GRAND JUNCTION, Colo. – Closing out their nonconference portion of the season with two more games on the road, the #12 Colorado Mesa University Women's Soccer Team travels to California this week to take on a pair of western region opponents.
Playing a Thursday, Saturday schedule, the Mavericks first take on Azusa Pacific University on Thursday at 8 P.M. MST with them then closing out the weekend on Saturday against Cal State Dominguez Hills at 12 P.M. MST.
Each school represents the western region, but both represent different conferences within it as Azusa Pacific is a part of the PacWest and Cal State Dominguez Hills in the CCAA. Thursday's matchup with Azusa Pacific will be the first time in school history that the Mavs and Cougars will meet.
LAST WEEK'S GAMES
Fairing a 1-1 record this past week, the Mavs are now 3-1 overall after shutting out NCAA Division II West Region foe Northwest Nazarene by a 2-0 score on Thursday night at home before falling 1-0 to NCAA Division I Wyoming on Sunday in Laramie.
The Mavericks are 3-0 against Division II foes and have outscored them 10-0 this season. All three of those wins have come at home with this week featuring just their second time on the road this season so far.
In the team's win over Northwest Nazarene Kylie Wells scored her team-leading fourth goal of the season from the penalty mark in the 72nd minute after Peyton Bundy had given the Mavs a 1-0 lead in the ninth minute. Wells also had an assist on Bundy's goal and is tied for the RMAC lead in both goals and offensive points.
Keely Wieczorek registered an RMAC-leading third shutout in the win to rank second nationally and has conceded just one goal in four complete games to post a 0.25 goals against average, which ranks her third in the RMAC. Her only goal she has allowed this season was against Division I Wyoming.
The Mavs game against Wyoming was the first time the two had ever officially met with the last time in 1999 being an exhibition.
Thanks to their win and strong showing against a Division I program the Mavs are now ranked #12 in the country by the United Soccer Coaches with them moving up three spots after being ranked #15 last week. The weekly rankings come out each Tuesday afternoon.
LOOKING AT THE NUMBERS
Scoring at an above average clip this season, the Mavs are averaging 2.50 goals per game while allowing just 0.25 in return. Outshooting opponents, they have also registered 49 shots with 20 on goal while limiting teams to just 38 shots against them.
As previously mentioned, Wells is the team leader in points and goals with her sitting at nine points so far and owning four goals. She has already matched her season total in goals from a year ago.
Sarah Dunn and Brooklyn Baird each have two goals apiece to rank second on the team while Bundy and Ellie Duncan both have scored once. There has been a staggering 11 assists already recorded as well with 11 different players each owning one.
Wieczorek has played every minute this season in the net with her recording 14 saves to this point. She currently sits at three shutouts this season while totaling 23 in her career.
ABOUT THE OPPONENTS
The Azusa Pacific Cougars are 1-1-1 this season with them playing to a 1-0-1 record this past week, beating CSU San Bernadino 1-0 on Thursday before drawing 0-0 with Cal State Dominguez Hills on Saturday.
Picked to finish fourth in the PacWest the Cougars were a NCAA Tournament qualifier last season ending with a 12-4-1 record.
So far this year they have only scored two goals with the pair of Lauren Grissom and Haley-Scott Recarte each having one apiece. Their goalkeeper Alexia Muniz has played every minute in the net totaling eight saves while allowing three goals on 26 shots faced.
In the Cougars game against the Mavs this will be the second time they face off with a ranked team this season as they took on then #1 Cal Poly Pomona for the first game of the year. Cal State Dominguez Hills was also receiving votes when the two faced off.
Cal State Dominguez Hills is 2-1-1 this year with them heading into Saturday's game after first taking on Colorado Christian University on Thursday night at home.
Fairing a 1-1 record last week the Toros first loss 2-0 to Concordia University Irvine before their tie against the Cougars.
In the CCAA the Toros were picked to finish ninth in the conference. So far this season they have been led by Kaylee Leavitt with the freshman having both of the team's goals scored.
Two goalkeepers have shared the net thus far with Audrey Haman starting three of the games and totaling 12 saves with two goals allowed.
Last time the Toros and Mavs met was in 2022 with Colorado Mesa taking home a strong 5-0 win.
HOW TO WATCH/LISTEN
Both games will be streamed live online through each school's streaming service. Each will be pay-per-view with the Azusa Pacific game taking place on the PacWest Network and the Cal State Dominguez Hills game being on FloCollege. While the PacWest Network is apart the Hudl organization it will require a payment to watch still given that it is with a separate conference. Live stats can be found online as well.
Colorado Mesa turns 100
The CMU Century Celebration stands as the cornerstone of Colorado Mesa University's year-long centennial celebration. This ambitious initiative unites our community in honoring a rich heritage while boldly envisioning the next hundred years of academic excellence.
Led by the Steering Committee and six specialized sub-committees, we're orchestrating a transformative experience that will resonate through generations. Each committee brings unique expertise to create an unforgettable commemoration of our past, present and future.
To learn more about Colorado Mesa's 100-year celebration, visit cmucentury.com
