ORANGE BEACH, Ala. – For the first time in program history, the Raven Women's Soccer team will play for a NAIA National Tournament Championship as they return to the Orange Beach Sportsplex on Saturday at 3 p.m.
Benedictine's opponent in the Championship match is a school they have a history with as they take on No. 2 seed Spring Arbor (Mich.) University.
MATCH UP: (9) Benedictine (19-2-3) vs. (2) Spring Arbor (Mich.) (23-1-1) | 3 p.m. (Dec. 2) | Orange Beach Sportsplex, Orange Beach, Ala.
VIDEO: NAIA Network - www.NAIAnetwork.com - there is a pay-per-view fee associated with streaming the match.
LIVE STATS: Courtesy of Dakstats - http://bit.ly/2z7yR40
STATS COMPARISON
Goals/Shot Attempts: Benedictine - 74/510. Spring Arbor - 100/581
Shot Pct.: Benedictine - .147. Spring Arbor - .172
SOG: Benedictine - 252. Spring Arbor - 311
Goals/Game: Benedictine - 3.1. Spring Arbor - 4.0
Assists: Benedictine - 57. Spring Arbor - 78
Saves: Benedictine - 82. Spring Arbor - 78
Goals Against: Benedictine - 14. Spring Arbor - 9
Save Pct.: Benedictine - .854. Spring Arbor - .895
PREGAME: For the third time since 2014, the Ravens will take on the Cougars. This is the second meeting between the two schools in the NAIA Tournament. They first met in the 2014 NAIA Championship Tournament Second Round. After playing to a 1-1 draw, the Ravens won the shootout 3/3 over 1/4. The next meeting between the two schools took place in Atchison when the Ravens welcomed the Cougars for their 2015 season opener which saw Benedictine earn a 2-1 win in overtime.
ABOUT BENEDICTINE: Benedictine has now allowed two goals over their 12-match unbeaten streak which dates back to Oct. 14. … Friday's game-winning goal for Anna Romano was her fourth on the season and her second at the Orange Beach Sportsplex as she scored the game-winner in the Second Round win over Mobile (Ala.). … Ellen Loughman has registered 23 saves in four NAIA Tournament games with 21 of those over the last three matches in Orange Beach. … Since making the trip to Orange Beach, the Ravens have registered 44 shots over three matches while they have 13 shots on goal.
ABOUT SPRING ARBOR: Spring Arbor has 18 shutouts entering the National Championship Match. They have allowed just two goals in their tournament run - both of which were scored by Embry-Riddle (Ariz.) in the Second Round. … The Cougars are riding a 17-match unbeaten streak heading into the championship match. They played to a 1-1 draw with Marian (Ind.) on Oct. 28 with their last loss coming on Sept. 16 against Martin Methodist. … The Cougars are making their ninth overall tournament appearance and this is their eighth straight appearance. They are playing in their third straight championship match winning the 2015 championship over Lindsey Wilson (Ky.) and losing to Northwestern Ohio in the 2016 championship match.
THE MORE YOU KNOW: This is the third time that Benedictine and Spring Arbor have matched up with each other. For Benedictine Rosie McShane played against Spring Arbor in the shootout win in 2014 while in the 2015 seven current Ravens played in the match in Atchison. For Spring Arbor, Aubrey Schierbeek, Renee Broekuizen, Abbey Fuller Jacquelyn Martin and Sarah Klunder played in the shootout while eight players appeared in the rematch on campus. … McShane was one of the Ravens to take a kick in the Shootout while none of the active players still on the Spring Arbor roster participated in the shootout.
