Huskers Set for Big 12 Road Contests in the Lone Star State

Game 12: Nebraska (8-3-0, 1-1-0) vs. Baylor (7-3-1, 0-2-0)
Date: Oct. 1, 2010
Time: 7 p.m.
Location: Betty Lou Mays Soccer Field, Waco, Texas (Directions, Map)
Capacity: 3,000
Series History: NU leads, 12-5-1
Live Stats: baylorbears.com

Game 13: Nebraska (8-3-0, 1-1-0) vs. Texas Tech (8-3-0, 1-1-0)
Date: Oct. 3, 2010
Time: 1 p.m.
Location: John Walker Soccer Complex, Lubbock, Texas (Map)
Capacity: 1,500
Series History: NU leads, 14-1-1
Live Video: texastech.com
Live Stats: texastech.com

The Nebraska soccer team hits the road for the first time in three weeks as the Huskers (8-3-0, 1-1-0) travel south to Baylor (7-3-1, 0-2-0) and Texas Tech (8-3-0) this weekend. The Huskers will face the Bears in Waco this Friday at 7 p.m., before a trip west to Lubbock for Sunday's 1 p.m. match against the Red Raiders. Live stats will be available for both games, while the Nebraska-Texas Tech contest will be web streamed for free on texastech.com.

Nebraska is 8-3-0 overall with a 1-1-0 record in Big 12 play following last weekend's victory over Texas and loss to No. 6 Texas A&M in Lincoln. The Huskers are ranked No. 8 in the NSCAA Central Region and are receiving votes in the national top 25 poll. Both of this weekend's opponents are enjoying successful seasons thus far, although Baylor suffered a pair of challenging road defeats at No. 13 Oklahoma State (1-2) and Oklahoma (2-3) last weekend to begin conference play 0-2-0. Texas Tech, who is ranked seventh in the NSCAA Central Region, split the exact same contests as it downed Oklahoma (3-1) and lost to No. 13 Oklahoma State (0-2). Last season, the Huskers tied both the Bears (1-1 in Lincoln) and Red Raiders (3-3 in Lubbock).

Sophomore Morgan Marlborough has maintained her spot as the Big 12's leading scorer. She enters this week with 10 goals and 23 points to rank third and fourth nationally. The reigning Big 12 Offensive Player of the Week, Marlborough has had at least one goal in the past four matches to run her career total to 31, the seventh-most goals in school history. Sophomore teammate Jordan Jackson is also atop the league rankings in assists with five, tying with Texas' Kylie Doniak and Texas A&M's Bri Young.

Scouting Baylor
Baylor (7-3-1, 0-2-0) is the Big 12's highest scoring team, ranking first in goals with 34. The Bears went 7-1-1 in non-conference play and put up nine goals against Prairie View A&M. Baylor also faced a pair Nebraska opponents, losing to Arizona State (1-3) and tying New Mexico (0-0). The Bears opened Big 12 action with losses at No. 13 Oklahoma State and Oklahoma. Last year, Baylor finished 8-6-5 and finished in a tie for seventh in the league with a 3-4-3 record. The Bears returned eight starters this fall.

Sophomore Lisa Sliwinski is among the league's best scorers as she leads BU with seven goals and four assists. Her 18 points are tied for second in the Big 12 behind Marlborough. A pair of teammates, sophomores Hannah Gilmore and Dana Larsen, each have five goals, while senior Lotto Smith has three goals and three assists as one of the top returning midfielders in the league. Smith had the Bears' goal in last season's 1-1 tie at Nebraska.

Although Baylor is first in the Big 12 in goals scored, the Bears also pose a strong defense that has given up only eight goals this season, the third-best total in the league. The BU defense has shut out all seven opponents in its seven wins, in addition to a shutout in the scoreless tie vs. New Mexico. Junior goalkeeper Courtney Seelhorst has started all 11 matches while posting a 0.87 goals-against average and .784 save percentage.

Head Coach Marci Jobson (SMU, 1998) is in her third season at Baylor and has a 20-19-9 record. Jobson previously spent three years at Northern Illinois and has totaled a 43-46-18 career mark. Jobson led the Bears to an 8-6-5 record in 2009, the most wins by the program since 2002.

Husker History Against the Bears
Nebraska leads the all-time series against Baylor, 12-5-1, including wins in 10 of the first 11 meetings. The Bears have been tougher in recent years, defeating the Huskers four times in the past seven matchups and winning back-to-back contests in 2007 and 2008.

Last year, Lotto Smith gave BU a 1-0 lead in the 20th minute before Nebraska's Shay Powell sent in the equalizer in the 46th minute as the teams finished in a 1-1 tie. The last time Nebraska visited Waco was 2008. The Huskers entered that game riding a five-game winning streak, but a goal by Bethany Johnston in the fourth minute was all the Bears needed en route to a 1-0 victory. The Huskers are 4-3-0 all-time in Waco.

Scouting Texas Tech
Texas Tech (8-3-0, 1-1-0) is tied with Oklahoma State as the Big 12's top defensive team, ranking first by giving up only six goals all season (0.55 per game). Seven of the Red Raider victories have come in shutout fashion, while their only losses are to No. 5 Notre Dame, North Texas and Oral Roberts. Texas Tech was 8-8-4 overall with a 3-4-3 Big 12 mark to finish tied for seventh in the league standings in 2009. The Red Raiders returned eight starters.

Leading the way is junior midfielder Taylor Lytle, a 2009 first-team All-Big 12 selection, and sophomore forward Dawn Ward, a 2009 All-Big 12 newcomer. Ward is the top Texas Tech scorer this season with four goals and two assists. Lytle and freshman Jessica Fuston each have nine points via four goals and one assist to rank second on the team.

Sophomore Erin Wilkelius and senior Colleen Pitts have split time in the net. Wilkelius has started four of the past five games and has recorded a 3-1-0 record with the second-best goals-against average (0.44) and save percentage (.895) in the league. Pitts is 5-2-0 with a 0.62 goals-against average and 0.871 save percentage.

Husker History Against the Red Raiders
Nebraska leads the all-time series against Texas Tech, 14-1-1, with its lone loss coming in the Huskers' trip to Lubbock in 2007. NU won the 2008 contest in Lincoln, 3-0, behind a goal and assist from Katie Goetzmann. Last year in Lubbock the Huskers took a 3-1 halftime lead behind a pair of Morgan Marlborough goals but allowed two second-half goals to surrender a 3-3 tie.

The Huskers will be playing on FieldTurf in Lubbock at the new John Walker Soccer Complex, which opened at the start of the 2008 season. John Walker is a Texas Tech alum who primarily funded the new facility.

Marlborough Enters All-Time Top 10 Lists
In only 30 collegiate games, sophomore Morgan Marlborough has already rised to No. 7 on the school's top 10 list with 31 career goals. Marlborough has at least one goal in each of the past four matches, including two in Nebraska's 2-1 victory over Texas last Friday to earn Big 12 Player of the Week honors for the fourth time in her career. This season, Marlborough has passed former Huskers Nikki Baker (2002-04), Kelly Rheem (1998-2001), Kori Saunders (1999-2002) and Jenny Benson (1996-2000) on the all-time goal chart. Christine Latham (1999-2002) is the school record keeper with 69 career goals.

Although the all-time goal list is one of the most prominent charts, Marlborough holds her highest top-10 ranking with nine multiple-goal games, tied for the sixth-most in school history with Brittany Timko (2003-06). She is also ninth in game-winning goals (7) and 10th in points (72).

A native of Lee's Summit, Mo., Marlborough currently holds the Big 12 scoring lead with 10 goals and 23 total points, numbers that rank third and fourth nationally. Last season, Marlborough's 49 points (21 goals, 7 assists) led a Husker scoring attack that ranked third in the NCAA with 3.10 goals per game, the highest scoring average by a Nebraska team since 2000 (4.0). Marlborough was named a freshman All-American and earned Big 12 Offensive Player and Newcomer of the Year awards.

The fifth-highest scorer in the NCAA last fall, Marlborough broke the freshman school record for single-season goals just 14 games into the season. She is just one of seven players in school history to produce multiple hat tricks in a career after she tied the single-game school record with four goals against Akron and then had three vs. Oklahoma.

Prior to the start of this season, Marlborough was named to the watch list for the 2010 Hermann Trophy, given annually to the nation's best women's collegiate soccer player, while she also claimed a spot on the 2010 Preseason All-Big 12 Team.

Jackson Among Top Offensive Players in Big 12 Conference
Sophomore Jordan Jackson has turned up her offensive power as of late, scoring 13 of her 15 points in five of her past seven matches alone. Jackson had two goals in Nebraska's 3-1 win over Iowa on Sept. 19, following a two-assist performance in the 3-1 victory over Cal State Fullerton on Sept. 17 to earn Big 12 Player of the Week honors. The sophomore scored her first two goals in the Sept. 6 win against IUPUI and has since been one of the biggest offensive threats in conference. She is tied for first in the Big 12 with five assists and tied for fifth with 15 points.

Jackson worked her way into the lineup to start 14 of 20 games as a freshman, including the last 11. The forward scored five goals on the season, tied for the third-most on the team. Jackson added three assists, including one in Nebraska's upset of No. 14 Texas A&M. She accounted for 13 points on the year.

Thomas Works Toward Another All-Big 12 Season
Two-time All-Big 12 selection Molly Thomas is third on the team in goals behind Marlborough and Jackson with four. The Omaha native also has one assist to total nine points on the year as she aims for All-Big 12 honors for the third straight season. Thomas scored at least one point in four straight matches from Aug. 27-Sept. 6, including both goals in Nebraska's 2-0 win over Loyola Chicago. Her offensive aggressivness and speed has been the lead force in helping Nebraska currently rank first in the Big 12 with 64 corner kicks.

Thomas has started 48-of-50 career games with the Huskers. She had 23 points on eight goals and seven assists in 2009 after an 11-point freshman season.

Stevens Regains Starting Role
Redshirt freshman goalkeeper Emma Stevens produced her biggest career victory last Friday when she helped lead the Huskers to a 2-1 Big 12-opening win over Texas. Stevens had five saves in the contest while allowing only one goal. The victory came on the heels of back-to-back wins over Cal State Fullerton and Iowa the previousl week. The Corona, Calif., native is 3-1-0 with a 1.61 goals-against average.

Stevens redshirted the 2009 campaign, but was impressive in the spring season that included a shutout over BYU. At Santiago High School, Stevens accumulated over 6,000 minutes in net and notched 383 saves. As a senior, she posted 121 saves while leading the Sharks to a 19-4-2 record. Stevens earned two shutouts in the state tournament, before Santiago was eliminated in the quarterfinals. She claimed 11 shutouts during the season.

Macdonald Moves Up All-Time Charts
Senior Tara Macdonald was named Big 12 Defensive Player of the Week for matches Aug. 27-29 following her strong performances in wins over Loyola Chicago and Loyola Maryland. Macdonald's player of the week award was the first of her career and the ninth for a Husker goalie in school history.

A native of Austin, Texas, Macdonald turned in two shutouts in her first action of the 2010 season, as Nebraska downed the Ramblers (2-0) and the Greyhounds (2-0) three weeks ago. Macdonald totaled seven saves in the victories, including a four-save, complete-game shutout against Loyola Maryland. She currently ranks first in the Big 12 Conference with a 0.30 goals-against average and 0.944 save percentage.

Macdonald transferred from the University of Oklahoma in 2008. Despite battling injuries in just over one season at Nebraska, she has reached eighth on the school's all-time top 10 lists for career saves with 70. She is also tied for seventh on the all-time win list with an 11-3-3 record as a Husker.

Last season, Macdonald ranked fourth in the Big 12 Conference with 3.75 saves per game and totaled 45 on the year with a .763 save percentage.

Freshmen Playing Big Roles in 2010
Four Husker freshmen have combined to earn 33 starts this season, led by forward Ari Romero and defender Maritza Hayes who have each started all 11 matches. Hayes, along with senior Brittany Goosen and junior Katie Goetzmann, have helped lead the Huskers to four shutouts. Goalkeeper Emma Stevens has earned a starting role in six matches, while Bartels has worked her way into the lineup for five games and scored her first and second career goals in the Sept. 17 win against Cal State Fullerton.

Nearly the entire true freshmen class has seen playing time this fall, including midfielder Ashley Hick, forward Maddie Hanssler, midfielder Kylie Kusleika and forward Megan Merrill. Goalkeepers Mallorie Monhollon and Amy Swearer have not yet appeared in a game, as they have both battled injuries while serving as back-ups to redshirt freshman Emma Stevens and senior Tara Macdonald.

Husker underclassmen have made up nearly 50 percent of Nebraska's starts this season.

Cardona, White Return to Starting Lineup
Forward Alexa Cardona has earned three starts this season, marking a return to the lineup for the first time since Nov. 2, 2007 when she scored a goal and had an assist in a 2-2- tie against Iowa State. Since then, the Lincoln, Neb., native was forced to sit out the 2008 season due to a foot injury and then missed the last six games of 2009 with a dislocated knee cap. Before her injury-shortened junior season, Cardona tallied two assists in 11 games. With action in 35 career matches, she is one of the more experienced players on the NU roster.

Another veteran Husker who saw a recent return to the starting lineup is utility player Jaclyn White. The senior from Long Beach, Calif., has also started three matches, her first starts since 2007. White has made the most of her opportunity as she scored her third career goal in NU's 3-0 win over Arizona on Sept. 10. Her role was taken to a further extend last Sunday against No. 6 Texas A&M when she served as the NU goalkeeper for the final 49 minutes of the match. Despite having no previous goalkeeping experience, White gave up only one goal and tallied three saves against the Aggies in the 2-1 loss.

Huskers Hold One of Nation's Biggest Home Field Advantages
Nebraska has shown the Big Red has one of the best home field advantages in the country by losing only one home match in its past 19. The lone loss came last Sunday against No. 6 Texas A&M, breaking a streak of 18-straight unbeaten home games that was the fifth-longest in the NCAA. During that span, NU compiled a 9-0-2 record in 2009 that was the best home record since the 2001 Huskers went 12-0-0 at the Abbott Sports Complex. Since moving on campus in 2005, Nebraska has won 74 percent (44-12-10) of its home matches. Last season's home success included a 2-1 upset of No. 14 Texas A&M, while the Huskers scored at least two goals in 9-of-11 home matches and a combined 29 goals in the first four games. Nebraska is 6-1 at home this season.

Review: Huskers Defeat Texas, Drop 2-1 Battle to No. 6 Texas A&M
Sophomore Morgan Marlborough scored two goals in a 2 1/2 minute span in the second half as Nebraska knocked off Texas, 2-1, last Friday at the Nebraska Soccer Field before dropping a 2-1 contest to No. 6 Texas A&M on Sunday. The weekend saw Nebraska's 18-game home unbeaten streak come to an end, as the Big Red had not lost in Lincoln since October of 2008.

The previous six meetings between the Huskers and Longhorns had been decided by one goal and the 2010 matchup was no different as both teams fought to a scoreless halftime tie with only seven total shots (Nebraska 4, Texas 3). The offense turned up on both ends in the second half and senior Anna White sparked Nebraska's first goal when she was fouled in the 58th minute as she worked her way toward the corner. Marlborough took the ensuing free kick from a wide angle 25 yards away and shot over the Texas wall to sneak the ball inside the far post for the first goal of the match.

Although Nebraska was clicking on offense to create several goal opportunities, the Longhorns answered quickly when freshman Leah Fortune unleashed a 20-yard shot from just outside the top of the penalty box into the upper right corner of the net.

Entering the contest, Texas had not given up more than one goal in any game this season behind sophomore goalkeeper Alexa Gaul, who finished the game with seven saves. Nebraska would break that streak less than a minute after UT's game-tying goal as Marlborough was taken down inside the box and nailed the eventual game-winning goal on a penalty kick in the 61st minute.

With Nebraska taking its second lead of the game, Texas nearly answered again with 10 minutes remaining when Husker goalkeeper Emma Stevens made her save of the game, knocking a 15-yard Kylie Doniak shot over the cross bar to maintain the NU lead. Stevens, a freshman from Corona, Calif., won her third game in a row as she tallied five saves.

Texas was coming off back-to-back wins over ranked opponents after it upset No. 22 William & Mary and No. 10 BYU last week. The Longhorns were ranked in two of the three major polls, checking in at No. 18 by the Soccer Times and No. 21 by Soccer America.

On Sunday, Marlborough would turn in her Big 12-leading 10th goal of the season to give Nebraska an opportunity to upset No. 6 Texas A&M, but Aggie midfielder Bri Young broke a 1-1 tie in the 71st minute to give the Aggies a 2-1 win.

The Huskers fell behind early in the 11th minute when Alyssa Mautz scored from 30 yards out to put the Aggies ahead 1-0 and give NU its first home deficit of the season. Marlborough was quick to answer less than three minutes later when she was fouled just beyond the penalty box. The Lee's Summit, Mo., native then sent a 20-yard free kick over the Texas A&M wall and just inside the right post to tie the contest at 1-1. Marlborough is the Big 12's current scoring leader with 23 points on 10 goals and three assists while she also claimed sole possession of the seventh-spot on Nebraska's all-time goal chart with 31 career goals.

The Husker defense was outstanding throughout the match as Nebraska played the final 49 minutes with only 10 players. In the 41st minute, NU starting goalkeeper Emma Stevens collided with Mautz outside the penalty box and was whistled for a red card. With senior Tara Macdonald sidelined due to a back injury, the Huskers entered senior Jaclyn White in between the posts. Primarily a forward this season, White had not played goalkeeper during her prep or collegiate career. The Long Beach, Calf., native turned in a solid performance by tallying three saves and giving up only one goal on Young's 45-yard free kick. White nearly saved the eventual game-winning goal as she deflected the shot into the bottom of the cross bar before the ball bounced off the back of her head and into the net.

Despite playing shorthanded, Texas A&M only outshot Nebraska 16-13 overall with a slim 8-7 shots on goal advantage. The Huskers managed to create seven shots with only 10 players, including an opportunity eight minutes into the second half when Marlborough broke free on the right side of the field and centered a pass to sophomore Jordan Jackson, but her one-touch shot sailed just over the cross bar. After the Aggies took a 2-1 lead, junior Molly Thomas rocketed a one-touch shot of her own from just outside the goalie box that was saved by Texas A&M goalkeeper Kelly Dyer. Jackson led Nebraska with five shots.

The Aggies entered the match averaging nearly three goals per game. Just before Young's game-winning goal, Amber Gnatzig had a 1 on 1 opportunity with White that ended when senior defender Brittany Goosen chased down Gnatzig to break up her would-be shot on goal. The Aggies looked to separate themselves down the stretch but White made a diving save with four minutes remaining on a Mautz shot in the box to keep the Huskers in the match all 90 minutes.