University of St. Thomas Athletics
Friday, September 13
St. Paul, Minn.
4:00 p.m. Central
vs
Western Illinois
Photo by: Jason Morales Ortiz
Women’s Soccer hosts Western Illinois on Friday evening
9/12/2024 3:24:00 PM | Women's Soccer
Tommie women’s soccer plays its first game against the Leathernecks since the program’s departure from the Summit League.
ST. PAUL, Minn. – The Tommies split their way through week four and matchup with the winless Western Illinois Leathernecks (0-5-0) while sitting at 3-3-1 on Friday, September 12 at 4:00 p.m. in front of a home crowd at South Field.
St. Thomas dropped a thriller of a game in Cedar Falls, Iowa, 3-2, to the Northern Iowa Panthers. UNI scored the first two goals in the opening half before Tatum Trettel sank her first goal of the season heading into the halftime break. The Panthers answered with their third goal of the game with 15 minutes to play but freshman Izzy McEwan made it a contest with her first career goal in the 88th minute.
The Tommies scored the most goals in single half in program history when they put six scores up on the Viterbo V-Hawks last Sunday. Lexi Huber scored two, Abby Brantner added her second of the year, Melina Knowles score the first of her young career, and Ellie Tempero tallied her first of the season. Olivia Rowe earned her second shutout of the season with three saves in goal for the Tommies.
Western Illinois is the Purple's penultimate non-conference opponent before they head to Milwaukee to face the Marquette Golden Eagles on September 19. The Leathernecks have not won a game in 2024 and have been outscored 17-1. WIU and the Tommies have played two games, one in 2021 that the Tommies won, 1-0 in St. Paul, and one in 2022 that Western took 3-1 in Macomb, Illinois.
Home Gameday Need to Know
Where to Watch
All St. Thomas Women's Soccer home games and away Summit League contests can be viewed on the Summit League Network with a Midco Sports Plus subscription.
Live stats for all St. Thomas home games can be viewed on Tommiesports.com with links available on the Tommie Women's Soccer team's schedule page.
Lexi Huber does it AGAIN
Just one week after earned St. Thomas' first Summit League weekly honor of the season, senior, Lexi Huber, placed two into the goal on Sunday against the Viterbo V-Hawks. Her first tally was the game's opening goal in the seventh minute. She turned over Viterbo and rocketed a shot past the goalkeeper from within the penalty box. The second goal of her day came off a beautiful corner kick from Sofia Caballero that she headed into the net in the 13th minute.
Huber currently leads the Summit League with five goals and .714 goals per game. She began the season with six career goals and her previous single-season high was three during her debut 2021 season.
Tommies' Summit League ranks
March to the Summit
The Tommies were picked to finish eighth out of the nine teams in the Summit League Preseason Coaches' Poll after their 1-5-2 conference record in 2023.
Last season's regular season conference champion Denver Pioneers were voted to the top of the poll edging out challenger South Dakota State by two points (61-59). The Purple finished with 15 votes, placing them between North Dakota State (24) and North Dakota (14).
Both Mariah Nguyen and Olivia Rowe were named Players to Watch by the conference office.
Nguyen led the Purple in goals (five), points (12), and shots on goal (13) last season while Olivia Rowe started every game between the posts in 2023 and earned five shutouts.
Nice to meet you
The Tommies head into the 2024 season with eight newcomers
Getting to Work
The Tommie Women's Soccer coaching staff welcomed a new face into the fold during the offseason with the addition of Jean Viardin.
Viardin holds a US Soccer Senior A license and has over 20 years of coaching experience at youth clubs, high school teams, the WPSL, and the UPSL.
Coach McGill said of Viardin, "We are incredibly excited to welcome Jean to our team! He brings his experience and knowledge to the program and will make an immediate impact in our games and training. He has a positive yet straightforward mindset and will help our players to develop and succeed both individually and as a whole."
Viardin also served as the General Manager for the National Women's Soccer League's FC Kansas City from 2016-2018. His most recent experience came as the Executive Director & Director of Coaching/Player Development at Maplebrook SC, where he has been since 2011.
Follow Along
For any and all information pertaining to the St. Thomas Women's Soccer team, follow along on Instagram and X (formerly known as Twitter) at @TommieWSoccer.
St. Thomas dropped a thriller of a game in Cedar Falls, Iowa, 3-2, to the Northern Iowa Panthers. UNI scored the first two goals in the opening half before Tatum Trettel sank her first goal of the season heading into the halftime break. The Panthers answered with their third goal of the game with 15 minutes to play but freshman Izzy McEwan made it a contest with her first career goal in the 88th minute.
The Tommies scored the most goals in single half in program history when they put six scores up on the Viterbo V-Hawks last Sunday. Lexi Huber scored two, Abby Brantner added her second of the year, Melina Knowles score the first of her young career, and Ellie Tempero tallied her first of the season. Olivia Rowe earned her second shutout of the season with three saves in goal for the Tommies.
Western Illinois is the Purple's penultimate non-conference opponent before they head to Milwaukee to face the Marquette Golden Eagles on September 19. The Leathernecks have not won a game in 2024 and have been outscored 17-1. WIU and the Tommies have played two games, one in 2021 that the Tommies won, 1-0 in St. Paul, and one in 2022 that Western took 3-1 in Macomb, Illinois.
Home Gameday Need to Know
- Admission to Tommie Women's Soccer is free all season long.
- Visitor parking is available in the Anderson Parking Facility on South Campus.
- When navigating to the stadium from the Anderson Parking Facility please follow the posted signs directing you to the entrance.
- There will be no concessions available for the 2024 season.
Where to Watch
All St. Thomas Women's Soccer home games and away Summit League contests can be viewed on the Summit League Network with a Midco Sports Plus subscription.
Live stats for all St. Thomas home games can be viewed on Tommiesports.com with links available on the Tommie Women's Soccer team's schedule page.
Lexi Huber does it AGAIN
Just one week after earned St. Thomas' first Summit League weekly honor of the season, senior, Lexi Huber, placed two into the goal on Sunday against the Viterbo V-Hawks. Her first tally was the game's opening goal in the seventh minute. She turned over Viterbo and rocketed a shot past the goalkeeper from within the penalty box. The second goal of her day came off a beautiful corner kick from Sofia Caballero that she headed into the net in the 13th minute.
Huber currently leads the Summit League with five goals and .714 goals per game. She began the season with six career goals and her previous single-season high was three during her debut 2021 season.
Tommies' Summit League ranks
- Lexi Huber – 1st in goals – 5
- Lexi Huber – 1st in goals per game - .714
- Lexi Huber – T-4th in shots-on-goal – 8
- Tatum Trettel – T-8th in shots-on-goal – 7
- Sofia Caballero – T-9th in assists – 2
- Mariah Nguyen – T-9th in assists – 2
- Lexi Huber – 1st in game-winning goals – 3
- Lexi Huber – 1st in points – 10
- Lexi Huber – 2nd in points per game – 1.43
- Olivia Rowe – 2nd in shutouts per game - .286
- Olivia Rowe - 3rd in saves per game – 3.86
March to the Summit
The Tommies were picked to finish eighth out of the nine teams in the Summit League Preseason Coaches' Poll after their 1-5-2 conference record in 2023.
Last season's regular season conference champion Denver Pioneers were voted to the top of the poll edging out challenger South Dakota State by two points (61-59). The Purple finished with 15 votes, placing them between North Dakota State (24) and North Dakota (14).
Both Mariah Nguyen and Olivia Rowe were named Players to Watch by the conference office.
Nguyen led the Purple in goals (five), points (12), and shots on goal (13) last season while Olivia Rowe started every game between the posts in 2023 and earned five shutouts.
Nice to meet you
The Tommies head into the 2024 season with eight newcomers
- #3 – Melina Knowles – Freshman – Plymouth, Wis.
- #4 – Kayden Scrima – Freshman – Waukesha, Wis.
- #6 – Juliet Carlson – Freshman – Minnetonka, Minn.
- #14 – Alexandra Amini – Freshman – Pewaukee, Wis.
- #19 – Brooke Nygaard – Freshman – Eagan, Minn.
- #20 – Sophia Barjesteh – Junior – Woodbury, Minn.
- #27 – Annie Mulcahy – Freshman – Saint Paul, Minn.
- #29 – Izzy McEwan – Freshman – Minneapolis, Minn.
Getting to Work
The Tommie Women's Soccer coaching staff welcomed a new face into the fold during the offseason with the addition of Jean Viardin.
Viardin holds a US Soccer Senior A license and has over 20 years of coaching experience at youth clubs, high school teams, the WPSL, and the UPSL.
Coach McGill said of Viardin, "We are incredibly excited to welcome Jean to our team! He brings his experience and knowledge to the program and will make an immediate impact in our games and training. He has a positive yet straightforward mindset and will help our players to develop and succeed both individually and as a whole."
Viardin also served as the General Manager for the National Women's Soccer League's FC Kansas City from 2016-2018. His most recent experience came as the Executive Director & Director of Coaching/Player Development at Maplebrook SC, where he has been since 2011.
Follow Along
For any and all information pertaining to the St. Thomas Women's Soccer team, follow along on Instagram and X (formerly known as Twitter) at @TommieWSoccer.
Players Mentioned
F
/ Women's Soccer
F/M
/ Women's Soccer
F
/ Women's Soccer
M
/ Women's Soccer
F/M
/ Women's Soccer
F
/ Women's Soccer
F/M
/ Women's Soccer
F/M
/ Women's Soccer
D
/ Women's Soccer
F/M
/ Women's Soccer
D
/ Women's Soccer
GK
/ Women's Soccer
D
/ Women's Soccer
M
/ Women's Soccer
F
/ Women's SoccerWomen's Soccer
Sunday, October 09
Women's Soccer vs. North Dakota State
Sunday, October 31
Women's Soccer vs. North Dakota
Friday, October 29
Women's Soccer vs. Western Illinois
Sunday, October 17
