Match Nine
NM State (4-4) vs. Gonzaga (8-1)
Sunday, Sept. 19 | 1:00 p.m. | NM State Soccer Complex | Las Cruces, N.M.
Watch | Live Stats | Tickets
THE KICKOFF
• For its final home match in the month of September, the NM State women's soccer team hopes to halt a three-match losing skid when it hosts Gonzaga Sunday afternoon at 1:00 p.m.
• The Aggies and Bulldogs will be meeting for the first time when the two squads kick things off from the NM State Soccer Athletics Complex.
• Sunday's match is the first day game on the Aggies' 2021 regular season home schedule. Of NM State's eight home matches, only two will be played during the day.
NM STATE vs. THE WEST COAST CONFERENCE
• Sunday's matchup against Gonzaga marks the Aggies' fourth all-time showdown against a WCC opponent.
• NM State is 0-3 (.000) all-time against WCC opposition.
• The Aggies' battle with Gonzaga marks the second time in head coach Rob Baarts' NM State tenure that he will go toe-to-toe with a WCC for. In his first season in charge of NM State, Baarts and his crew dropped a 2-1 home decision to Pacific on Aug. 26, 2018.
• Baarts is well-versed with the WCC, having served as an assistant coach for both the men's and women's soccer teams at the University of Portland. Baarts' assistant coaching tenure for the Pilots' women's soccer program lasted from 2004-13 and was highlighted by an NCAA Division I national championship in 2005.
• Baarts served on the Pilots' men's soccer coaching staff from 2004-15.
ABOUT THE AGGIES
• Though she was held without a point for the second time in as many matches, forward Hannah Leitner still leads the WAC in total assist (four) as well as assists per game (0.50).
• NM State owns a 1-1 record at home this season and a 3-3 mark in road tilts.
• The Aggies are seeking a return to the win column for the first time since Sunday, Sept. 5.
• NM State is looking to avoid a four-match losing streak when it hits the pitch Sunday morning. The program's last four-match skid occurred in the spring 2021 season when the team dropped four in a row from March 11-March 20.
LAST TIME OUT | NEW MEXICO 3, at NM STATE 1 • Thursday, Sept. 16, 2021
• In the first matchup between the Aggies and Lobos since 2019, New Mexico scored two goals in the first 18 minutes of action and added another near the midway point of the final frame to earn a 3-1 victory.
• Back in action for the first time since Sept. 2, forward Megan Ormson broke up New Mexico's shutout bid by heading in her second goal of the season late in the 76th minute of action.
• Ormson's strike represented the Aggies' first goal against New Mexico since 2017. The two-goal margin of victory was the largest between either side in the series since 2016.
SCOUTING GONZAGA | ROSTER | SCHEDULE | STATISTICS
• Outside of a 1-0 setback to Purdue back in late August, the Bulldogs haven't had a whole lot to hang their heads about in 2021. Gonzaga makes its first journey to Las Cruces sporting an 8-1 record - the WCC's best mark at the moment.
• Boasting one of the nation's most potent offenses, Gonzaga is pumping in goals at a rate of 3.62 per game - an average which ranks ninth among all NCAA Division I women's soccer teams. That has helped the Bulldogs outscore their opponents 30-3 thus far in 2021.
• Gonzaga leads the WCC in a multitude of statistical categories including assists per game (3.38), points per game (10.62), goals per game, shots per game (23.38), shots on goal per game (12.5), assists (27), goals (30) and points (87).
• Fifteen different Gonzaga players have netted goals this season, none more than sophomore forward Maddie Kemp who has amassed seven. Her goal total ranks eighth nationally among all NCAA Division I women's soccer players.
• All of Gonzaga's wins in net this year belong to Lyza Bosselmann. The junior has been the Bulldogs' go-to keeper, starting each of her team's nine matches. Bosselmann has amassed 22 of her team's 29 saves and possesses a goals against average of 0.38.
COMING UP NEXT
• Following Sunday's match, the Aggies turn their attention toward Western Athletic Conference (WAC) action. NM State's first of 10 league matches is set for Thursday night at Dixie State. Kickoff in St. George, Utah, has been set for 7:00 p.m.
• For complete coverage of NM State women's soccer throughout the 2021 season, visit NMStateSports.com - the official home of Aggie athletics - and follow the Aggies on Facebook (NM State Women's Soccer), Twitter (@NMStateWSOC) and Instagram (@NMStateWSOC).
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