JACKSONVILLE, Ala. — New Mexico State women's soccer hits the road Thursday to face Jacksonville State for the sixth time in program history as the Aggies aim to remain unbeaten in the series. NM State enters the matchup sitting ahead of the Gamecocks in the Conference USA standings, while Jax State looks to snap a three-match league skid on its home turf.

Last Year's Record…
The Aggies finished third in the CUSA regular season standings with a record of five wins, two losses, and two ties. They also went 1-for-2 in the CUSA tournament held at FIU in Miami, Fla., after defeating Jax State in the first round to qualify for the CUSA semifinals where they fell to Liberty in the final minutes of play.
 
Last Game...
NM State hosted Liberty for just the second time in program history. The Flames capitalized twice against the Aggies in each half to ultimately give Liberty the edge. Guha finished with six saves, which would end up recording three more saves than the Flame goalkeeper, Avenley Monteith.
 
Preseason Watchlist…
Jena Johannes was named to the 2025 Preseason All-Conference team after her spectacular defensive performance last season. With a strong outing against Gonzaga on Sept. 12 and Middle Tennessee on Sept. 29, she was able to pick up two Defensive Player of the Week honors for the Aggies. Last year, Johannes ranked also second in minutes among all Aggie field players.
 
Guess Who's Back, Back Again…
The Aggies were able to return 22 players from last year's roster and tacked on nine newcomers. Returning in the box is Valerie Guha, who had an incredible season last year as she picked up a Goalie of the Week award against Gonzaga on Sept. 12. Coming back from a severe injury which kept her off the field last year is Bianca Chacon. Chacon previously led the Aggies in season assists before Alum, Loma McNeese. The El Paso midfielder is a strong asset off the ball. This also includes four other individuals who earned a spot in the starting lineup in more than half of the team's contests last season as Marlee Cavitt, Jena Johannes, Meredith Scott and Ariana Ellison make their return. The Aggies bring back a total of 60.6% (11,941/19,706) of the team's minutes from a season ago.
 
One of Us…
NM State includes just one transfer athlete, Amaya Simoni-Walters, from Saint Mary's College. She competed in three seasons for them and played in eight matches last year. The team also consists of eight freshmen to fill out the rest of this year's roster. These players include Ainsleigh Thomson, Evelyn Grossman, Doriela Norzagaray, Esme Arenas, Arleth Arroya, Sophie Rush, Tessa O'Neill, and Yayu Wu who is from Taichung, Taiwan.
 
Bianca is Back...
Bianca Chacon, who missed all of last year due to injury, last played a major role for the CUSA Champion Aggies during the 2023 season. In 2023, she led the Aggies in assists (seven) and currently ranks second in program history in career assists (16). After a year long recovery, she enters the field for the Crimson and White once again.
 
Stacking Up Against the Nation...
The Aggies currently rank 25th in the nation in shot accuracy (.528) and second in the conference, highlighted by Amaya Simoni-Walters who boasts an .833 shot on goal percentage to pace all Aggies with at least five shot attempts.
 
THATS OUR KEEPER! ...
Valerie Guha was named CUSA Goalkeeper of the Week after her 10th career shutout during the first week of play. With this performance, she became only the second Aggie in program history with double-digit shutouts (Makenna Gottschalk, 14). Last week, Guha moved into fourth in all-time saves in program history (153), passing former Aggies goalie Jessica Schutter. She is now 58 saves away from surpassing Gottschalk and moving into third all-time.
 
Guha is also tied with former Aggie, Loma McNeese, for most weekly awards won by NM State as a member of CUSA. In the first seven games of the season, the German has had three or more saves in the Aggies' matches. Guha sits in second within CUSA in saves per game this season. She also leads the conference in minutes played by a goalie and ranks 11th among the nation.  Her 55 total saves this year also ranks 36th in the nation.
 
Outstanding Freshman...
Tessa O'Neill has marked her first career goal as an Aggie, punched in the final minutes of play against the Colorado Buffs. She had also recorded her first career assist earlier in the season against Colorado College, swiping away the ball from the Tigers to give a Meredith Scott an open look in the Aggies' season opener.
 
Against the Gamecocks...
NM State will head into this match with an undefeated record to Jax State, including a victory in the first round of the 2025 CUSA Championship. The Aggies look to keep their winning streak to the Gamecocks alive as they take on the opponent on the road for the third time in program history.
 
Leading the Gamecocks in scoring is Amelia Jacobs with a total of seven goals with just 21 attempted shots.
 
On the road again...
The match will be played on the Gamecocks' turf as they look to bounce back from last week's defeat against the Liberty Flames. Fans can tune in on the ESPN+ network at 6 p.m. MT.
 
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