Huskies Continue Pac-12 Play At Colorado
October 08, 2015 | Women's Soccer
SEATTLE – Coming off a pair of home wins over UCLA and USC, No. 19 UW women's soccer will hit the road to take on Colorado on Friday, Oct. 9, the first of a two-game road trip that will end against Utah on Sunday, Oct. 11, in Salt Lake City.
“This is a tough trip,” UW head coach Lesle Gallimore said. “Both teams are quality sides and playing really good soccer. That being said, we like what we see in training and our recent play, so we are looking forward to taking our recent success on the road. Each game is about improving and putting our best foot forward, and that's really important as we continue conference play.”
The Huskies (9-2-1, 2-1-0 Pac-12) swept the Bruins and Trojans for just the second time in program history, giving UW a pair of much needed wins after dropping a tough game at Arizona to open Pac-12 play. With the two home wins, the Huskies are now 5-0-0 at Husky Soccer field this season.
“We really got a confidence boost with those two wins,” sophomore defender Dominique Bond-Flasza said. “We are taking each game one at a time and trying to play our best every time we step on the field. We've had success at home and we just want to take that same mentality on the road – to try and play our game and take control even though they have the home field advantage.”
Sophomore midfielder Shannon Simon leads the Huskies with six goals and three assists, which put her in the top-10 in the Pac-12 in both categories. Simon scored the lone goal in the Huskies' last outing, a 1-0 win over USC when, for the third time this season, she converted a penalty kick after Kimberly Keever drew a foul in the box.
Amanda Perez is the Huskies' second leading scorer with four goals, including the game-winner in the 85th minute against UCLA to give UW its fourth win over UCLA in program history, ending UCLA's 11-game conference winning streak and 23-game conference unbeaten streak.
Keever has three goals this season, and forwards Kelcie Hedge and Rachel Wheeler each have two goals and two assists apiece. Bond-Flasza is tied for the team lead with three assists and has also contributed one goal. Havana McElvaine has a goal and two assists and Sam Kokoska has one goal to round out the goal scorers thus far for the Huskies.
The Huskies have four shutouts in 2015, led by reigning Pac-12 Defensive Player of the Week McKenzie Karas and senior goalkeeper Megan Kufeld, who is also the Huskies' all-time leader in career shutouts (20).
Colorado (7-4-1, 1-2-0 Pac-12) is coming off a pair of road losses at Oregon and Oregon State. The Buffaloes have been dangerous at home in 2015, with a record of 6-1-0 in Boulder, including a win over then No. 14 Cal to open conference play.
Brie Hooks leads the Buffaloes with four goals and five assists, and Danica Evans has contributed three goals and three assists.
The Huskies and Buffaloes have met just four times, all coming since Colorado joined the Pac-12 in 2011. UW is 2-1-1 against CU, winning the first two meetings. The two teams played to a scoreless tie last season in Boulder.
Friday's match will begin at 3 p.m. MT, 2 p.m. PT and will be shown on the Pac-12 Networks. In-game updates will also be provided on Twitter at @UW_WSoccer.
For more on UW women's soccer, follow the Huskies on Facebook and on Snapchat, Periscope, Twitter and Instagram at @UW_WSoccer.
