Valparaiso (2-2-0, 0-0-0 Horizon)
Crusaders compete at Nebraska's Cornhusker Classic
Friday, Sept. 2 - 4 p.m. – Lincoln, Neb. – vs. Saint Louis (3-0-0, 0-0-0 A-10)
Sunday, Sept. 4 – 10 a.m. – Lincoln, Neb. – vs. Kansas (2-1-1, 0-0-0 Big 12)
This Week in Crusader Soccer: The Valparaiso University women's soccer team continues its pre-league schedule this weekend with a pair of tough tests at Nebraska's Cornhusker Classic. The Crusaders will face an undefeated and regionally-ranked Saint Louis side on Friday afternoon before taking on Big 12 foe Kansas on Sunday morning.
Previously: Valpo opened the home slate last Friday evening with a 2-0 victory over New Mexico State, courtesy of a brace from Cory Griffith, and improved to .500 on the year with a 3-2 overtime win at Loyola on Sunday, thanks to a hat trick by April Cronin.
Looking Ahead: Valpo returns home briefly next Friday night to host Fort Wayne on the 9th. The Crusaders then return to the road, making the short trip to Kalamazoo, Mich. to face Western Michigan on Sunday, Sept. 11.
Following the Crusaders: Both matches this weekend will have live stats available through ValpoAthletics.com.
Head Coach John Marovich: The 2014 Horizon League Coach of the Year, John Marovich holds a 75-54-27 record both overall and with Valpo in his ninth season at the helm of the Brown and Gold. Just the third head coach in program history, Marovich is just three wins shy of moving into a tie as the program's all-time winningest coach.
Series Notes: This weekend marks the first all-time meeting for the Crusaders against either Saint Louis or Kansas.
Scouting the Opposition: Saint Louis - The Billikens enter Friday's game with a perfect 3-0-0 mark on the season, having most recently defeated Illinois by a 1-0 final. SLU has surrendered just one goal in its three matches so far this year. The Billikens are ranked eighth in the Mid-Atlantic region in this week's NSCAA poll.
Kansas - The Jayhawks enter this weekend's action at 2-1-1 and will face host Nebraska on Friday prior to taking on the Crusaders. KU has earned results in each of its last three matches, including a 1-1 draw with South Dakota State last time out.
Crusaders Picked Fourth in Preseason Poll: Valpo has been chosen to finish in a tie for fourth place in the Horizon League preseason poll, as voted on by the league’s head coaches. The Crusaders totaled 57 points in the preseason polling, in which coaches were not allowed to vote for their own team, to tie Wright State for fourth place. Oakland edged out Milwaukee by one point to top the preseason poll.
Looking Back at 2015: Last year's Crusader squad posted a 7-8-3 record, including a 4-4-1 mark in Horizon League play. April Cronin and graduated senior Rita Craven both repeated as First Team All-League honorees and were NSCAA Third Team All-Region choices, while Kelsey Jahn represented the Crusaders on the league's All-Freshman Team.
Third Time's the Charm: Senior April Cronin became just the fifth player in program history to score a hat trick when she accounted for all three of the Crusaders' goals on Sunday in the win at Loyola. Cronin's 84th-minute goal forced extra time, with her 105th tally proving to be the golden goal. For Cronin, it was the first multi-goal game of her career and gives her 20 career goals, tied for third-most in program history and just one shy of second position.
Hat Trick Tidbits: Cronin became the first Crusader to score a hat trick since the 2005 campaign, when Brittany Derksen (vs. Lipscomb) and Kendall Brown (at Cleveland State) did so within nine days of each other. The senior is just the second Valpo player to account for all of her team's scoring with a hat trick (Beth Muskovich, at DePaul, 1996) and is the first to tally a hat trick in a one-goal game.
Weekly League Honors: Cronin also assisted on the match-winning goal in Friday's win over New Mexico State, giving her seven points total for the weekend. She was named the Horizon League Offensive Player of the Week on Monday, her first weekly award from the league office. In fact, Cronin is the first Crusader to earn the offensive weekly honors since the league split offense and defense in 2012.
Griffith Tallys Two: Cronin's heroics on Sunday partially overshadowed the work of sophomore Cory Griffith on Friday night. Griffith came off the bench at halftime and found the back of the net in the 64th and 69th minutes to account for all of the scoring in the Crusaders' 2-0 win. The sophomore now owns five career goals after recording the second brace of her career and the 42nd two-goal performance in program history.
Rogers Helps Out: Junior Grace Rogers entered last weekend with four career assists and nearly doubled that total in just two matches. Rogers tallied the assist on Griffith's second goal in the win over NMSU and then helped out on each of Cronin's first two goals in Sunday's win at Loyola. The two-assist performance against the Rambers marks the 22nd time in program history a player has picked up two assists in one game, trailing just three three-assist efforts.
Ready to Go: Redshirt freshman goalkeeper Tess Barrett sat out last season and had not been called upon for any regular season action until regular goalkeeper Sydney Galvez-Daley was forced to leave due to injury in the 78th minute at Loyola. Barrett stepped in and didn't miss a beat, though, making three saves as the Crusaders went on to earn the victory in overtime.
Hit the Road Jack: The 2016 Valpo side is in the midst of compiling plenty of early-season travel time. Of the Crusaders' first nine regular season matches, only two are at Brown Field, as Valpo will play five road contests and a pair of neutral-site matches at Nebraska. In the second half of the season, the Crusaders will play five of their final nine matches at home.
Experience Back in 2016: Among the 18 letterwinners who return for the Crusaders in 2016 are seven of last season's 11 most regular starters. The team features plenty of new blood as well, however, as nine freshmen are in their first year at Valparaiso.
