Aggies Host Prairie View A&M and Houston Baptist

This Week: The New Mexico State soccer team returns to Las Cruces for a pair of home matches. The Aggies host Prairie View A&M, Friday, Aug. 26 at 7 p.m. inside Aggie Memorial Stadium in the home opener. NM State also meets Houston Baptist, Sunday, Aug. 28 at 1 p.m.

Prairie View A&M: The Panthers are 0-1 after a 6-0 loss at Texas State, Aug. 19, in the season opener.

Series Notes: The Aggies have a 1-0 advantage in the all-time series following an 8-0 win, Aug. 29, 2010, in Las Cruces.

Previous Meeting: NM State concluded the inaugural Hotel Encanto Aggie Classic with an 8-0 win over Prairie View A&M, Aug. 29, 2010. Forward Yolanda McMillion led the Aggies with the first hat trick in school history with three goals in the tournament finale. NM State posted its first shutout of the season in goalkeeper Erin Wosick’s first career start. The eight goals also set a school record for goals in a match.

Houston Baptist: The Huskies are 1-1 after the opening weekend of action. Houston Baptist won its season opener over McNeese State, 2-0, Aug. 19, and then fell at San Houston State, 2-1, Aug. 21. Sophomore midfielder Molly Missimer is leading the HBU offense with two goals. The Huskies travel to UTEP, Aug. 28, before the matchup with the Aggies.

Series Notes: Sunday’s match is the first meeting in school history between the Aggies and Huskies.

Opening Weekend: In the first-ever meeting against a Big 12 opponent, the New Mexico State soccer team fell at Texas Tech, 1-0, Aug. 21. Sophomore goalkeeper Erin Wosick directed the Aggie defense with a season-high seven saves. Offensively, junior forward Yolanda McMillion led NM State with a pair of shot attempts. Sophomore midfielder Mary Kate Koziol and freshman forward Katelynn Tupponce also posted their first shots of the season.

NM State fell at UTEP, 2-0, Aug. 19, in the 2011 season opener after a pair of late goals. Freshman forward Jennae Cambra led the Aggie offense with four shots and two shots on goal. Wosick anchored the Crimson and White with five saves. For the first time in program history, the Aggies opened the season with a pair of road matches. It also marked the first season opener that ended in regulation.

Soccer Promotions: At the home opener against Prairie View A&M, Aug. 26, the Aggie athletic department is hosting youth soccer night. The Las Cruces Youth Soccer League will have its opening ceremonies at halftime. The match with Houston Baptist, Aug. 28, is the Las Cruces Public School Day. NM State is also giving away Aggie soccer magnet schedules.

Aggie Soccer Offers Free Clinic: The Aggies are offering a free clinic to children in first grade through eighth grade prior to the Houston Baptist match, Aug. 28, at 11 a.m. inside Aggie Memorial Stadium.

Please RSVP online at NMStateSports.com under the women’s soccer page and the tab for the free clinic. For more information, contact Lauren Adee at 575-646-5348 or ladee@nmsu.edu.

Participants are encouraged to bring a soccer ball and water bottle. Additionally, participants need to enter through the northwest gate and will be admitted to the soccer match for free. Parents can purchase single match tickets for $6 through the Pan American Center Ticket Office at 575-646-1420.

Strikers: After the first weekend of play, the Aggies have a .538 shots on goal percentage, which compares to the opponents’ .385 mark.

New Faces: With a large freshmen class, the Aggies have many new faces in 2011. Freshman midfielder/forward Katie Smith and freshman forward Katelynn Tupponce both recorded their first career starts at UTEP, Aug. 19. The duo was also in the starting lineup at Texas Tech, Aug. 21.

Goal Stoppers: In two starts, sophomore goalkeeper Erin Wosick has 12 saves. She set a season-high mark with seven saves at Texas Tech. Wosick and the back line of juniors Courtney Irwin, Vanessa Thomas, Elise Nordin and Megan Hendler have only allowed one first-half score. The Aggies have posted a shutout period in each of the first two contests.

Fire Away: After the first two games of the season, freshman forward Jennae Cambra is leading the Aggies with four shots including two shots on goal. Freshman midfielder/forward Katie Smith, junior forward Yolanda McMillion and sophomore midfielder Daisy Hernandez follow with a pair of shots each.

Conference Comparison: In the WAC, the Aggies rank third in saves with 12. Individually, sophomore goalkeeper Erin Wosick is second in the league in save percentage (.800), saves (12) and saves per game (6.00). She ranks fourth in goals against average (1.50).

A New Era: A new chapter in Aggie soccer began in the offseason when Blair Quinn was hired as head coach, April 13, 2011. He is the second head coach in Aggie school history. Quinn spent the previous four seasons as an assistant coach at Arizona State. He helped guide the Sun Devils to back-to-back NCAA Tournament appearances in 2009 and 2010 for only the second time in school history.

Soccer Athletic Complex: The Aggies have a new home in 2011, the Soccer Athletic Complex, which is located between the Coca-Cola Weight Center and the NM State Softball Complex. The new field has a natural grass surface, and the facility will share amenities with the softball complex such as the entrance, ticket booth, concessions and restrooms. Due to construction delays, NM State will play the first four home matches inside of Aggie Memorial Stadium.

The 2010 Campaign: The Aggies finished last season with a 7-8-3 overall record. They set new single-game marks in many categories. NM State has new standards for points (23), goals (8), assists (7), shots (29), shots on goal (20) and corner kicks (18).

The Aggies also broke school records for wins at home in a season (6), goals (34), assists (26), points (94), shots (241) and corner kicks (83) in 2010.

Returning Aggies: The Crimson and White have 15 players returning from the 2011 season including senior Cassandra Branch, juniors Courtney Irwin, Vanessa Thomas, Elise Nordin, Megan Hendler, Yolanda McMillion, Lauren Cope and Cassie De Leon. The Aggies also have seven sophomores back this year with Jessica Schutter, Mikaela Bitner, Olivia Sierra, Daisy Hernandez, Mary Kate Koziol, Erin Wosick and Mickey Giles.

Freshmen Additions: NM State welcomed 11 freshmen newcomers to the roster in 2011. Midfielder Deborah Blalock, defender Alexys Brownell, forward Jennae Cambra, forward/defender Meghan Gerry, midfielder Amber Harrington, midfielder/defender Nicole Jeffries, defender/forward Taryn Lathrop, midfielder Bree Luhrsen, midfielder/forward Katie Smith, forward Layla Todd and forward/midfielder Katelynn Tupponce.

Preseason Projections: NM State was selected to finish eighth in the WAC Preseason Poll, which is voted on by the leagues coaches. The Aggies finished 2010 with a 1-6-1 record in WAC play. San Jose State and Utah State tied for the conference favorite, while the 2010 WAC Tournament Champion Fresno State was picked third. Idaho followed in fourth, and Louisiana Tech appeared in fifth. Nevada was voted to finish in sixth, while Hawai’i and the Aggies were voted to the seventh and eighth places, respectively.

Home Slate: The Aggies have nine home matches scheduled for 2011. NM State hosts Prairie View A&M, Houston Baptists, Northern Colorado, Arkansas-Little Rock, Embry-Riddle Aeronautical, New Mexico, Nevada, Idaho and Hawai’i.

Looking Ahead: The Aggies hit the road again for a pair of matches in the Adidas Gamecock Soccer Classic. NM State plays tournament host Jacksonville State, Sept. 2 at 6:30 p.m. and the Tennessee Tech, Sept. 4 at 12 p.m.