Nonconference play wraps up in La Jolla

Sunday, September 19

La Jolla, Calif.

2 p.m.

Grand Canyon

UC San Diego

9/17/2021 11:36:00 AM | Women's Soccer

GCU, UCSD face each other for 1st time as Division I opponents

By: Jerob Moon

Sunday, Sept. 19 | 2 p.m. | La Jolla, Calif. | Triton Soccer Stadium


Grand Canyon Lopes (6-2)	vs.	UC San Diego Tritons (2-4-1)
Match Notes	Live Video Live Stats

The Grand Canyon women's soccer team will wrap up nonconference play on Sunday with a match at UC San Diego. It will be the first match between the teams as Division I opponents after playing 11 times at the Division II level. The Lopes are coming off a 1-1 homestand with a 4-2 win over Denver and a 2-0 loss to New Mexico at GCU Stadium.

Sunday's game will be broadcast live on ESPN+. Per local policy in La Jolla, California, fans who want to attend in person will need to provide proof of COVID vaccination or a negative test within the last 48 hours for ages 6 and up. All fans over the age of 2 must wear a mask at all times.

THREE THINGS TO KNOW

LEADING THE WAC: As nonconference play wraps up over the weekend, the Lopes continue to lead the WAC in multiple categories. Going into Sunday's match, GCU tops the team leaderboards in goals (19), assists (17), goals against average (0.86) and shots per game (19.5). Individually, GCU's top scorer, Marleen Schimmer, leads the conference in shots with 50 while goalkeeper Jordan Ferguson has the best goals against average at 0.92.
NEARING 400: While head coach Chris Cissell is more concerned about winning on Sunday, it will be another step toward a career milestone. The second-year GCU head coach is two victories away from the 400-win mark. Over his career, Cissell has picked up 284 wins in women's soccer and 114 wins in men's soccer after leading both programs at William Jewell from 2002-10.
FLASHBACK TO 2006: The Lopes and Tritons are meeting for the first time since 2006. GCU and UCSD met 11 times as Division II opponents, including eight times as California Collegiate Athletic Association opponents.

SCOUTING
UC San Diego is in the midst of its first Division I season in program history. Last season, the Tritons joined the Big West Conference, but spring sports were canceled because of COVID-19. This year, UCSD picked up its first Division I win by beating Southern Utah in overtime on Aug. 31 and added a 2-1 win over CSU Northridge last week.

Sophomore forward Kennedy Carter has been the offensive leader for UCSD, scoring four goals that included the game-winner against Southern Utah. Carter accounts for 50% of UCSD's scoring while sophomore goalkeeper Keara Fitzgerald has picked up two wins and leads the team with a 1.73 goals against average.