Sept. 16, 2009
EVANSTON, Ill. — On Tuesday, Northwestern made its first appearance in the top 20 of the Kookaburra/NFHCA Coaches poll, ranking third among all Big Ten teams at No. 18. This weekend, NU will engage in its final tune-up for the conference season when it plays host to Missouri State at 2 p.m. Friday and St. Joseph's at noon Sunday.
ON THE WEB
Both of Northwestern's contests this weekend will be streamed live from Lakeside Field and are available by clicking on the All-Access page of NUsports.com. Fans can also receive in-game tweets about the action by following the username @NU_sportsLIVE on Twitter. Gametracker for NU's games and Saturday's neutral game between the Bears and Hawks can be accessed by clicking on the following links:
Friday, Sept. 18 • NU vs. Missouri State • 2 p.m. •
Saturday, Sept. 19 • St. Joseph's vs. Missouri State • Noon •
Sunday, Sept. 20 • NU vs. St. Joseph's • Noon •
• Northwestern's appearance in the national coaches poll marks the first time since Sept. 9, 2003, that the Wildcats ranked among the nation's top 20, when it was No. 19. Northwestern is the third-highest ranked team out of the Big Ten behind only Michigan State (No. 8) and Indiana (No. 17). Ohio State is the last ranked team at No. 20 while Penn State, Iowa and Michigan are all near the top of the “also receiving votes” category.
• For the second time this season, Northwestern sophomore Chelsea Armstrong has been named the Big Ten Offensive Player of the Week. Three weeks into the 2009 campaign, Armstrong has twice as many goals (12) and more than double the amount of points (27) compared to the next highest individual totals in the Big Ten.
Armstrong's 12 scores leads the nation in total goals and she is tied for ninth nationally in goals per game with 1.50. As a team, NU is scoring goals at a rate of 2.96 per game (22nd nationally).
The transfer from the University of Western Australia—who was a lifelong defender for her club team back home—scored six goals in two games last weekend and has found the back of the cage in all but one of Northwestern's games thus far.
• Northwestern is a perfect 11-0 all-time and 8-0 at home when facing Missouri State, who enters Friday's contest with a 2-4 season mark. The Bears scored a combined 14 goals in their two victories (7-1 vs. Robert Morris, 7-0 vs. Saint Louis) and earlier this year fell to Stanford by a 3-1 margin, the same score by which NU fell to the Cardinal on Sept. 10. Senior midfielder Alyssa Hile is leading the Bears on the offensive end this season with 13 points (5g, 3a).
• Atlantic-10 opponent Saint Joseph's arrives in Evanston winless on the season (0-5) but with two one-goal losses—including one in overtime—on its schedule. The Hawks are paced on offense by senior Anne Schreuders with five points (2g, 1a).