Sunday, September 9
Pittsburgh, Pa.
1 PM
Pitt
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Kansas
Pitt Prepares for No. 16 Kansas
9/8/2018 1:03:00 PM | Women's Soccer
Panthers Face Four-Straight Top-25 Opponents
PITTSBURGH – The University of Pittsburgh women's soccer team will kick off a string of four-straight games against nationally-ranked opponents, hosting No. 16 Kansas Sunday afternoon at Ambrose Urbanic Field.
The Panthers and Jayhawks are set to meet at 1 p.m. as Pitt closes out nonconference action in its final preparation before a challenging ACC slate.
PROMOTIONS
Pitt (4-2-1) closes out nonconference action against No. 16 Kansas (5-0-2) as Pitt prepares for four-straight games against top-25 opponents. The Panthers are fresh off of a 2-0 defeat over cross-town rival Duquesne as Madeline Gravante tallied the first two goals of her career to hand Pitt its second-straight win over Duquesne.
On the season Anna Rico (3) and Gravante (2) own Pitt's only multiple goal outputs, while Dixon Veltri, Mikayla Schmidt, Ashley Moreira and Aideen O'Donoghue have all found the back of the net.
Amaia Pena has made all but one start in net for the Panthers, having recorded 28 saves with a .824 save percentage and a 0.94 goals against average. Freshman Katherine Robinson has earned one start and seen action in two games, tallying six saves.
SCOUTING KANSAS
The Jayhawks remained undefeated Thursday as they competed to a 1-1 draw at Cincinnati. Kansas started the season with an impressive win over No. 18 Pepperdine, rattling off three straight victories before a tie against Oregon. Last week, the Jayhawks secured wins over Utah and No. 25 Butler.
Junior Katie McClure leads the Jayhawks offense with five goals and three assists, leading the team with three game winning goals. Kansas has scored 11 goals on the season with Taylor Christie (3) also putting together a multi-goal season.
Defensively, Kansas has been solid, letting up just two goals all season. Freshman keeper Sarah Peters has started all seven contests, tallying 10 saves and recording five shutouts in her first collegiate season.
THE SERIES WITH KANSAS
This will be the second meeting between the Panthers and Jayhawks in a series dating back to the 2016 season. In that meeting, the Jayhawks captured a 2-1 victory over the Panthers in Lawrence, Kan.
TOUGH BOUTS
The Panthers' schedule will continue to challenge as the team enters a tough stretch against nationally-dominant opponents. Sunday's match against the Jayhawks kicks off a series of four straight games in which Pitt will battle with a top-25 opponent as Kansas (16), Louisville (24), North Carolina (2) and NC State (13) all check in nationally.
Of the remaining 11 games on Pitt's schedule, six will be against nationally-ranked teams, with two additional teams receiving votes. Of those six teams ranked nationally, four check in in the top-15, three in the top-10 and two in the top-five.
FRESHMAN FOOTING THE LOAD
First year players have made quite the impact for the Panthers in 2018, as the freshmen have tallied six of the team's nine goals this year. A pair of freshmen in Anna Rico (3) and Madeline Gravante (2) are the only pair of Panthers to have tallied multiple goals on the season.
MILESTONE 400
Head coach Randy Waldrum reached a career milestone in the team's season opener against Ohio, as he secured his 400th career victory. The win was the first for Waldrum as the Panther head coach as he is now the ninth winningest head coach in NCAA Division I women's soccer history.
THE WALDRUM ERA
The season marks the beginning of the Randy Waldrum era as the first-year head coach and his staff begin their inaugural year with the Panthers. Waldrum is the fourth head coach in program history, bringing national experience to the Panthers' program.
Waldrum saw unprecedented success in his tenure at the helm of the perennial powerhouse Notre Dame women's program. In his 14 seasons, he led the Fighting Irish to two national championships, capturing the College Cup title in 2004 and 2010. His teams won eight Big East Tournament titles and appeared in eight NCAA Final Four games in that span.
A two-time national coach of the year (2009 by Soccer America; 2010 by NSCAA), Waldrum was the first coach in NCAA history to lead a team to a national title in his/her first season with a program. He wrapped up his tenure at Notre Dame with a mark of 292-58-17 (.819) and holds an overall record of 403-108-30 (.772) as a head coach on the women's side. His record ranks fourth in all-time wins as an NCAA women's head coach and third in win percentage.
NEWBIES
The Panthers feature 14 newcomers on the roster, as 50 percent of the 2018 squad is new to the program. Pitt will debut 11 freshmen and three transfers. Of the 2017 roster with nine or more games of experience, only six return – Taylor Pryce, Vildan Kardesler, Alli Higgs, Ashley Moreira, Cheyenne Hudson and Aideen O'Donoghue.
REDSHIRT RETURNERS
Two redshirt seniors, forward Taylor Pryce and midfielder Ashley Moreira, both of whom have attended the U-20 Canadian National Team Camp, will lead the Panthers this season. Pryce started 17 of the 18 games in 2014 and 2015, scoring game-winning goals versus Louisville and Wake Forest. In 2016, she competed in two games, with one shot on goal, before missing the rest of season due to injury. Last season Pryce finished as the team's top point scorer, recording 11 points and starting in all 18 games.
Moreira also started 17 of the 18 games in 2014 and recorded 1,330 minutes of playing time, which was the fourth highest on the team. In 2015, she started all 18 games and recorded seven shots on goal, scoring her first career goal in an overtime game-winner at Colorado College. She missed the 2016 season due to the U-20 Canadian National Team Camp, but bounced back last season logging 1,541 total minutes and starting all 18 games.
GOALKEEPERS
Redshirt sophomore Amaia Pena will lead this young goalkeeper squad with a 2.55 goals against average. Last season she logged just over 529 minutes of field time and made a career-high 10 saves in a 3-2 loss vs. Boston College.
Freshmen Katherine Robinson and Claire Hinkle will also compete for time this season.
MEET THE STAFF
Randy Waldrum is joined by three fresh faces on the 2018 coaching staff in Dustin Stein, Ben Waldrum and Riley Butler.
Stein joined the Panthers after nearly five years as the head coach at Eastfield College, where he was the winningest coach in program history. While at Eastfield, his teams tallied 14 or more wins in each of his last three seasons, and boasted a record of 42-12-3 in that stretch. Eastfield was amongst the top 10 NJCAA programs in each of the last three seasons as Stein was named the 2015 NJCAA Region 5 Division 3 Coach of the Year and the Metro Athletic Conference Coach of the Year.
The younger Waldrum had served as a member of the FC Dallas staff since October of 2012, in the youth development program. In April 2015 he was promoted to head coach of the FCD Women. The team competed to a record of 34-3-3 under Waldrum's tutelage, appearing in the WPSL Playoffs in 2016 and 2017 and capturing the 2016 WPSL Southwest Conference championships.
This will be the younger Waldrum's second stint in the college ranks, as he served as an assistant coach and recruiting coordinator under his father at Notre Dame from 2003-08. With both Waldrums on staff, the Fighting Irish competed to a record of 111-13-5 and won the 2004 NCAA national title. He was a member of three NCAA College Cup appearances, won five Big East regular season titles and coached five All-Americans.
Butler came to the program after a four-year stint as the assistant men's coach at Radford University.
Butler helped lead the Highlanders to an overall record of 50-17-11, leading squads that were ranked in the top 25 in 2014, 2015 and 2016. The Big South Tournament champions in 2016 and regular season champions in 2014, 2015 and 2016 earned NCAA berths in both 2015 and 2016 under Butler's tutelage.
SOCCER CREST UNVEILED
The crest features elements from the City of Pittsburgh, the city's iconic bridges and the three rivers surrounding the Steel City. The crest pays homage to the Cathedral of Learning arch-shape – a shield depicts a strong foundation, honing in on the arch shape only strengthens this idea.
The castle-like design at the top of the crest was inspired by the City of Pittsburgh and University of Pittsburgh seals, as both feature a similar castle. The iconic bridge is based on the Sister Bridges (Clemente, Warhol, Rachel Carson) as there are over 446 bridges throughout the Pittsburgh region, more than any other city in the world. The idea of bridges also ties in with Pitt Athletics Department strategy of the Gold Standard. The bottom portion of the crest features the three rivers (Allegheny, Monongahela, Ohio) that surround the Pittsburgh area.
UP NEXT
ACC play gets underway as the Panthers welcome No. 24 Louisville on Saturday, facing off the with Cardinals at 7 p.m. Pitt will hit the road as the league schedule continues to challenge, meeting No. 2 North Carolina and No. 13 NC State.
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The Panthers and Jayhawks are set to meet at 1 p.m. as Pitt closes out nonconference action in its final preparation before a challenging ACC slate.
PROMOTIONS
- All fans will receive "Let's Go Pitt" pom poms
- National Grandparents Day
- Celebrate National Grandparents Day with a buy one get one free ticket deal for grandparents
- Special Olympics Day
- Local Special Olympics teams will be on hand
- Panthers Unite
- All Pitt student-athletes are encouraged to attend and support their fellow Panthers
- Fans can purchase single game tickets here for an advanced rate of $3.
- Tickets at the gate are $5 and free for students.
- The game can be seen live on the ACC Network Extra via WatchESPN and the WatchESPN app.
- Live stats will be available via PittsburghPanthers.com.
- Fans fan follow along with live updates on Twitter @Pitt_WSOC.
Pitt (4-2-1) closes out nonconference action against No. 16 Kansas (5-0-2) as Pitt prepares for four-straight games against top-25 opponents. The Panthers are fresh off of a 2-0 defeat over cross-town rival Duquesne as Madeline Gravante tallied the first two goals of her career to hand Pitt its second-straight win over Duquesne.
On the season Anna Rico (3) and Gravante (2) own Pitt's only multiple goal outputs, while Dixon Veltri, Mikayla Schmidt, Ashley Moreira and Aideen O'Donoghue have all found the back of the net.
Amaia Pena has made all but one start in net for the Panthers, having recorded 28 saves with a .824 save percentage and a 0.94 goals against average. Freshman Katherine Robinson has earned one start and seen action in two games, tallying six saves.
SCOUTING KANSAS
The Jayhawks remained undefeated Thursday as they competed to a 1-1 draw at Cincinnati. Kansas started the season with an impressive win over No. 18 Pepperdine, rattling off three straight victories before a tie against Oregon. Last week, the Jayhawks secured wins over Utah and No. 25 Butler.
Junior Katie McClure leads the Jayhawks offense with five goals and three assists, leading the team with three game winning goals. Kansas has scored 11 goals on the season with Taylor Christie (3) also putting together a multi-goal season.
Defensively, Kansas has been solid, letting up just two goals all season. Freshman keeper Sarah Peters has started all seven contests, tallying 10 saves and recording five shutouts in her first collegiate season.
THE SERIES WITH KANSAS
This will be the second meeting between the Panthers and Jayhawks in a series dating back to the 2016 season. In that meeting, the Jayhawks captured a 2-1 victory over the Panthers in Lawrence, Kan.
TOUGH BOUTS
The Panthers' schedule will continue to challenge as the team enters a tough stretch against nationally-dominant opponents. Sunday's match against the Jayhawks kicks off a series of four straight games in which Pitt will battle with a top-25 opponent as Kansas (16), Louisville (24), North Carolina (2) and NC State (13) all check in nationally.
Of the remaining 11 games on Pitt's schedule, six will be against nationally-ranked teams, with two additional teams receiving votes. Of those six teams ranked nationally, four check in in the top-15, three in the top-10 and two in the top-five.
FRESHMAN FOOTING THE LOAD
First year players have made quite the impact for the Panthers in 2018, as the freshmen have tallied six of the team's nine goals this year. A pair of freshmen in Anna Rico (3) and Madeline Gravante (2) are the only pair of Panthers to have tallied multiple goals on the season.
MILESTONE 400
Head coach Randy Waldrum reached a career milestone in the team's season opener against Ohio, as he secured his 400th career victory. The win was the first for Waldrum as the Panther head coach as he is now the ninth winningest head coach in NCAA Division I women's soccer history.
THE WALDRUM ERA
The season marks the beginning of the Randy Waldrum era as the first-year head coach and his staff begin their inaugural year with the Panthers. Waldrum is the fourth head coach in program history, bringing national experience to the Panthers' program.
Waldrum saw unprecedented success in his tenure at the helm of the perennial powerhouse Notre Dame women's program. In his 14 seasons, he led the Fighting Irish to two national championships, capturing the College Cup title in 2004 and 2010. His teams won eight Big East Tournament titles and appeared in eight NCAA Final Four games in that span.
A two-time national coach of the year (2009 by Soccer America; 2010 by NSCAA), Waldrum was the first coach in NCAA history to lead a team to a national title in his/her first season with a program. He wrapped up his tenure at Notre Dame with a mark of 292-58-17 (.819) and holds an overall record of 403-108-30 (.772) as a head coach on the women's side. His record ranks fourth in all-time wins as an NCAA women's head coach and third in win percentage.
NEWBIES
The Panthers feature 14 newcomers on the roster, as 50 percent of the 2018 squad is new to the program. Pitt will debut 11 freshmen and three transfers. Of the 2017 roster with nine or more games of experience, only six return – Taylor Pryce, Vildan Kardesler, Alli Higgs, Ashley Moreira, Cheyenne Hudson and Aideen O'Donoghue.
REDSHIRT RETURNERS
Two redshirt seniors, forward Taylor Pryce and midfielder Ashley Moreira, both of whom have attended the U-20 Canadian National Team Camp, will lead the Panthers this season. Pryce started 17 of the 18 games in 2014 and 2015, scoring game-winning goals versus Louisville and Wake Forest. In 2016, she competed in two games, with one shot on goal, before missing the rest of season due to injury. Last season Pryce finished as the team's top point scorer, recording 11 points and starting in all 18 games.
Moreira also started 17 of the 18 games in 2014 and recorded 1,330 minutes of playing time, which was the fourth highest on the team. In 2015, she started all 18 games and recorded seven shots on goal, scoring her first career goal in an overtime game-winner at Colorado College. She missed the 2016 season due to the U-20 Canadian National Team Camp, but bounced back last season logging 1,541 total minutes and starting all 18 games.
GOALKEEPERS
Redshirt sophomore Amaia Pena will lead this young goalkeeper squad with a 2.55 goals against average. Last season she logged just over 529 minutes of field time and made a career-high 10 saves in a 3-2 loss vs. Boston College.
Freshmen Katherine Robinson and Claire Hinkle will also compete for time this season.
MEET THE STAFF
Randy Waldrum is joined by three fresh faces on the 2018 coaching staff in Dustin Stein, Ben Waldrum and Riley Butler.
Stein joined the Panthers after nearly five years as the head coach at Eastfield College, where he was the winningest coach in program history. While at Eastfield, his teams tallied 14 or more wins in each of his last three seasons, and boasted a record of 42-12-3 in that stretch. Eastfield was amongst the top 10 NJCAA programs in each of the last three seasons as Stein was named the 2015 NJCAA Region 5 Division 3 Coach of the Year and the Metro Athletic Conference Coach of the Year.
The younger Waldrum had served as a member of the FC Dallas staff since October of 2012, in the youth development program. In April 2015 he was promoted to head coach of the FCD Women. The team competed to a record of 34-3-3 under Waldrum's tutelage, appearing in the WPSL Playoffs in 2016 and 2017 and capturing the 2016 WPSL Southwest Conference championships.
This will be the younger Waldrum's second stint in the college ranks, as he served as an assistant coach and recruiting coordinator under his father at Notre Dame from 2003-08. With both Waldrums on staff, the Fighting Irish competed to a record of 111-13-5 and won the 2004 NCAA national title. He was a member of three NCAA College Cup appearances, won five Big East regular season titles and coached five All-Americans.
Butler came to the program after a four-year stint as the assistant men's coach at Radford University.
Butler helped lead the Highlanders to an overall record of 50-17-11, leading squads that were ranked in the top 25 in 2014, 2015 and 2016. The Big South Tournament champions in 2016 and regular season champions in 2014, 2015 and 2016 earned NCAA berths in both 2015 and 2016 under Butler's tutelage.
SOCCER CREST UNVEILED
The crest features elements from the City of Pittsburgh, the city's iconic bridges and the three rivers surrounding the Steel City. The crest pays homage to the Cathedral of Learning arch-shape – a shield depicts a strong foundation, honing in on the arch shape only strengthens this idea.
The castle-like design at the top of the crest was inspired by the City of Pittsburgh and University of Pittsburgh seals, as both feature a similar castle. The iconic bridge is based on the Sister Bridges (Clemente, Warhol, Rachel Carson) as there are over 446 bridges throughout the Pittsburgh region, more than any other city in the world. The idea of bridges also ties in with Pitt Athletics Department strategy of the Gold Standard. The bottom portion of the crest features the three rivers (Allegheny, Monongahela, Ohio) that surround the Pittsburgh area.
UP NEXT
ACC play gets underway as the Panthers welcome No. 24 Louisville on Saturday, facing off the with Cardinals at 7 p.m. Pitt will hit the road as the league schedule continues to challenge, meeting No. 2 North Carolina and No. 13 NC State.
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