This Week
The Omaha women's soccer team hits the road this weekend for two matches to close the regular season, visiting South Dakota on Friday, Oct. 28 at 3 p.m., followed by Denver on Sunday, Oct. 30 at 1 p.m. CT. Sunday's game will be broadcast live on the Altitude network with Bill Rogan on play-by-play and Chris Bianchi providing color commentary. Links to live stats, video and audio will be listed on OMavs.com as available.
Omaha Quick Hits
• Omaha is one of seven teams vying for a spot in the Summit League Championship, set for Nov. 3-5 in Fargo, N.D.
• The Mavericks currently are tied with Denver for fourth place in the conference standings, five points behind league-leading South Dakota State entering the final weekend of the regular season.
• Omaha went 5-4-1 at home this year. It's the third straight winning season at home for the Mavericks.
• Junior midfielder Carlie Cook leads the team with 15 points and six goals, and sophomore forward Emily Romero is tops with five assists.
• Junior midfielder Lydia Holtmann has 10 points on four goals and two assists.
• Junior midfielder Jessica Bollinger is the only player to start all 17 games this season and senior defender Ava Doetsch leads the team with 1,395 minutes played.
• Redshirt senior goalkeeper Haley Shelton is in the Summit League's top five in saves (81), goals-against average (1.12), goals allowed (15) and save percentage (.844).
• Senior midfielder Nyoke Dumba scored her first goal of the season against South Dakota State.
• Cook and Shelton have both earned Summit League Player of the Week honors this season with Cook earning accolades on Aug. 29 and Shelton on Aug. 22, Oct. 10, and Oct. 24.
• Don Klosterman is in his 18th season as head coach.
Scouting South Dakota
South Dakota enters Friday's match with a record of 3-13-1 (2-4 Summit League) after a 3-1 loss at Oral Roberts last Sunday. Head coach Mandy Green is in her seventh season leading the Coyotes and has a 33-81-15 career mark.
Sammie Villwock leads the Coyotes with nine points on three goals and three assists. Taryn Labree and Corey Strang each have two goals. Goalkeeper Parker Rytz has a 3-9-0 record with a .795 save percentage and a 1.51 goals-against average. Sydney Hardin is 0-4-1 with a .645 save percentage and a 2.07 goals-against average.
USD returns to action on Sunday, Oct. 30, hosting Fort Wayne at Noon.
Series History
Friday's game marks the 18th all-time meeting between Omaha and South Dakota with the Mavericks leading the series, 15-1-1.
Scouting Denver
Denver enters the weekend with a record of 6-9-1 (3-2-1 Summit League) after a 2-0 loss at South Dakota State last Sunday. Head coach Jeff Hooker is in his 25th season leading the Pioneers and has a 325-135-42 career mark.
Hannah Adler leads the Pioneers with eight points on three goals and two assists. Jessie Dancy has four points on two goals. Goalkeeper Cassidy Rey has a 3-3 record with a .788 save percentage and a 1.15 goals-against average. Brittany Wilson has a 3-5-1 record with a .727 save percentage and a 1.75 goals-against average.
Series History
Friday's game marks the fourth all-time meeting between Omaha and Denver with the Pioneers leading the series, 2-1.
Last Time Out: Omaha Shuts Out South Dakota State on Senior Day
Nyoke Dumba scored early in the first half, and goalkeeper Haley Shelton stopped a penalty kick late in the second half to guide Omaha to a 1-0 win over South Dakota State at Caniglia Field last Friday.
Sophia Roux's corner kick found Dumba unmarked on the back side of the goal. Dumba beat Jackrabbit goalkeeper Nicole Inskeep to the high side, giving Omaha a 1-0 lead just 9:12 into the game. It was Dumba's first goal of the season.
South Dakota State attempted to equalize the match in the second half, but Shelton stopped Madison Yueill's penalty kick attempt in the 81st minute to secure the Mavericks victory.
Shelton earned her team-high fourth shutout of the season and improved to 4-6-3 between the pipes after surrendering no goals in 90 minutes.
In the Summit
Omaha leads the Summit League in attendance this season. The Mavericks are third in shutouts (four) and fourth in corner kicks (69).
Haley Shelton is in the Summit League's top five in saves (81), goals-against average (1.12), goals allowed (15) and save percentage (.844). Carlie Cook is fifth in goals scored (six) and sixth in total points (15). Emily Romero is tied for sixth in assists (five).
On the National Charts
Omaha ranks among the top 50 nationally in two categories: 37th in saves per game (6.18) and 38th in save percentage (.833).
Individually, Haley Shelton is 22nd in saves per game (6.23), 37th in save percentage (.844) and 61st in total saves (81).
Sensational Senior Day
Nyoke Dumba made the most of her final game at Caniglia Field last week. In the ninth minute, Dumba scored off a Sophia Roux corner kick for her first goal of the season.
Making the Big Stop
Goalkeeper Haley Shelton stopped a South Dakota State penalty kick in the 81st minute against South Dakota State to preserve Omaha's 1-0 victory. It was the second penalty kick stopped by Shelton this season.
Maverick Momentum
The Omaha offense has gained momentum in October, scoring seven goals over four games and averaging 16.5 shots per game in that span. Six different Mavericks have tallied at least three shots in the four games, with eight players boasting a goal or an assist.
What a Weekend
Emily Romero scored her first collegiate goal against Oral Roberts and dished out two assists against Fort Wayne. Romero leads Omaha with five assists this season.
Big-Time Bollinger
This season Jessica Bollinger has been a mainstay in the Maverick lineup, starting every game. For her career, she has appeared in 47 games with 28 starts. Bollinger picked up her first two college points on assists to Carlie Cook and Lydia Holtmann against Fort Wayne.
Double Trouble
Carlie Cook and Lydia Holtmann each had their first collegiate brace against Fort Wayne. Holtmann scored her first goal in the sixth minute of play. The junior took a dribble before curving the ball around a pair of defenders and the goalie to complete the brace in the 60th minute. Cook scored her two goals within 15 minutes of each other. She one-timed a pass from Izzy Anders for her first goal of the day in the 75th minute and added her second goal in the 89th minute.
Spreading the Wealth
The Omaha offense has shown to be a tough assignment for opposing defenses this year after a host of Mavericks has made their presence known on the stat sheet. Eleven different Mavericks have had their hand in at least one of the team's goals thus far in 2016, either scoring or assisting. A total of 11 players have managed to tally five or more shots and, while Carlie Cook, Lydia Holtmann and Emily Romero have notched over 40 percent of the team's total shots, five of their teammates have added double-digit attempts to the team's total of 193.
Player of the Week Honors
Haley Shelton had been named Summit League Defensive Player of the Week three times, and Carlie Cook has earned offensive honors once.
Shelton collected her first career weekly honor during the season-opening weekend by making eight saves against UMKC. She picked up her second award of the season on Oct. 3 by going 2-0 with 11 saves and a shutout. Her third award came this week following a 1-0 shutout victory against South Dakota State.
Cook earned Summit League Co-Offensive Player of the Week for her performances Aug. 22-28, marking the weekly award was the first of her career. She scored a pair of goals during the weekend with the game-tying goal against Creighton and the game-winner against North Dakota.
Adding to the Account
Carlie Cook leads Omaha with six goals this season. Cook scored a goal in three straight games to start her Maverick career. Over her last three games, she has two goals and an assist. The junior is fifth in the conference in goals and sixth in total points (16).
Sharing is Caring
Four players have dished out two or more assists this season for Omaha. Emily Romero has five assists to lead the team and is fifth in the Summit League. Carlie Cook has three assists, while Jessica Bollinger Lydia Holtmann each have two assists.
Record Book Watch
Goalkeepers Haley Shelton and Katlyn Schochenmaier find themselves among UNO elite when comparing career stats. Shelton is the all-time saves per game leader with 5.83 while Schochenmaier is third with 4.6.
Shelton ranks in the top 10 in five other categories. She is second in all-time saves with 204, third in save percentage (.791), sixth in shutouts (seven), seventh in wins (eight) and eighth in goals-against average (1.53). Schochenmaier is in the top 10 in four categories. She is sixth all-time in saves (92), sixth in save percentage (.767), eighth in wins (six) and eighth in goals-against average (1.58).
Keepers
Three goalkeepers have seen action this season. Haley Shelton leads the way with 13 starts, while Erin Bunker has three starts and Katlyn Schochenmaier has one.
Shelton has a team-low 1.12 goals-against average and leads the team with four shutouts and 81 saves.
The Youth Movement
All four of Omaha's freshmen have seen playing time. Sophia Roux has appeared in all 17 games this season with 12 starts and Erin Bunker has appeared in four games with two starts.
Taylor Gelling has appeared in 15 games with one start, while Mallory Edwards has made eight appearances with one start.
Home-aha
Senior Nyoke Dumba, junior Natalie Johnson, sophomore Emily Romero and freshman Mallory Edwards didn't have to travel a long distance as they made the transition from high school to college. All four call the Omaha metro area home. Dumba and Edwards attended Omaha Marian, while Johnson graduated from Omaha Skutt and Romero came from Bellevue East.
Summit League Preseason Poll
Omaha was picked to finish seventh in the 2016 Summit League Preseason Poll, and senior defender Ava Doetsch appeared on the Preseason Summit League Watch List, the league office announced in August.
North Dakota State was picked as the favorite to win the Summit League title with 63 points and seven first-place votes. The Bison enter the 2016 season after claiming the league's regular-season title last year.
South Dakota State was predicted to come in second, with 56 points and the two remaining first-place votes. Oral Roberts polled in at third place, collecting 49 points. Denver came in fourth with 45 points, followed by South Dakota (35) in fifth and IUPUI (26) in sixth. Fort Wayne (18) and Western Illinois (8) rounded it out in eight and ninth place, respectively.
Tough Road Ahead
Omaha's 2016 schedule features 19 regular-season matches, and the team will play in six states across the nation. UNO will take on opponents from nine conferences, with three from the Big Sky and one apiece from the Atlantic 10, Big 12, BIG EAST, Big West, Missouri Valley, Mountain West, WAC and the West Coast Conference.
Entering 2016, the Mavericks have never faced five of their opponents: Kansas State, Dayton, Eastern Washington, Loyola Marymount and CSUN.
For Starters
Omaha returns five starters from last year's team that started at least 10 games. Included in the five returning starters are three players who have amassed 35 starts or more during their Maverick careers.
Lydia Holtmann has appeared in 54 games with 40 starts. Senior defenders Ava Doetsch and Lauren Lawler have each appeared in 70 matches. Doetsch has 69 career starts while Lawler has 68.
Klosterman at the Helm
Head coach Don Klosterman is the only coach the women's soccer program has ever known. In his 18 years at the helm of the Maverick program, Klosterman owns a career record of 219-117-21 and has a career mark of 271-178-30 over 25 years.
The two-time national coach of the year led the Mavericks to the Division II national semifinals four times, culminating in the 2005 NCAA Division II national championship.
Klosterman's assistants are Tim Bennett, who is in his third season, and Adam Hooi, who is in his second year on the Maverick staff.
Up Next
The Summit League Tournament is Nov. 3-5 at Dacotah Field in Fargo, N.D. The top four teams in the final conference standings will advance to the tournament.
