Soccer Travels to Ole Miss for Sunday Showdown

GM 06  >> Little Rock at Ole Miss
Sunday, Sept. 6 • 5 p.m. (CST)
Oxford, Miss. • Ole Miss Soccer Stadium
Live Stats | Live Video | Game Notes
 
LITTLE ROCK – In good spirits after a victory on Wednesday night, the Little Rock soccer team takes its show on the road this weekend. The Trojans will square off against their second major-conference foe of the year, taking on Ole Miss on Sunday at 5 p.m. The game will air live on the SEC Network+, an online-only arm of the SEC Network.
 
LEADING OFF

• The Trojans enter Sunday's game after a 1-0 victory over in-state rival Central Arkansas on Wednesday. Jacqueline Borucki had the only goal in the game in the 31st minute.
• Caitlyn Eddy picked up her second assist of the season on Borucki's game-winner, and Eddy now leads all Trojans with four points on the season (one goal, two assists). Eddy is the only player on the roster to have multiple assists on the year.
• Sara Small picked up her first collegiate clean sheet on Wednesday, making three saves to keep the Bears off the scoreboard.
• With Wednesday's victory, Little Rock won its ninth straight home game against non-conference competition.
• Little Rock returns just seven players from the 2014 roster but brings in 20 newcomers in 2015 from all over the United States and Europe.
• Last season saw Little Rock win its first nine games of the season, earn its first winning season ever and go undefeated at home in non-conference play.

 
FOLLOW THE TROJANS
Fans can monitor all the action by following @LittleRockSoc on Twitter.
 
ABOUT OLE MISS

• The Rebels, based in Oxford, Miss., hold a 3-0-1 record on the year before Friday night's game against UCF. Ole Miss defeated Austin Peay, Boise State and Louisiana by a combined score of 12-1 in the last two weeks.
• Ole Miss has a home-heavy non-conference schedule this year, playing just one road game before SEC play starts. The Rebels are 3-0 at home so far this year.
• CeCe Kizer is the Rebels' leading scorer with four goals for eight points. Two of her goals have been game-winners. Also factoring heavily into the scoring is Addie Forbus with three goals and an assist for seven points.
• In goal, Marnie Merritt has played the majority of minutes, allowing just one goal and posting a 0.27 goals against average. She has only had to make four saves all season.
• Matt Mott is in his sixth year coaching the Rebels. He has a record of 55-40-13 lifetime as a head coach.
   

THE SERIES AGAINST OLE MISS
The Trojans and Rebels have a long history that dates back to 1995, and Ole Miss has dominated that series. Little Rock's lone victory against Ole Miss came back in 1996 by a 2-1 score. Since then, the Rebels have won the last seven games in the series. The teams last met in 2013 when the Trojans fell by a 3-0 score.
 
A WIN AGAINST OLE MISS WOULD…
…be Little Rock's second victory ever against the Rebels.
 
LITTLE ROCK VS. THE SOUTHEASTERN CONFERENCE
Of the 14 teams in the Southeastern Conference, Little Rock has faced seven. The Trojans have a combined record of 7-28-0 against those seven teams including a 4-6 mark against Texas A&M. Little Rock has also beaten Vanderbilt, LSU and Ole Miss once each. The Trojans have never faced Arkansas, Auburn, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, South Carolina or Tennessee.
 
EDDY MONEY
Five games into the season, freshman Caitlyn Eddy leads the Trojans in points thanks to a goal and two assists. Eddy is the only player on the team to have multiple assists or multiple goals.
 
BALANCED ATTACK
Little Rock's offensive attack has been highly balanced so far this year as all five goals have come from five different players. The story is similar when it comes to assists, as five different players have recorded the Trojans' six total assists. Other than Caitlyn Eddy, none of the players with assists have goals, so 10 different Little Rock players have recorded a point.
 
CLEANING UP
Junior goalie Sara Small had the best night of her short Little Rock career on Wednesday, picking up a shutout for the first time. After seeing limited time at Wake Forest, the transfer has played all but 34 minutes for the Trojans this year. On Wednesday, her three saves were instrumental in giving Little Rock its first clean sheet of the season.
 
NON-CONFERENCE HOME WINNING STREAK
The Trojans have excelled at home in non-conference games lately, winning all seven non-conference games at the Coleman Sports & Recreation Complex in 2014 and extending that streak to nine with two wins so far this year. Little Rock's last home non-conference loss came in September 2013 against UAB.
 
NO HELP
Through five games, Little Rock has held its opponents to only one total assist this year. Despite opponents scoring a total of seven goals, only one of those goals was assisted. For comparison, Little Rock's five goals have seen a total of six assists.
 
PUT EDDY IN THE CORNER
Eddy certainly impressed the home crowd on Aug. 28, scoring a goal directly off a corner kick to give the Trojans a 1-0 lead in the fifth minute. Her shot hooked inward from the left corner, sailing over the arms of Murray State's goalie and going directly in the net without being touched by a teammate.
 
PLENTY OF NEW FACES
The Trojans are almost entirely a new-look team for 2015, as just seven players are returning from the 2014 roster. Goaltenders Sara Cavanagh and Shara Robbins, defender Hali Long, midfielders Kayla Turner and Mikayla Uyokpeyi; and forwards Fali Garuba and Quin Wilkes are the only players back from last year. Joining them will be 20 new faces ranging from freshmen to juniors at every position. Of those 20 players, four come from overseas while 16 are from the United States.
 
NEW ALL-AMERICANS
The most decorated of Little Rock's new players may be freshman Caitlyn Eddy. Coming from Francis Howell Central High School in St. Charles, Mo., Eddy was named a High School All-American by the NSCAA in July. Only 26 girls' soccer players across the country earned the honor during the winter season. Much like Eddy, incoming junior Shannon Shields was also an All-American at her last school. While playing for Pima Community College, Shields was named an NJCAA and NSCAA All-American for her 21-goal, eight-assist sophomore season.
 
BEST SEASON EVER
The Little Rock soccer team made history last year, reaching 11 victories on the season. The previous program record of 10 victories was set in 2007. The 2014 campaign was also the team's first-ever winning season, as that 2007 team went 10-10-2 to finish with a .500 winning percentage.
 
BEST START EVER
After never having started a season better than 4-0-0 in school history, the Trojans more than doubled the school's previous record in 2014. Little Rock started 9-0-0 on the season, by far the best opening to a year in school history. In fact, the Little Rock soccer team had the best beginning to a season of any team in any sport in Trojan history. No other sport at Little Rock has started a year with nine consecutive wins.
 
GOALS RECORD BROKEN
With all the other records that fell by the wayside last year, Little Rock waited until the last game of the regular season to break one more. With Fali Garuba's strike against South Alabama, the Trojans scored their 46th goal of the season. That tally tied the school record of 46 goals in a year, set previously in 1990 and 1991. Another goal against the Jaguars in the Sun Belt Tournament broke the record and set a new one at 47.
 
GOALS AGAINST BELOW AVERAGE
The Little Rock soccer set one more school record in 2014, posting a goals against average of 1.14. The team's previous low goals against average was 1.31 back in 1997. Sara Cavanagh had a 0.91 goals against average, the best in school history by nearly half a goal.
 
SECOND TEAM ALL-CONFERENCE
Freshman Fali Garuba got some well-deserved recognition at the end of the 2014 season when the Sun Belt Conference named her to its postseason Second Team. Garuba finished the season leading the Trojans with nine goals and 23 points, both fourth overall in the Sun Belt. Garuba is the first Trojan player to score nine goals in a year since Christina Veasley in 2009.
 
POINTS APLENTY
Little Rock recorded 138 points last season on 47 goals and 44 assists. In the last 15 years since the team has records of points scored, that total is by far the highest. The previous school record for points in a year was 107, set in 2003. The Trojans' 44 assists was also better than it has seen in the last 15 years of recorded assists. The previous best in assists was 29 in 2003.
 
CAREER NUMBERS WATCH
Coming soon:

• Fali Garuba needs one more goal to reach 10 in her career and one more point for 25.
• Mikayla Uyokpeyi's next assist will give her 10 total, and she is 14 minutes played away from 3,000.
• Sara Cavanagh is two saves away from 60.
• Hali Long will reach 2,500 career minutes with 33 more.

 
UP NEXT
Little Rock gets a short one-day rest before its next game when it will host another in-state rival: UAPB. The Trojans and Lions will square off on Tuesday at 7 p.m. at the Coleman Sports & Recreation Complex.