The Lakeland University women's soccer team is home for the second time this season and welcomes the Northern Athletics Collegiate Conference's newest member with St. Norbert College visiting Wednesday night in both teams' 2021 conference opener.
Live video & live statistics:
http://www.lakelandmuskies.com/muskieslive
Series history: 15th meeting, St. Norbert leads 12-2
The Green Knights have had the Muskies' number more than not over the years, including winning the last eight meetings dating back to 2006. Most recently St. Norbert edged Lakeland 1-0 two years ago on Sept. 8, 2019, with Grace Krause scoring the lone goal at 72:38 of the match and spoiling an excellent defensive effort by the Muskies including 13 saves by goalkeeper
Emely Ortega. The teams haven't met at Lakeland since 2014, a 4-0 Green Knights win across campus on the Muskies' former field, and Lakeland's last win over St. Norbert was a 1-0 victory exactly 16 years ago today as Marie Reynolds scored the lone goal 45 seconds into the second half.
Lakeland last time out: Lost at UW-Platteville 6-0 Sunday
The Muskies continued a brutal early season schedule with their second straight loss on the road to a member of the Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference. Lakeland hung in for 40 minutes, with the Pioneers unable to score until the 32nd minute, but UWP scored a pair of goals in the final 4:33 before halftime and added another goal just 3:42 into the second half. Platteville outshot Lakeland 32-6 with
Erin Tomlinson and
Faith Turley combining to make 10 saves in goal for the Muskies.
Virginia Perez attempted two shots and
Alani Chairez and
Haley Rich notched the shots on goal for Lakeland.
St. Norbert last time out: Won at Lawrence 2-1 Sunday
The Green Knights defeated their former Midwest Conference rivals on the road in Appleton for their first win of the season. Freshman Abby Thompson scored twice late in the second half, first breaking a scoreless tie in the 74th minute and then adding an insurance goal for a 2-0 lead in the 82nd minute. That insurance was needed when the Vikings halved the margin with 1:17 left in the contest, but St. Norbert held on for the win with goalkeeper Lilly Collins making three saves, including a stop of a Lawrence penalty kick in the second half.
About the Green Knights: St. Norbert is the newest member of the Northern Athletics Collegiate Conference, in its first year in the league after spending the last 39 years in the Midwest Conference. The Green Knights were a perennially strong program in the Midwest in women's soccer, winning 10 conference championships, most recently in 2017, plus five conference tourney crowns.
St. Norbert's 2020-21 season was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The Green Knights finished 9-8-1 overall in 2019 including a 5-3-1 mark to place fifth in the Midwest Conference, and were picked fifth in the NACC's preseason poll of league coaches and sports information directors.
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