No. 8 Islanders Open Postseason Against No. 1 Lamar

Soccer | October 31, 2017

CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas - No. 8 Texas A&M-Corpus Christi preps for its second trip to the Southland Conference Championship in the last three years, facing off with top-ranked No. 1 Lamar. The Islanders and Cardinals will get underway on Wednesday at 8 p.m., as the tournament festivities will take place inside of Dugan Stadium for a second consecutive year.

Corpus Christi and Lamar have already met once in 2017, with LU getting the better of a 3-0 decision. All of the Cards' goals came while the Blue and Green were down a man however, as the Islanders were on a three-match winning streak against the club, before that recent loss

Both programs are riding their best regular seasons in school history, with the Islanders sporting a single season-best six victories and Lamar toting 15 for the current campaign The Blue and Green hopes it can continue the recent trend of early No. 1 seed departures, as the top-ranked team in the Southland has lost its opening tournament contest over the previous two years

The Islanders are a perfect 5-0 this season when scoring multiple goals. Although the Cardinals are the highest scoring team in the SLC this season (42), the side has also given up multiple goals to five opponents this year

SERIES HISTORY

• This year's SLC Championship marks the second the Islanders will be competing in, over their five-year existence
• Corpus Christi lost its last SLC tournament appearance, 3-1 against Southeastern Louisiana in Conway, Ark. during the 2015 tournament
• The Blue and Green face a rematch with Lamar, after falling to the Cardinals 3-0 earlier this year. The Islanders stuck with visiting Lamar through the first half, but a red card forced Corpus Christi to play down a man and concede three tallies in the second
• The top-ranked Cardinals are entering their first postseason as winners of the regular Southland Conference season. This is the fourth year LU will have made the tournament in its history, holding a 1-3 record in the previous three appearances
• Before their loss to Lamar earlier this season, the Islanders had been on a three-match win streak against the Cardinals and were 2-0 against LU when playing at home
• Corpus Christi was a sixth seed when they made the conference tournament two years ago, the Cardinals were second when they last made the tourney in 2012
• If the Islanders were to beat the LU Cardinals this coming Wednesday, they would move on to face the winner of No. 4 Central Arkansas and No. 5 Houston Baptist. Corpus Christi beat the Bears in Arkansas by a count of 3-1 and drew with the Huskies 0-0 just last Friday
• The top seeded team in the conference has lost its first match of the tournament the past two years

THE ISLANDERS

• Freshman netminder Kyleigh Hall recorded the first clean sheet of her career against Houston Baptist last week to send the Islanders to the postseason. She recorded eight stops, including a 90th minute breakaway save to secure the match would go to overtime
• Redshirt senior Brooke Erdmann had a career night against the Huskies, setting a career school record with her 71st appearance over four years of play, and recording a career-high six shots at HBU
• The Islanders continue to build on their best regular season in program history with the 0-0 scoreless draw at Sugar Land. The team's 6-8-3 record dwarfs the 5-11-2 record they posted in 2015
• Recording their fifth overtime match of the season against the Huskies, the Islanders have played more extra-time contests this year than any season prior. They've had three 0-0 draws in 2017
• Erdmann's resume of four goals and eight points over the 2017 season earns the starting forward an honorable mention for this year's SLC All-Conference team
• Kyleigh Hall recorded a career-high 12 stops against Lamar, the most an Islander netminder has accrued in a single match this season
• Midfielder Ashley Hamilton has played an increased role for the Islanders as of late, earning starts and playing 85-plus minutes over the previous six matches
• Defender Hannah Cupps tallied her third shot of the year against HBU, she's played every minute of the Islanders past seven contests
• Abby Deakin scored her first goal of the year against UCA, in her first start as a forward for the Islanders. She's played up top ever since, and is one of seven Islander freshman to score this season
• Seniors Jordan Wainwright, Brooke Erdmann, Andi Bethard and Christina Remmes were honored on the previous Sunday, playing in their final match at Dugan Stadium
• Kyleigh Hall sits second in the Southland with an average of 7.83 saves per match and a .839 save percentage
• No. 4 UCA and No. 5 HBU will play the winner of the Islanders match against No. 1 Lamar, while No. 2 SFA faces No. 7 SHSU and No. 3 McNeese matches up with No. 6 ACU
• The lowest seed to win the Southland Conference Tournament was No. 6 McNeese in 2006. If the Islanders were to run this year's bracket they would be just the second team in history to win the tournament as the lowest seed
• The Islanders are 6-7-2 against teams from Texas dating back through October 2016, and 7-10-3 through their last 20 matches played in the lone star state

SCOUTING THE CARDINALS

• As the top ranked team in the Southland, Lamar leads the conference in multiple offensive categories, including goals (42), points (126), shots per match (17.95), shots on goal per match (9.11) and corners per match (5.74)
• Six Cardinals earned SLC All-Conference honors this past week, with four of those players making the First Team, and junior Kelso Peskin nabbing Newcomer of the Year honors
• Peskin's 10 assists on the year leads the conference and ranks second nationally. She sits just two behind Minnesota's April Bockin (12) for the most helpers in D-I women's soccer
• Starting goalkeeper Lauren Lovejoy earned Second Team All-SLC honors this year, after leading the conference with eight clean sheets
• Lovejoy's .99 GAA trails only McNeese's Emma Roccaforte for the top spot in the conference, but her .808 save percentage sits just eighth, as the Lamar defense has allowed an average of just 5.50 shots on goal per match
• The Cardinals are riding the best season in the program's history with their first regular season conference championship, and their first-ever 15-win season
• Lamar is on a streak of nine straight victories headed into Wednesday's match, last losing 4-1 to Central Arkansas on the road (9/22)
• LU received an RPI ranking of 87 this past Monday, a full 57 spots ahead of any other Southland team. The Cardinals have outscored their past three SLC opponents by a combined 8-1

Fans can follow all Southland Conference Championship quarterfinal and semifinal action with a live stream via the Southland Digital Network, or get live updates with stat broadcasts provided by Sidearm Sports.

COMING UP NEXT
With a victory the No. 8 Islanders would face the winner of Wednesday's match between No. 4 Central Arkansas and No. 5 Houston Baptist. The Blue and Green dropped the Bears by a count of 3-1 earlier this year, and reached a scoreless draw with the Huskies just last week.

STAY SOCIAL
For more information on Islanders women's soccer, follow the team on Twitter (@IslandersSoccer), Instagram (@IslandersSoccer) and like their Facebook page (Islanders Soccer).