Match #11
ART U Urban Knights (2-6-2,1-4-0 PacWest) vs. CUI Eagles (3-4-3, 2-1-1 PacWest)
Saturday, Oct. 23, 2021 at 3 p.m.
Irvine, Calif. – Eagles Field
Live Stats & Video

Match #12
ART U Urban Knights (2-6-2,1-4-0 PacWest) vs. APU Cougars (9-4-0, 4-2-0 PacWest)
Monday, Oct. 25, 2021 at 5 p.m.
Azusa, Calif. – Cougar Soccer Complex
Live Stats | Live Video

ON THE ROAD AGAIN
Academy of Art women's soccer returns to Southern California for the second time this season but will play different opponents on this trip, as the Urban Knights are set to do battle with Pacific West Conference foes Concordia and Azusa Pacific. 

KICKOFF
Saturday's PacWest showdown with the Eagles will commence at 3 p.m., while Monday 's match will take place under the lights beginning at 5 p.m. Remember to follow @ARTU_Knights via the athletics app (Apple App Store, Google Play Store) and on Twitter & Instagram, as well as "Like" the Urban Knights on Facebook for score updates, videos, and recaps. 

KNIGHT WATCH
Junior midfielder Reyna Valencia scored the fastest goal in Urban Knights history during ART U's shutout win over the Hawks on Oct. 10, putting a ball in the back of the net just 51 seconds into the contest. By the end of the match Valencia had a hand in all three Urban Knights goals scored, as she also chipped in a pair of assists (the 14th two-assist match in program history). Already entering that game as the team's leading scorer, she now owns team best marks in goals (two), assists (two), and points (six), and is just one point and assist off of her career high that she set in 2018 as a freshman (seven points, three goals).

Scoring the first goal of her season against HNU was senior forward Brooklyn Morera, as she scored her fifth goal in her last three matches against HNU dating back to last season, and she now leads the team both in shots (19) and shots on goal (seven; tied with freshman midfielder Zineb Ighirri). Tallying the first goal of her ART U career during the same match was graduate student midfielder Melissa Wilson, while junior defender Avica Robings and sophomore forward Brooklyn Villapudua each snagged their first assist of the campaign.

Standing out in goal has been sophomore goalkeeper Nicole Peoples, as the two-time PacWest Defender of the Week had a streak of 36 consecutive saves without allowing a goal, spanning a total of 354 minutes of game action. Though that streak has since ended, Peoples is still among the best goalkeepers in the PacWest, as she leads the conference in save percentage (.891) and save per game (7.13) while ranking second in total saves (57). With a 2-4-2 record, Peoples has a low 0.891 goals against average with 3.1 shutouts, with the shutouts tied for the second most in a single season and third most in program history. Also starting in goal this season is senior goalkeeper Jordyn Wight, who has recorded a .700 save percentage and a 2.25 goals against average with a total of 14 saves.

EAGLES MIGRATING SOUTH
It has been an up-and-down season for Concordia, as the Eagles are just below .500 overall but sit above that mark in PacWest play, going 2-1-1 in their last four matches, all PacWest contests. The Eagles have not scored a goal in the past two matches, playing to a scoreless draw with Hawaii Pacific before taking a 1-0 shutout loss against UH Hilo. Prior to the skid, CUI had opened PacWest play with a solid 3-1 victory over Azusa Pacific before subsequently shutting out Chaminade, 2-0. As a unit, the Eagles average 13.3 shots per match that lead to 1.10 goals per game, putting 40.6 percent (54-for-133) of their shots on goal. Entering with the most goals (4) and points (9) on the season is Olivia Ocampo, but the top offensive threat is Jadenn Carrillo, who trails Ocampo by just one goal and has taken a total of 43 shots, 17 of which have been on net (most shots in the PacWest; second most shots on goal). Drawing all 10 starts in goal for the Eagles has been Hailey Asato, who has recorded an .800 save percentage and a 1.03 goals against average with a total of 44 saves on 112 shots faced. CUI has denied ART U a win in all of the five meetings between the two teams, leading the all-time series 4-0-1.

CLIMBING OVER THE COUGARS
Third in the PacWest standings is Azusa Pacific, as the Cougars enter as one of the top scoring teams in the conference with the third-most goals for (22) and goals per game (1.69). Winners of their past two matches against Holy Names (4-1) and Dominican (1-0) with those two victories stopping a two-match losing streak, the Cougars are 4-2-0 in their last six contests. The top scorer for the Cougars is Maddy Morrison 14 points thanks to five goals and four assists, both of which are tied for the best on the team. Overall, 12 different players have scored a goal for APU this season, while they have three players that have recorded at least 10 points. Projected to start in goal for the Cougars is Bella Hara, as she has a .682 save percentage and a 0.86 goals against average with a total of 15 saves. While ART U won the last meeting between the two teams back in 2019, APU still holds the edge in the all-time series, 6-1-1. 

SCORING IN SECOND HALF LIFTS SLUGS OVER KNIGHTS
The match between Academy of Art women's soccer and UC Santa Cruz was level at the half on Tuesday, but a four-goal outburst in the second frame would give UCSC the win in non-conference action, 4-0. 

LOOKING AHEAD
Not much of the season remains for ART U, as the Urban Knights return to San Francisco for the first of their final two home matches in 2021 against Hawaii Pacific on Oct. 31.