THIS WEEK
The University of Mary women's soccer team continues on their 3-game road swing with a visit to the University of Minnesota Duluth and St Cloud State University. The Marauders first travel to the shores of Lake Superior to take on the Bulldogs on Friday, Oct. 6, for a 6 pm match in Duluth, MN. The weekend wraps up in St. Cloud, MN, when the Marauders face the Huskies in a 1:30 pm start on Sunday, Oct. 8.
 
MIDPOINT
With nine games in the books and nine regular season games remaining, the Marauders open the second half of their schedule when UMary faces Minnesota Duluth.
 
RECORDS
The Marauders are 2-5-2 overall and 1-3-1 in the Northern Sun… The Bulldogs are 2-5-3 overall and 1-3-2 in the NSIC (T-9^th)… The Huskies are 7-2-1 overall and 4-2-1 in the NSIC (T-3^rd). 
 
LAST WEEK
The Marauders rally fell just short in a 2-1 loss at Augustana in UMary's only match of the week. The Vikings scored twice in the first half. MaLiah Burke took advantage off a perfect feed from Mo Malone to score the Marauders lone goal of the day in the 54^th minute to cut the deficit in half. It was Burke's second goal of the season and Malone's second assist.
 
RANKED
The Marauders have played three teams in their first nine games of the season who are ranked in the current United Soccer Coaches Top 25 poll. Central Missouri is #8 (#18 when played UMary), Minnesota State is #13 (#5) and Grand Valley State is #10 (unranked). The three national powerhouses all qualified for the NCAA tournament last year. UMary played both Grand Valley and Central Missouri in non-conference matches hosted by Minnesota State in Mankato, MN, before hosting Minnesota State last week in a Northern Sun game. One of UMary's opponents this weekend – St. Cloud State – is receiving votes.
 
BLASTS BY BURKE
MaLiah Burke is the Marauders leader in goals (2) and points (5). After outracing the Vikings defenders on a direct ball played over the top, the sophomore blistered a shot from just inside the penalty area to the left of the goal straight into the upper right reaches of the net for UMary's goal against Augustana.
 
MORE MO
Team co-captain Mo Malone has played a key role in both Marauders wins this season. The all-conference performer bent home a corner kick in a 1-0 UMary win over visiting MSU Moorhead in non-conference action. In a 1-0 win over Southwest Minnesota State Malone fought through multiple defenders to set up Grace Freimuth for the lone goal of the match. The defensive midfielder has also played a key role in the Marauders posting four shutouts and allowing just a goal a game… Malone leads UMary with two assists and also has a goal.  
 
GO GO GARDNER
Olivia Gardner leads the Marauders in creating scoring opportunities. She paces the squad in shots attempted (25) and on frame (10). She has been hard for defenders to keep pace with since the start of NSIC play, launching eight shots in a draw with MSU Moorhead and seven in a win over SMSU. Snakebit, the sophomore hit the frame at least three times in the two games. Gardner is 3^rd in the NSIC at 2.78 shots/game.
 
1-2-3-4
Molly Fischer has posted four clean sheets in nine outings this season to rank 34^th in the nation in shutouts. In the NSIC Fischer is 7^th in shutouts per game at 0.444. Fischer is 56^th nationally in goalkeeper minutes played (810).
 
DAZZLING DEBUT
Grace Freimuth made her collegiate debut one to remember. Stepping onto the pitch for the Marauders for the first time in the second half at home in a scoreless match against Southwest Minnesota State, the freshman from North Oaks, MN, tallied her first collegiate goal less than two minutes after running onto the field. Taking a feed from Mo Malone just outside the left of the goal box, Freimuth blasted a shot towards the right corner that she deflected off a Mustangs defender and into the net for the lone goal in the Marauders 1-0 win.
 
1-2-3-4-5
The Marauders have qualified for postseason play five straight seasons and are projected to make it six. UMary is picked to finish 5th in the 2023 Northern Sun preseason poll. Last season the Marauders tied for sixth in the NSIC, forging a mark of 10-5-4 overall and 7-4-4 in conference action. 
 
OLD
Returning 2022 starters Mo Malone, Eli Olsen, Rio Spruenken, Ava Vizenor and Tara Young and partime starters Molly Fischer and Mary Meeks have started all four games this season for the Marauders. Fellow returners MaLiah Burke, Sophia Lange and Olivia Gardner all own three starts.
 
NEW
A pair of newcomers - freshman Ashlyn Davison and Amélie Faa, a transfer from Clemson, and sophomore Kira Hockley earned their first starts for UMary this season.
 
FOLLOWING THE MARAUDERS
Visit www.GoUMary.com/coverage for links to webcasts and live stats for all Marauders sports.
 
TICKETS
Tickets for Marauders home games are available online at www.umarytickets.com or via the HomeTown Fan App for iOS and Android mobile devices.
 
EXPERIENCE
UMary returns 18 players from the 2022 season, including eight who started 13 or more contests and 14 who earned at least one start. Kendra Park, Eli Olsen, Mo Malone and Ava Vizenor return after starting all 19 games last year. Tara Young, Olivia Gardner, Rio Spruenken and MaLiah Burke each started at least 13 games.
 
2023 NSIC PLAYERS TO WATCH
Eli Olsen and Kenrda Park earned NSIC Players to Watch in 2023 for the Marauders. Park, a junior from Lake Havasu, AZ, has led the Marauders in goals in each of her two seasons at UMary… The forward found the net five times as a freshman before topping the charts with seven last year. She added three assists and totaled 17 points. Park also led the Marauders in points and game-winners (3). She finished the regular season 8th in the NSIC in goals, 9th in points and 4th in game-winners… Olson made an immediate impact on the Marauders in 2022 as she earned NSIC Defender of the Week honors in back-to-back weeks early in the season. A transfer from Charleston Southern University, Olsen scored three goals for UMary, including a couple of game-winners. She helped the Marauders post 11 clean sheets while limiting the opposition to 12 goals in 19 matches.
 
TRIO OF ALL-NSIC PLAYERS RETURN FOR MARAUDERS
Mo Malone and Rio Spruenken join Kendra Park as returning All-NSIC players as all three earned second team honors in 2022… A defender from Placentia, CA, Malone helped the Marauder post 11 shutouts in 19 games in her first season at UMary. Now a junior, the transfer from the University of Texas at El Paso scored a goal and added three assists last year… A sophomore midfielder from Krefeld, NRW, Germany, Spruenken added an extra dimension to the Marauders attack. In her first season at UMary, she posted two goals and dished five assists to finish with nine points in 17 games. Spruenken was 4th in the NSIC in assists and 13th in game-winning goals with two.
 
29th SEASON OF MARAUDERS SOCCER
This is the 29th season of University of Mary women's soccer. The Marauders took to the pitch for the first time in 1995.
 
2023-24 MARAUDERS TICKETING FAQs
•             Fans are encouraged to purchase tickets online at www.umarytickets.com or via the HomeTown
•             Fan App for iOS and Android mobile devices
•             Save money by purchasing tickets online
•             $5 discount (minus fees) on tickets purchased online vs. purchases at the gate
•             Tickets purchased at the gate are CASH ONLY transactions
•             ATMs are located near the main ticketing gates for Marauders home game
•             Debit and credit card purchases are online only at www.umarytickets.com or via the HomeTown Fan App
•             UMary students and faculty and staff with their MCard are admitted FREE
•             Youth 12 and younger with an adult are admitted FREE
•             Any youth 12 and under unaccompanied by an adult are charged a $5 admission fee at the gate (cash only)
•             All ticket sales are FINAL at time of purchase, whether online or at the gate
 
MARAUDERS HOME GAME TICKET PRICES | Soccer, basketball, hockey, track & field, volleyball and wrestling tickets
•             Adults | $10 + fees online and $15 (CASH ONLY) at the gate
•             Seniors (65+) and youth 13-18 | $5 + fees online and $10 (CASH ONLY) at the gate
•             Children 12 and under accompanied by an adult | Free
•             Children 12 and under with no adult present| $5
 
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