WEST DES MOINES, Iowa – The Drake University women's soccer team hosts Loyola on Saturday night to open Missouri Valley Conference play. Kickoff is scheduled for 6 p.m. at Valley Stadium.
Drake (3-6-1) lost its non-conference finale to Omaha, 1-0, in overtime on Tuesday. The Bulldogs outshot the Mavericks, 14-8, but shots on goal were even at five for each side.
The Bulldogs limited Omaha to eight shots and two corner kicks, both of which are season-bests for the Drake defense.
Live stats will be available for Saturday's match.
Scouting Loyola
The Ramblers (5-4-1) were picked to win the MVC this season after besting Drake, 3-2, in last year's conference championship match to clinch an NCAA Tournament berth. The Bulldogs lead the all-time series 7-5-3.
Loyola scored a pair of impressive results in its non-conference schedule, tying No. 16 Wisconsin, 1-1, and handing Missouri its first lost of the season, 2-1, in Columbia. The Ramblers have won three matches in a row, most recently with a 1-0 victory in overtime at Eastern Michigan.
Senior forward Aleksa Tataryn leads the team with fours goals in 2019. She is flanked in the attack by freshman forward Megan Nemec and graduate forward Simone Wark.
The 5-foot-3 Nemec paces the Ramblers with three assists and nine points to go along with three goals. She was named the MVC Newcomer of the Week earlier this season after scoring twice in three minutes against Missouri.
Wark, a graduate transfer from South Carolina, has added three goals for the Ramblers this season. She is the reigning MVC Player of the Week after scoring twice against Western Michigan and providing the game-winning assist versus Eastern Michigan.
Loyola boasts a highly regarded defensive unit. Senior defender Madison Laudeman was a first team All-MVC selection a year ago in addition to sharing the conference's Defensive Player of the Year award. She also earned first team all-region honors.
Goalkeeper Grace Droessler, a 5-foot-9 freshman from Wisconsin, was tabbed the MVC Defensive Player of the Week earlier this year.
A duo of Loyola midfielders, senior Sienna Cruz and sophomore Abby Swanson, earned spots on the preseason All-MVC team. Cruz garnered an honorable mention from the conference last season while Swanson collected the MVC Freshman of the Year award, in addition to being named to the all-conference second team.
