1 p.m.
Any college student with a college ID and children 12 and under have free admission to the games. Tickets are $5 on Wednesday and Friday and $8 for the championship game for everyone else.
