The UConn women’s soccer team is set to play its first Big East conference game against Creighton at 6:30 p.m. Thursday.
The Huskies have had a bold start to the season so far, as they hold a 4-2-1 record through seven games. The team has enjoyed one of the best starts to its season in the country, ending up in the top 20 in both total goals (18th with 12) and scoring offense (20th with 3.00).
In their last game, the Huskies managed to beat the odds while down two goalkeepers, to beat Yale 2-1. Starting keeper Kaitlyn Mahoney was out due to injury prior to the match, so Mary Kate Ward stepped up to fill her role. Ward also got injured during the game after getting caught on turf, but managed to hold the line for 33 minutes. Freshman goalie Ady Duran had also been sidelined with an injury, so she could not substitute for Ward.
Jaydah Bedoya has been one of UConn’s top performers, as she currently leads the team in number of shot attempts with 19 and has scored two goals, while Jada Konte is second in shot attempts at 14. Konte and Cara Jordan hold the second amount of assists for the Huskies, tied at two. Abbey Jones leads the team with 10 points and holds a shot percentage of 50%.
Despite the success the Huskies might have an uphill battle against the Creighton Bluejays, as the team enters the conference this season with a win streak of 4-0-4. UConn has the advantage in scoring offense at 2.57 with Creighton managing at 1.5.
In their game against South Dakota State, the Bluejays held a 6-4 edge in shots. Even after the Jackrabbits eked out a lead, Hailey Rothwell managed to fire a shot to the back of the net and tie up the score 1-1 for the remainder of the game. Creighton ended the game with a 15-7 edge on shot attempts, which shows the blazing offensive strategy for their team.
Both Jenny Grissom and Ariana Mondiri lead the Bluejays in points with six each, with three and two goals made, respectively. Grissom holds the highest shot percentage on the team at 20%, while Azumi Manriki leads in shot attempts with 18 shots made. Mondiri has the most assists on the team, at two.
