The women’s soccer team plays its first home game of the season Friday against the University of North Texas and its first game ever at Elmer Gray Stadium. The Wildcats new home was opened back in April for track and field’s Wes Kittley Invitational, but this will be the first time the stadium will host a soccer match.
ACU comes into the game against UNT with a 1-2-1 record, after earning its first win of the season against the University of Texas- San Antonio, 5-3, and drawing against the University of California- Irvine, 0-0. North Texas is 3-1-0 overall. The Mean Green started its season with three straight wins against Southern Utah (2-1), UNLV (1-0) and fellow Southland Conference member Incarnate Word (2-0).
North Texas’ lone loss of the year comes at the hands of Kansas, in a tight 2-1 game. The Mean Green tied the game in the second half at a goal a piece, before a late Jayhawk goal in the 76th minute put Kansas up permanently.
The match up with North Texas is the only home match during the Wildcats non-conference schedule. ACU has traveled to Waco, Tucson, El Paso, Austin, College Station and will play in Fort Worth against Texas Christian University before returning home for conference play.
Junior goalkeeper Kelsey Dombrowski has gotten the start in every game for ACU. In her shutout against UC-Irvine, she recorded eight saves, two off her career high, in the Wildcats’ draw. She has a .765 save percentage and has saved 26 shots while giving up eight goals. Dombrowski received honorable mention for the Southland Conference goalkeeper of the week award for her performance against UC-Irvine.
North Texas is led by senior goalkeeper Jackie Kerestine. She owns a .842 save percentage with 16 saves and three goals allowed. She is the Mean Green’s all-time leader in saves (296) and wins (50). Kerestine was named to the Conference USA’s all-second team after recording 101 saves and giving up 11 goals in 22 games for UNT.
The Wildcats have been shutout in three of its last four games. The team exploded for five goals against UT-San Antonio, with four of them coming in the second half. The Mean Green have given up just two goals in four games this year.
Offensively for UNT, the women have scored eight goals, where as the Wildcats have scored five goals in four games.
After the match with North Texas, the Wildcats will hit the road again to play Texas A&M in College Station on Sunday.
