Marshall University Athletics
@HerdWSoccer Meets Middle Tennessee
10/8/2016 12:00:00 AM | Women's Soccer
HUNTINGTON, W.Va. - The Marshall women's soccer team plays its second of a two-game home stint when it hosts Conference USA opponent Middle Tennessee. Kickoff is set for Sunday, Oct. 9, at 2 p.m. ET.
HAVE YOU HERD?
The Thundering Herd picked up its second Conference USA win of the season, defeating the UAB Blazers (4-7-1, 1-3-1 C-USA), 1-0, Friday evening at Hoops Family Field. Shontelle Smithscored the lone goal for the Herd in the 17th minute. The goal was Smith's first game-winning goal of the season. Sydney Arnoldand Jordan Sackarisprovided assists on Smith's goal. Goalkeeper Megan Bonellimade three saves to pick up her second win of the season and her first career shutout.
The Herd dropped its first two games at Purdue and Michigan, but since are 2-3-3 with wins over Longwood and East Tennessee State. This will close the Herd's four-game road trip that it has been on since Sept. 18.
Arnold and Sackaris have combined to score nine of the Herd's 15 goals in 2016. Sackaris scored a goal in each of the first three games of the season and again in the 3-0 win over ETSU. The freshman starlet has also collected a point in four of the last five matches. Arnold had scored a goal in three consecutive matches. The senior has collected an assist in three out of the past four matches. Freshman Megan Bonelli has started the last five matches and made at least seven saves in her first three contests. Bonelli has a 2-2-1 record in C-USA play.
SOUNDS LIKE A BROKEN RECORD
Senior midfielder Sydney Arnold is on the brink of claiming a few school records. Arnold is one goal away from being No. 5 all-time for career goals scored with 17. The Stafford, Va., native is fourth all-time in career points. The senior has the third-most assists in program history. Arnold is also fifth overall in career matches started for the Herd. The senior is the first person in Marshall school history to earn back-to-back All-Conference USA second team selections.
KEEPING IT CONSISTENT
From Sept. 2-9 senior Sydney Arnold had three goals in three straight matches. She has continued where she left off in the 2015 season where she collected 23 points, nine goals and five assists. The Stafford, Va., native has started all but one match since beginning her career in the 2013 season. The senior has now grabbed an assist in three out of the last four games and is now tied for third place on the all-time career list in assists.
SACKARIS SCORES GOALS
Freshman Jordan Sackaris leads the Thundering Herd with six goals scored this season. To put that in perspective, Sackaris is one of three freshmen in Conference USA to score at least six goals this season. The last Herd freshman to score at least five goals was Erin Simmons (2012-15), who finished her freshman year with six goals. There has not been a freshman at Marshall that has surpassed six goals since Amanda McMahon (2000-01) did so with 14 goals in her debut season. Sackaris has also collected a point in four straight matches.
ROAD WARRIORS
This past weekend, Marshall closed out its four-game road test when it traveled to Ruston, La. to play Louisiana Tech. The featured schools were William & Mary (Williamsburg, Va.), North Texas (Denton, Texas), Southern Miss (Hattiesburg, Miss.) and Louisiana Tech (Ruston, La.). Over the course of the trip the Herd traveled 3,071.8 miles to play its opponents. Marshall finished with a 1-2-1 record during the road trip.
SCOUTING THE BLUE RAIDERS
The Herd continues its home-stand as it hosts Middle Tennessee on Sunday, Oct. 9, at 5 p.m. Marshall owns a 2-1-0 record over the Blue Raiders.
Middle Tennessee boasts a pair of underclassmen that have points in the double digits. Freshman Salera Jordan leads the team with five goals, 40 shots and 18 shots on goal for the season. Sophomore Abbie Brown has collected, four goals, two assists and 20 shots on goal.
BONELLI BETWEEN THE BARS
Freshman goalkeeper Megan Bonelli (Apollo, Pa.) has become the main goalkeeper for the Herd in C-USA play. The freshman reached a milestone in her first collegiate start against the William & Mary Tribe (Sept. 18). The Apollo, Pa., native collected a career and season-high eight saves. Bonelli's eight saves marked the first time a Marshall freshman did so in a match since Lindsey Kerns (2009-12) made eight saves in the 1-0 defeat at Kentucky in 2010. In Bonelli's second start of her career against North Texas, she matched her milestone by notching another eight saves. The last freshman to make at least six saves in two straight matches was Liz Orton(2006-08). In Bonelli's match against Southern Miss she notched seven saves. No freshman has grabbed at least seven saves in three straight games since the Herd joined C-USA. Bonelli collected her first career shutout when she blanked UAB, 1-0, on Oct. 7.
BONELLI MOVING UP
Over five straight career starts, Bonelli is moving up the rankings in several statistical categories across the league. Overall, Bonelli is now ranked No. 9 in goals against average with 1.68, No. 7 in save percentage with a .771, and No. 2 in saves per game with 5.40, which is also No. 60 in the nation.
MARSHALL PICKED FOURTH
The Herd rounded out the top four of Conference USA's 14-team preseason poll, as selected by league coaches (Aug. 4). The Herd lost seven players from its 2015 C-USA finals roster, including three starters. Preseason All-C-USA selection Sydney Arnold (Stafford, Va.) entered her senior year as the Herd's top scorer from last season.
CONTRIBUTING OFFENSE
Marshall has collected a total of 32 points from 12 goals and seven assists. Six different players have grabbed at least one point this season. The list of players includes Sydney Arnold (Stafford, Va.), Jordan Sackaris (Smithtown, N.Y.),Jayne Lawman (Winfield, W. Va.), Ashley Seltzer (Knoxville, Tenn.), Shontelle Smith (Dunedin, New Zealand) andGabby Powers (Knoxville, Tenn.). The Herd's rookie class includes one goalkeeper, four tweeners, three defenders and three forwards: Megan Bonelli (Apollo, Pa.), Marah Abu-Tayeh (Williamsville, Ind.), Gabby Powers (Knoxville, Tenn.), Metz Gonzalez (Fontana, Calif.), Jordan Sackaris (Smithtown, N.Y.), Farah Abu-Tayeh (Williamsville, Ind.),Karen Rogge (Naples, Fla.), Alyssa Totzke (Colorado Springs, Colo.), Rebekah Cook (Beckley, W. Va.), Ally Kimbler(London, Ohio) and Chloe Smith (West Chester, Pa.).
Additionally, Daniel Withrow joined coach Kevin Long's staff as an assistant coach. Withrow, a Rochester Hills, Mich. native, will work primarily with goalkeepers while assisting with all parts of the program. Withrow graduated from Marshall in 2013 and was selected in the second round (28th overall) in the 2013 MLS Supplemental Draft by the Columbus Crew.
#STAMPEDE16
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UP NEXT
The Herd returns to the road and travels to Miami to take on the FIU Panthers Friday, Oct. 14, at 7 p.m. ET at the FIU Soccer Stadium.
