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This Week
The Westminster women's soccer team has will play three games this week, including two on Dumke Field. The Griffins will play Southern Utah in Cedar City on Wednesday, September 16 at 4:00 p.m. Westminster will host No. 15 The Master's College on Friday, September 18 at 3:30 p.m. That is followed on Sunday, September 20 with a game against No. 17 Carroll College, which will be held at Noon.

The Griffins bring a 4-5 overall record into the week. They picked up another win at home last Friday September 11th against Embry-Riddle, but were not so fortunate against The College of Idaho.

Westminster went 1-1 last weekend, picking up a 1-0 win over No. 23 Embry-Riddle (Ariz.) on September 11. They lost 4-0 against College of Idaho on September 12. The win over Embry-Riddle was the first over a ranked opponent in six tries for the Griffins all-time.

Sarah Swenson currently leads the team with five points behind two goals and one assist. Swenson is third on the team with 11 shots on goal and is tops in the conference with two game-winning goals. Nicole Taylor leads the team with 24 shots, while Heather Hillam is tops with 13 shots on goal.

The Master's College and Carroll College will play at Dumke Field on Saturday, September 19. That game will begin at 1:00 p.m.

Dumke Field
Spectators coming to the games at Dumke Field are asked to enter through the gate on the west side of the field. All entrances on the east side of the field are for players and officials only. Also, remember that pets are not allowed into the facility.

Live Stats
Live stats will be available for both Westminster games on Dumke Field this weekend. They will not be available for the game against Southern Utah or for the neutral field game between Carroll and The Master's.

First Kick
• Southern Utah will be sixth NCAA opponent the Griffins have faced this season.

• Westminster is 0-4 all-time against teams from the state of Utah.

• The game with The Master's will mark the fifth against a first-time opponent for the Griffins this season.

Scouting Southern Utah
Southern Utah is currently 1-4 on the season and 0-2 at home. They are coming off a 2-1 win at Utah Valley on September 12. Riley Bassett, Laura Goodrich, and Erin Marble are all tied for the team lead in goal with one each. Charly Booth has spent the majority of time in goal, recording a goal against average of 2.32.

Series Record: Southern Utah leads, 2-0
Last Meeting: Southern Utah def. Westminster 3-0 (10/11/08)

Scouting The Master's College
The Master's enters the week at 4-0-1 on the season and are ranked No. 15. They defeated San Diego Christian 5-0 in their last game on September 12. The Master's has outscored their opponents 22-1 this season and haven't allowed a goal in 370 consecutive minutes.

Series Record: First meeting

Scouting Carroll College
Carroll brings a No. 17 ranking and a 5-1 record with them to Salt Lake City this weekend. They dropped a 3-0 decision to Concordia (Ore.) in their last game on September 13. Megan O'Connell leads the team with five goals and 12 points. Katie Beall has a goals against average of 1.13 in six games played.

Series Record: Carroll leads, 3-0
Last Meeting: Carroll def. Westminster 2-1 (10/19/08)

Three with Two
Three Griffins are tied for the team lead with two goals apiece. Heather Hillam, Megan Maldonado, and Sarah Swenson have all found the back of the net twice this season. Swenson leads the team with five points as she has also added an assist. She is also the team leader with two game-winning goals.

“The difference lately is that our offense is finishing more opportunities,” assistant coach James Taylor stated. “We are a little more dangerous now.”

Between the Pipes
Sophomore Dayna Winter-Nolte set a school record when she recorded a third consecutive shutout last week. Winter-Nolte put together a streak of 332 minutes without allowing a goal. She has lowered her goals against average to 1.60 during this time and has made 13 saves this season.

“Dayna has experience and I know what she can do,” head coach Tony LeBlanc said. “She is our main keeper and she will keep going unless there is a drastic change.”

Dumke Field Advantage
With another win at home last weekend, the Griffins are now 13-5-1 on Dumke Field in the history of the program. They have won nine of the last 11 games played on the big, fast surface. They also have a 49-19 advantage in shots attempted in home games this season.

“Most teams aren't used to playing on a field this size,” LeBlanc commented. “We have learned to play smart on this field and know that when it heats up it plays fast.”

Unaffiliated Information
The Dakota Athletic Conference, Gulf Coast Athletic Conference, Midlands Collegiate Athletic Conference, and Frontier Conference will combine to offer one automatic bid to the NAIA National Championships in 2009. The top-4 teams in this group will advance to the Unaffiliated Conference Tournament with the winner receiving the automatic berth.

Text Updates
You can now receive free text message updates of all Westminster contests. Just visit westminstergriffins.com and click the SMS Text link, enter your information and you are set. You will then receive a text message with the result of every Westminster contest.

Next Week
Westminster will take a week off. They have only one game on the schedule for the following week. They will be challenging Rocky Mountain College, Saturday, October 3. The game will be held at home on Dumke Field beginning at 1:00 p.m. That game will be senior day so come and support the Griffins in their final home game of the season.