Current Release

11/5/07
For the complete release with current statistics click here (.pdf)

Thunderbirds Enter Summit League Tournament as No. 3 Seed

CEDAR CITY, Utah – Nov. 5 - Southern Utah will enter the Summit League tournament this weekend as the No. 3 seed and face Oakland University in the first round, in what will be more of a home game for the host institution. A win over the Golden Grizzlies will propel the Thunderbirds into the finals to face the winner of Western Illinois and Oral Roberts.

Southern Utah ended the regular season in fourth-place in the league, having been picked to finish in the same position in the preseason poll. Although the Thunderbirds finished just behind South Dakota State, the Thunderbirds qualified for the No. 3 seed with the Jackrabbits not eligible for postseason competition this year.

SUU qualified for the conference tournament for the third consecutive year and tied the school record with seven regular season wins. The Thunderbirds were most effective at home in conference, posting an unblemished record of 2-0-2. Southern Utah’s three wins in conference also equalled a program best set during the 2005 season.

Oakland University collected the win over the T-Birds during the season with a 3-0 shutout and SUU will look for some measure of revenge in the first round. The Golden Grizzlies have drawn all three results in their last three matches with a loss at Indiana, a tie with Michigan and a win over IPFW.

Southern Utah was also on the losing end with Western Illinois in Macomb on Sept. 28 in a 3-0 decision that went to the Westerwinds. WIU has been on a tear recently, collecting three consecutive wins and victories in 11 of its last 12 games.

The Golden Eagles of Oral Roberts and SUU played to a 2-2 draw in the Thunderbirds’ conference home-opener in September. ORU will enter the tournament on a slump, having gone winless over the last three games with a tie followed by two losses.

Last Week

Last Week

THUNDERBIRDS SCORE 2-1 OVERTIME WIN AGAINST NORTH DAKOTA STATE

CEDAR CITY, Utah – Nov. 3 – Southern Utah women’s soccer ran its winning streak to four as Shaley Ipson scored the game-winning goal in overtime to give the Thunderbirds a 2-1 win over the visiting Bison of North Dakota State on Saturday morning. The win improves SUU to 7-5-5 and 3-2-3 and vaulted the Thunderbirds over the Bison in the conference standings as NDSU’s record fell to 11-7-1 and 3-4-1 in the Summit League.

The Thunderbirds were out shot four to one over the first 15 minutes of the game, but SUU’s one shot found the back of the net as Erica Berlin collected an Ipson pass and beat the keeper for the 1-0 lead.

The one-goal advantage remained through the first half as Southern Utah’s defensive back line held the Bison scoreless on nine shots and three corner kick opportunities. SUU tallied four shots and one corner kick over the same stretch.

In the second half, North Dakota State finally broke through and tied the game 1-1 in the 49th minute. NDSU sophomore Lorraine Thompson cracked a shot at the top of the box that found its way into the net for her fifth goal of the year.

The deadlock continued through the end of regulation, but it was Ipson’s team-leading fourth goal of the season that sealed the win for the Thunderbirds in the first overtime period.

Ipson collected the ball in the 97th minute and put it into the right side of the goal as the keeper came wide of the box. The goal tied Ipson for first all-time in goals scored in a career at SUU with 13, tying senior forward Brooklyn Phillips.

Phillips was honored with the five other seniors (Cassidy Berlin, Holly Senter, Courtney Milligan, Catherine Johnson and Ashley Westphal) prior to the game in conjunction with Senior Day activities.

SOUTHERN UTAH CLINCHES TOURNAMENT BERTH WITH 4-1 WIN OVER IUPUI

CEDAR CITY, Utah – Nov. 1 – Southern Utah women’s soccer clinched a spot in the Summit League tournament next weekend with a 4-1 victory over the IUPUI Jaguars on Thursday afternoon. A win by either side would have clinched a berth in the postseason and the Thunderbirds capitalized as they have in each of the past two seasons.

The Thunderbirds started the game quickly as junior Shaley Ipson scored her first of two goals on the day during the first two minutes of the game. Senior Ashley Westphal placed a cross to Ipson’s feet and the goal found its way to the back of the net.

Ipson proved to be in the right place at the right time again in the 30th minute striking a cross from Cassidy Berlin for the 2-0 advantage.

The goals continued to come for the ‘Birds as Allison Goettsche crossed a ball into the box, Berlin continued the passing to Jessica Heninger and the freshman tucked the ball away for her second goal of the year.

The 3-0 advantage for the Thunderbirds held through the half and Southern Utah looked to be on its way to a shutout, but IUPUI’s Katrina McCrory made the most of a penalty kick opportunity to chip into the SUU lead.

McCrory was pulled down in the box in the 73rd minute and bee-lined a shot to the top right corner of the goal, trimming Southern Utah’s lead to 3-1.

However, SUU once again gained the three-goal when Kristen Fronk headed the ball into the goal off Berlin’s corner kick service with 16 seconds remaining on the clock.

Berlin’s three assists set a new all-time single-game mark for the Thunderbirds and Ipson became the second player of the team this year to record a two-goal game. Ipson and Berlin also moved closer to the top of the SUU’s all-time career marks in both categories, standing in second place in goals and assists, respectively.

The Coach

•SUU head coach Brian Stock: Head coach Brian Stock has been with Southern Utah since the team’s inception in 2001. Stock will enter his seventh season as the head coach, riding back-to-back conference tournament appearances.

Under Stock’s tutelage, Southern Utah has exploded offensively over the last two years, setting record numbers in 2005 and 2006. Last year, the Thunderbirds posted school records in goals (26), assists (20) and points (72).

Southern Utah has also qualified for the post season during the last two years and were selected fourth in this year’s Summit League pre-season coaches’ poll. The fourth-place nod is the highest ever for the Thunderbirds.

Prior to Southern Utah, Stock was an assistant coach at Akron University, his alma mater, from 1996-98. During his time with the Zips, Akron captured the Mid-American Conference title in 1997.

In addition to his coaching duties with Southern Utah, Stock is the founder and director of the Thunderbird Soccer Schools and a coaching director for Utah RushSoccer Club.

Coach Stock’s Take

“We’re excited for the new season to start and we’ll be ready. Playing Oakland on their home field will be a tough task, but anybody can win on any given day, especially in the tournament. We feel that our team is really coming together. We’re healthy, we’re fit and we’re finding our rhythm.”

Quick Kicks
Week 12
•Record Breaking: Southern Utah’s Shaley Ipson and Cassidy Berlin set single-game marks over the weekend with Ipson also reaching a career milestone. Berlin recorded three assists against IUPUI to set a new single-game record for the Thunderbirds. Ipson’s two goals against the Jaguars tied a single-game mark and her game-winner against North Dakota State tied the junior for first all-time in goals scored at SUU.

•Shooting the Lights Out: As expected, the Thunderbirds shattered the all-time shot mark during a season with 320, besting the old record of 295 set in 2005.

Week 11
•Shooting Stars: Southern Utah is only four shots shy of breaking the all-time mark in school history. SUU has tallied 291 shots to this point in the season and will look to break the mark of 295 over the next two games.

•11th Heaven: SUU sophomore Makell Hansen became the 11th Thunderbird to score a goal this season when she headed the winning goal in Southern Utah’s 1-0 victory over Utah Valley State on Saturday afternoon.

Week 10
•Back on Top by Finesse or Force: Southern Utah is once again leading the Summit League in shots (272) and fouls (209).

•Payback is Sweet: The Thunderbirds will have the chance to avenge a tie to the Wolverines earlier in the year when SUU host UVSC on Saturday, Oct. 27. Utah Valley remains unbeaten against Southern Utah with a series mark of 3-0-1.

Week 9
•Record Breaking: Southern Utah tallied two team records in a 5-0 victory over Westminster. The five goals in one game is the most in school history in addition to the 14 points on five goals and four assists.

•First Time’s the Charm: SUU freshman Erin Marble scored the first and second goal of her career against Westminster. The two-goal effort tied a single game mark and left the forward tied for first on the team with four points on the season.

Week 8
•Into the Unknown: Southern Utah will face to first-time opponents this week in Westminster College and Embry-Riddle Aeronautical. Both are first-year programs.

•King (Queen) of the Mountain: SUU senior Brooklyn Phillips added to her legacy with a goal against Centenary. In all the forward has now accumulated 13 goals and 35 points, both career records for the T-Birds.

Week 7
•Thunderbird Support: Southern Utah is second in the league in home attendance with an average of almost 300 fans per game at the Thunderbird Soccer Field.

•Streaking: SUU has a three-game winning streak against the Ladies of Centenary, dating back to 2004. On the flip side, the Thunderbirds have only one win in six tries against the Bengals of Idaho State.

•Poked in Every Eye: Following the match with Idaho State, Southern Utah will have played every division I institution in the state of Idaho this year.

Week 6
•Movin’ on Up: Senior forward Catherine Johnson moved up to No. 2 all-time in goals at points at SUU with a first-half goal against Oral Roberts. Johnson now has ten career goals and 24 career points.

•Giving and Taking Shots: SUU moved into first-place in the conference in shots with 140 this season for a total of 20 per game. The Thunderbirds also have committed the most fouls in the league with 14.71 per game for a total of 103.

Week 5
•Shooting Stars: Southern Utah is collecting its far share of shots with 82 over the first five games of the season. The mark is good for third in the conference and is 16 more than their opponents at this point in the season.

•Still Perfect: SUU retained its unblemished record against the South Dakota State Jackrabbits with a 1-1 tie over the weekend. In all, the Thunderbirds at 1-0-1 against SDSU with many more meetings to come with the new Summit League member

Week 4
•Historic Loss: Southern Utah suffered its worse loss in the history of the program when the Thunderbirds fell 9-0 to the Boise State Broncos on Sept. 9.

•Once in a Blue Moon: SUU has been shutout in back-to-back games for the first time since 2004. The Thunderbirds have dropped games to Idaho (2-0) and Boise State (9-0) over the past two matches.

Week 3
•In the Eye of the Potato: Southern Utah will have played every Division I institution from the state of Idaho, at least once, following its meeting with the Idaho Vandals on Friday.

•Sharing Means Caring: SUU senior Ashley Westphal moved into third all-time in career assists with her assist against Utah Valley last weekend. Westphal is tied with Sarah Silltoe on the list with six career assists

Week 2
•Slow Starts: The Thunderbirds are 0-5-1 in season openers, including 0-4-1 in road openers, and will look to snap that streak in the road opener at Utah Valley.

•Movin’ on Up: Senior goalkeeper Holly (Davis) Senter will be climbing up the conference record charts this year as she currently ranks eighth in minutes played (3,420:53), 11th in goals against average (1.51), 15th in saves (184) and eighth in shutouts (8.5).

Week 1
•King of the Mountain: Seniors Brooklyn Phillips and Holly Senter enter the 2007 season leading several categories in the SUU record books. Phillips is first in goals (12), assists (nine) and points (33). Senter leads the Thunderbirds in GAA (1.42), wins (15) and shutouts (8.5).

•In the Beginning: Head coach Brian Stock will enter his seventh season at the helm of the women’s soccer team. Stock has been the head coach at Southern Utah since the team’s inception in 2001.

•Points A-Plenty: Southern Utah returns its top five point scorers from 2006, including Brooklyn Phillips (8 G, 4 A, 20 pts), Shaley Ipson (5G, 1A, 11 pts), Catherine Johnson (4G, 3A, 11 pts), Erica Berlin (3G, 1A, 7 pts) and Cassidy Berlin (1G, 3A, 5 pts).