Huskers Open Big 12 Play at Missouri

Following an eight-game homestand at the Nebraska Soccer Field to kick off the 2006 regular season, the Huskers (5-1-2) are hitting the road to open Big 12 Conference play against Missouri (7-1-0) in Columbia at 7 p.m. on Friday, Sept. 22.

Nebraska owns an impressive 10-0 unbeaten record in Big 12 openers and enjoys a 37-5 goals advantage in those contests.  Meanwhile, Missouri enters the match following its first loss of the season as it was shut out by Wisconsin-Milwaukee, 1-0, last Sunday.  The Huskers are now the only team in the Big 12 to avoid a shutout in 2006.

This is just the second time in program history that the Huskers have opened conference play against the Tigers.   The last time was on Sept. 27, 2002 in Columbia, with Nebraska taking home a 4-0 win.  Overall, Nebraska owns a 13-1-0 all-time record over Missouri, with the last meeting ending in a 3-1 NU win in September of last year. 

NU remains on the road for a second game this weekend as it heads north from Columbia to Ames, Iowa, for a 1 p.m. kickoff against Iowa State on Sunday.  The Cyclones have had a rough start to the season, managing just three wins while suffering six losses.  The Huskers are hungry to face Iowa State this season after falling to the Cyclones for the first time in program history in 2005.  Nebraska now owns a 10-1-0 all-time record over Iowa State.

The Huskers are 58-29-3 all-time on the road and 77-19-3 in the Big 12.  NU returns to the Nebraska Soccer Field on Sept. 29 for another long home bout with Big 12 match-ups against Colorado, Kansas, Baylor and Texas Tech, beginning with the Buffs at 5 p.m. on Friday, Sept. 29.
  

Scouting Missouri (7-1-0)
The Missouri Tigers began the season with an impressive seven-game winning streak, needing just one more notch in the win column to enter Big 12 Conference play completely unbeaten.  But a 1-0 shutout from a stingy Wisconsin-Milwaukee team on Sunday, Sept. 17 ended that expectation, giving the Tigers their first taste of defeat before taking on the Huskers this Friday.

Regardless of the loss, Missouri has been impressive throughout the 2006 season.  In all, the Tigers have scored 20 goals in their seven wins including six multi-goal games.  The Tigers currently lead the Big 12 in several statistical categories including shots (154), points (60), assists (20), assists per game (2.50) and shut outs (5).  As Nebraska is the only team in the Big 12 to avoid a shut out this season, Missouri will have its work cut out for it in trying to keep the Husker scoring platoon at bay.

The Tigers are surprisingly led in goals by sophomore defender Ashley Hamblin, who owns five goals this season as well as five assists.  However, Missouri isn't shy about spreading the ball around.  Seven players have scored for Mizzou this season, six of whom have at least two goals. 

Defensively, Tiger goalkeeper Mallory Forst has played a major role in Missouri's shutouts. With a Big 12 leading .846 save percentage and a goals-against average of 0.51, Forst is a tough wall to break down.  But credit goes to the MU defenders as well, as they have allowed Forst to face just 22 shots on goal this season for just 2.75 saves per game.

Husker History vs. Missouri
Nebraska owns an impressive 13-1-0 record over Missouri in the last 10 years, dating back to the two programs' first meeting in 1996.  That contest set the tone for the series history with an 8-2 NU victory in Columbia.

NU's lone loss to the Tigers took place in 2003 at the Big 12 Tournament semifinals in San Antonio, Texas, with the Huskers falling, 3-2.

The last time Nebraska and Missouri met was on Oct. 2, 2005 in a nationally televised game at the Nebraska Soccer Field.  NU forward Aysha Jamani netted a pair of goals, including one less than three minutes into the game, while midfielder Selenia Iacchelli added another score for a 3-0 final in Nebraska's favor. 

Scouting Iowa State
After a solid 2005 season that ended in a winning 11-7-1 record and the program's first berth in the NCAA Tournament, Iowa State has struggled to find its rhythm in 2006.  The Cyclones are currently 3-6-0 on the season with its only wins coming over Northwestern, Creighton and Northern Iowa.

Iowa State has been shut out four times this season.  With just nine goals in nine games, the Cyclones are in need of a major offensive explosion to get back on track this season.

Junior foward Brittanie Waddell leads Iowa State with three goals on the year behind just 15 shots.  Meanwhile, the Iowa State defense has struggled to find its place after the loss of talented goalkeeper Joanna Haig, who transferred to Louisville after making 111 saves for the Cyclones in 2005.

Husker History vs. Iowa State
Nebraska owns a 10-1-0 record over Iowa State, dating back to a 4-0 NU win at the Abbott Sports Complex in Lincoln in 1995.  Since then, the Huskers have shut out the Cyclones on seven of 11 occasions, never scoring fewer than one goal except in Nebraska's single Cyclone loss.  Nebraska fell to Iowa State for the first time in history in 2005 in its last home game of the season.  The 2-0 shut out ended up costing the Huskers the Big 12 regular-season title and was one of just six games where Nebraska failed to score a goal in 2005.

Huskers Seek to Continue Streak
When Nebraska opens Big 12 Conference play on Friday at Missouri, the Huskers will be looking to win the program’s 11th consecutive league opener in 11 tries. NU is 10-0 all-time in Big 12 openers and has outscored its opponents by a whopping 37-5 margin, winning by an average of more than three goals per game.

Keeping the streak alive will not be easy, as the Tigers enter Friday’s contest with a 7-1-0 record. Nebraska is no stranger to facing tough opponents to open the season, however, as Nebraska traveled to Colorado and defeated the Buffaloes, 2-1, last season and shut out No. 8 Kansas in Lawrence to open the 2004 conference slate.

This season also marks the third consecutive season that the Big Red opens league play on the road. Nebraska is 6-0 in Big 12 openers on the road and has outscored the home team, 19-4. Below is a breakdown of how the Huskers have fared in league openers since the formation of the Big 12 Conference in 1996:

Year   Opponent   Result
1996   Oklahoma     W, 8-0
1997   at Colorado   W, 5-1
1998   at Iowa State W, 4-2
1999   Texas Tech   W, 1-0
2000   at Baylor       W, 3-0
2001   Baylor           W, 4-0
2002   at Missouri    W, 4-0
2003   Iowa State     W, 5-1
2004   at #8 Kansas W, 1-0
2005   at Colorado    W, 2-1
Total: 10-0; outscored opponents 37-5

Timko Nears School Record
Senior Brittany Timko, who already owns at least a share of 10 school records, will be shooting for an 11th NU record when the Huskers travel to Missouri on Friday. After scoring two goals in Sunday’s 4-0 win over TCU, Timko has now recorded at least one point in 11 consecutive games, dating back to the final regular season game of the 2005 season. With either a goal or an assist against the Tigers, Timko would tie Kim Engesser’s school record of 12 consecutive games with at least one point, set during the 1997 campaign.

Huskers Crank Up the Shots
The Nebraska soccer team, renowned for its offensive prowess, turned the offense into high gear last weekend. In two matches against Central Michigan and TCU, the Huskers scored a total of five goals on 48 shots, including 16 on goal. NU’s increased offensive pressure also led to a remarkable 25-3 advantage in corner kicks for the Big Red.

NU averaged 24 shots last weekend, while limiting the opponents to just seven tries. In contrast, through the previous six games, Nebraska averaged just under 17 shots, while allowing nearly 11.

Starting Fast
The 2006 Huskers have been a stellar first-half team. Through eight games this season, NU has tallied eight goals in the first half, while surrendering just three. The Huskers have also enjoyed a 78-26 advantage in shots in the opening period, while that margin shrinks to a 59-43 NU advantage in the second half. Nebraska has also won 31 corner kicks in the first period, while limiting opponents to only nine.

In two games last weekend, the Huskers outshot their opponents 29-4 in the first half and won 13 corner kicks while limiting their opponents to only two. NU has also scored first in seven of its first eight contests, with the lone exception coming in the season opener against Wright State.

Lucky Number 13
By virtue of a double-overtime goal in a 1-0 win last Tuesday and a five-goal weekend, Nebraska has yet to be shut out this season. The Huskers are the lone team in the Big 12 Conference who has not suffered a shutout this season, after Missouri was shutout last Sunday.

NU has scored at least one goal in 13 straight contests dating back to a 2-0 loss in the final regular season game of the 2005 season. The 13 straight games marks the longest such streak since the 2003 team went 18 games without being shut out.

In contrast, the Huskers have shut out their opponents three times through the first eight games, including a 4-0 blanking of TCU last Sunday. In that game, sophomore starting goalkeeper Jamie Klages gave way to redshirt-freshman keeper Brittany Pfeil, producing the first combined shutout since Aug. 31, 2003.

NU Fares Well in Extra Minutes
The Nebraska soccer team has already played three overtime contests in the first eight games of the season, the most since NU went to overtime four times in 2003. After playing to a tie in the first two overtime games, the Huskers were victorious last Tuesday when junior Jessie Bruch scored with just over five minutes remaining in the second and final overtime period to lift NU to a 1-0 win over Western Carolina.

Prior to that win, the Huskers had not won in overtime since Nov. 14, 2004 at Kansas in the second round of the NCAA Tournament and NU had not won in double overtime since a 2-1 win at Missouri on Oct. 1, 2004. Nebraska is 12-5-11 (.625) all-time when going into extra minutes.

Timko Nears 40/40
Senior Brittany Timko produced two goals and two assists in three games last week. With her performance, Timko now has 36 career goals to go along with 39 career assists. Her next assist would make her just the third player in school history to record 40 assists in a career.

With four more goals in addition to that one assist, Timko would joing Meghan Anderson (48 goals, 50 assists) as the only player in school history to record both 40 goals and 40 assists in a career. Timko would also join Anderson as the only players in the 11-year history of the Big 12 Conference to join the 40/40 club, as well as becoming just the 36th player in NCAA history and only the third player to play her entire career in the 21st century to reach the marks.

Timko Plays a Major Hand in Husker Offense
Since her sophomore season at NU in 2004, senior Brittany Timko has been a catalyst for the Husker offense.  Anyone who watches Nebraska play can see Timko's talent and impact, while the statistics back up her pivotal role in the Huskers' goal-scoring ability.

The statistics of goals and assists simply measure a player's contribution to a team's scoring.  But, by looking at these two statistics in tandem and comparing them against the team's total number of goals in a season, one can calculate how often a player was involved in a team goal.  The formula for this percentage is as follows:

Goals + Assists/Team's Total Goals = Percentage of goals involving that player

From the start of the 2004 season to the present, Nebraska has scored 105 goals in games in which Timko has played.  In those games, she either found the back of the net herself or assisted on 70 of those goals (67 percent).  Statistically speaking, Timko has had a hand in slightly better than two out of every three Husker goals scored in the past three years.

Through Timko's seven games in 2006, she has garnered six goals and four assists, making her involved in 10 of Nebraska's 17 goals (59 percent.)

To put Timko's importance in perspective, 2005 National Player of the Year Christine Sinclair had a hand in 49 of Portland's 79 goals last season for a production percentage of 62 percent, nine percentage points lower than Timko's.
 

Timko Joins Husker Elite at 100-Point Mark
Senior Brittany Timko recorded six points in Nebraska's 3-2 win over North Texas on Friday, Sept. 8 to reach a total of 103 points in her career with the Huskers.  Timko is now one of just six players in NU history to ever reach 100 points or more.

The Coquitlam, British Columbia, native earned her six points on three goals against the Mean Green, earning her fourth career hat trick.  She is now one hat trick away from tying Kim Engesser for the school record of five.

Timko currently has a Big 12 best 16 points behind six goals and four assists this season. 
 

Injury Update 
Nebraska has made it through the first three weeks of play relatively healthy after an unfortunate preseason that included four season-ending injuries.

Sophomore Lauren Isenhower was listed as a redshirt before the Huskers even reached training camp due to a knee injury she suffered while competing with Nebraska in Europe this past summer.  Junior Meghan Hungerford also suffered a season-ending injury before the season began as she fractured her ankle during summer camps.

Then came the loss of senior defender Abby Penas, who was expected to be a major contributor for the NU defense in her final season at Nebraska.  However, Penas suffered a knee injury in the Huskers' exhibition match with Louisville on Aug. 19, and is out for the rest of the season.

Freshman Jackie Walsh will likely apply for a medical hardship after undergoing foot surgery.

Two players who began the season injured have now recovered and seen game time.  Redshirt freshman Shannon Dickerson sat out the first week of the season with a leg injury before returning for Nebraska's 2-2 double overtime tie with Wisconsin Sept. 1.

Since then, sophomore Ali Lokanc has also returned to the lineup after rehabilitating a broken leg she suffered early in 2005.  Lokanc saw her first game action late in the first half against North Texas on Sept. 8 and has since saw consistent game time for the Huskers.

Corner Kickin'
Nebraska, which has historically enjoyed a tremendous advantage in corner kicks taken, is again out-cornering teams by a good margin.

In eight games, the Huskers have earned 62 corner kicks to just 27 by their opponents, a testament to the endline work by both the NU offense and defense.  On Sept. 15 alone, Nebraska took a season-best 16 corners, which set a new Nebraska Soccer Field record.  The previous record of 15 was set against UAB on Aug. 28, 2005. 

Timko Lands on Watch List
Nebraska senior Brittany Timko earned her second nomination to the Hermann Watch List this season as announced by the National Soccer Coaches Association of America.  Timko is one of 25 nominees compiled by a panel of coaches from the NSCAA.

The Missouri Athletic Club’s Hermann Trophy honors the top male and female Division I college soccer players in the United States. The award represents the highest level of individual achievement in the sport. Over the years, the award has honored some of the biggest names in U.S. soccer. Kristine Lilly, Mia Hamm, Shannon MacMillan, Claudio Reyna, Alexi Lalas and Tony Meola are just a few of the players who won the award prior to achieving success on the international stage.

An NSCAA All-American, Timko earned her first nomination as a junior in 2005 and went on to finish among 15 semifinalists for the award.  A list of this year’s 15 Hermann Award semifinalists will be released in early November, with three finalists chosen later that month.  The finalists will be invited to St. Louis, Mo., on Dec. 2 for the announcement of the winner, as selected through voting by the members of the NSCAA, at the NCAA Men’s College Cup.  The winner will receive the prestigious crystal soccer ball trophy later that evening.

Big Time in the Big 12
Since joining the conference in 1996, the Nebraska soccer program has always been considered one of the teams to beat in the Big 12.  Over the last 12 seasons, the Huskers have laid claim to eight Big 12 titles and five Big 12 Tournament championships.  Only Texas A&M, which matched the Huskers with its eighth Big 12 title in 2005, has earned a comparable level of success in the league.

Apart from its postseason success, Nebraska also owns a number of Big 12 team season records including most shots (656 in 2000), points (316 in 1999), goals (108 in 1999), goals per game (4.32 in 1999), assists (108 in 2000) and shutouts (16 in 2000).

Individually, Nebraska also reigns supreme, capturing a league-best 39 first-team All-Big 12 picks to Texas A&M's 28.  Recently, NU senior Brittany Timko also joined the Big 12 record books as she notched a conference-record 21 assists in 2005 to topple the previous record of 17, which was set in 2003 by Oklahoma State's Nikki Wojtowicz.

NCAA Tournament Titans
For the Nebraska soccer program, the NCAA tournament isn't a goal, it's a tradition.  The Huskers have been a staple in collegiate women's soccer's biggest competition for the past 10 consecutive seasons, including eight runs into the Sweet 16 and two into the Elite Eight.

NU's success, coupled with the enthusiasm and support of the Lincoln community and Husker soccer fans, have made Nebraska one of the NCAA's favorite postseason tournament sites.  Lincoln has been host to opening-round action on seven occassions from 1996 to 2005.  Even when the Huskers made the move to the Nebraska Soccer Field in 2005, the trend continued as the venue was once again chosen to host the opening round between Nebraska, Creighton, Iowa State and eventual national champion Portland.