Marquette WSOC opens 2019 at Colorado State on Thursday

MILWAUKEE – The Marquette University women's soccer team kicks off its 27th season of competition at Colorado State on Thursday at 5 p.m. Central time in Fort Collins, Colorado and will face Ball State on Sunday in Indiana.

The Golden Eagles take on the Rams at CSU Soccer Field in their regular season opener with live video and statistics provided through CSURams.com.

Sunday's matinee at Ball State is slated for noon Central time in Muncie, Indiana at the Briner Sports Complex. The match will feature live statistics and streaming video, courtesy of BallStateSports.com, and an audio broadcast through a partnership between Ball State Sports Link and Woof Boom Radio will also be available.

Both matches mark the first in Marquette program history against either opponent.

Following Sunday's match, the Golden Eagles have one more contest away from home (at Wisconsin on Aug. 29) before their home opener on Sunday, Sept. 1 against Michigan.

MARQUETTE (0-0): The Golden Eagles are looking to bounce back from their first losing season since 1995 with seven returning starters. Fourth-year starting goalkeeper Maddy Henry returns as the anchor on the back end, which is bolstered by fellow captains Bri Jaeger at center back and Emily Hess on the left flank. Marquette was pegged eighth in the BIG EAST Preseason Coaches Poll, while sophomore midfielder Katrina Wetherell earned All-BIG EAST Preseason Team accolades after leading MU in assists in 2018.

COLORADO STATE (0-0): The Rams went 6-9-4 in 2018 in their sixth season of existence under head coach Bill Hempen, but return leading scorer Caeley Lordemann, who notched five goals on the year. Lordemann, who spent one season at Creighton before transferring home for the 2017 campaign, tied the CSU season record for goals in 2018 and her 1,761 minutes played mark was second on the team. The Rams have 11 new players for the 2019 season, including transfers from Wake Forest, Washington State and Cal State Fullerton. Colorado State was picked to finish 10th in the 12-team Mountain West Conference.

BALL STATE (0-0): The Cardinals are coming off a 2018 season in which they went 14-3-3 and fell to Bowling Green in the Mid-American Conference championship match in penalty kicks. BSU is picked second in the MAC preseason poll behind BGSU and received one first-place vote. Josh Rife is in his first season leading the Cardinals, who return last year's leading scorer Tatiana Mason. Mason posted six goals and 15 total points as a true freshman, while leading the squad with 26 shots and five match winners. Graduate student Tristin Stuteville returns for her fourth season in net at BSU after playing all but 10 minutes last year on her way to All-MAC Second Team honors. Ball State hosts Eastern Illinois on Friday before welcoming the Golden Eagles.

2019 SCHEDULE HIGHLIGHTS
• The Golden Eagles begin the year with their first three regular season contests on the road before commencing their home slate against Michigan on Sept. 1.
• Against common non-conference opponents from last season, MU went 1-2 in 2018 with a win over Milwaukee and losses to Wisconsin and Michigan.
• MU plays a rare non-conference home-and-home series with Colorado State. The Golden Eagles face the Rams in the season lid-lifter on Aug. 22 and welcome them to Milwaukee for a Sunday, Sept. 22 matinee.

NEWCOMERS IN KEY ROLES
• Three newcomers played key roles during MU's two exhibition matches and a few others made contributions as well. Freshmen Josie Kelderman and Addie Shock started in the midfield and at center back respectively, while graduate transfer Natalie Yass scored twice in the midfield during the exhibition opener on Aug. 14. Freshmen forwards Alex Campana and Shelby Fountain have each seen action as has backup goalkeeper Mikki Easter, who made eight saves in the second half of Sunday's scrimmage at Notre Dame.

SPRECHER LOOKING FOR BOUNCEBACK CAMPAIGN
• Forward Kylie Sprecher had a standout campaign as a first-year player in 2017 and is one of many Golden Eagles looking to bounce back to form after an injury-plagued 2018. She posted her lone goal last season against No. 4 Georgetown on Oct. 18, 2018 after leading the squad with six assists and three goals as a BIG EAST All-Freshman selection in 2017.
• During last offseason, Sprecher trained with the United States Under-20 Women's National Team before joining the U-19 squad in early 2018.

HENRY ENTERS FOURTH YEAR AS STARTER
• Senior goalkeeper Maddy Henry enters her fourth season as a full-time starter in 2019 and sits among MU's career leaders in many statistical categories. Henry is ranked second all-time at Marquette in saves (286), fifth in minutes played (5,605:30) and eighth goals against (1.25). She also sits second in saves per match (4.68), fifth in save percentage (.786), sixth in career victories (29) and fifth in shutouts (19).

• Henry also performed at her best against the top competition MU faced last season. She gave the Golden Eagles a chance at upsetting No. 4 Georgetown on Oct. 18, 2018 with 10 saves against the Hoyas, including a PK stop in the 66th minute on Kyra Carusa. It was her second-highest save total of the season, ranking just behind the season-best 11 she posted against Colorado on Sept. 6. Henry also stepped up her play earlier in the year against then-No. 12 Duke, No. 3 North Carolina in the Duke Nike Classic.

WETHERELL AND BOMBACINO RETURN AFTER ALL-FRESHMAN CAMPAIGNS
• Sophomores Katrina Wetherell and Alyssa Bombacino are expected to step into bigger roles following All-BIG EAST Freshman Team seasons in 2019. The pair each recorded six points as freshmen, while Wetherell led the team with four assists while starting every match in the midfield on her way to All-BIG EAST Second Team honors. Bombacino started six of the 16 matches in which she played, scoring three goals, including a pair of match winners.
• Wetherell was honored with All-BIG EAST Preseason Team accolades in the league's annual head coaches survey.

JAEGER WAS MU'S MINUTES LEADER IN 2018
• Center back Bri Jaeger played big minutes for the Golden Eagles last season, leading the team with 1,675 played in 18 starts after starting 14 of 17 matches in 2017. Jaeger has scored a pair of goals in her career, both on headers and roughly a year apart. She scored the winning goal against Milwaukee on Sept. 17 last season in the 73rd minute and tallied her first career marker on Sept. 10, 2017 at Rhode Island.

MARQUETTE USED 11 DIFFERENT STARTING LINEUPS IN 2018
• Marquette head coach Markus Roeders rolled out 11 different starting lineups during the 2018 season, while five first-year players saw significant action during the preseason. Maddy Henry, Bri Jaeger and Emily Hess started all 18 matches in 2018 on the back end and were joined by then-freshman Katrina Wetherell, who started every match in the midfield. Roeders will have several experienced players in new roles this season and should have a number of solid options at his disposal.