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SMC California Athletics

Saint Mary's College Athletics Gaels
Vanessa Gaitan pregame

Women's Soccer

WSOC | Gaels Host Hawai'i, Nevada This Week

Saint Mary's will host Hawai'i and Nevada in Moraga this week fresh off a tournament victory in Vermont last weekend.

MORAGA, Calif. — Saint Mary's (2-2) will play their home opener this Thursday as they host the Hawai'i Rainbow Wahine in Moraga before continuing their home stand against Nevada on Sunday. The Gaels return home after winning the TD Bank Classic in Vermont last weekend in exciting, overtime fashion.

Live streams and stats for both matches can be found on the Gaels' schedule page. Both contests are set for a 3:30 p.m. kickoff time. Tickets for the games can be found by clicking here, calling the Ticket Office at (925) 631-GoTx, or by purchasing them at the entrance to the stadium.

Saint Mary's is riding a two-game winning streak and has turned up the offense during that period. The team unleashed 21 shots against Vermont in their 3-2 win and another 10 against Maine, ultimately leading to five goals. The Gaels have beaten their opponents in the corner kick column this season as well with a 23-18 advantage through four matches. SMC held constant pressure in the Catamounts' half on Friday with 11 corner kicks during the match.

ABOUT HAWAI'I
Hawai'i returns to the field 11 days since their most recent matches as Hurricane Lane caused the team to cancel the Rainbow Wahine Soccer Invitational last week. The team is 1-1 this season and earned an overtime victory in their last contest against Bowling Green. Following their match with the Gaels, Hawai'i will head to Stockton to square up with another WCC-member in Pacific.

Raisa Strom-Okimoto has scored the lone goal of the season for the Rainbow Wahine and leads her team with five shots. Redshirt junior goalkeeper Alexis Mata will look to get the bulk of playing time for a second straight season after leading the Big West in saves last year. Mata already has 10 saves in two starts this season.

Similar to Saint Mary's, Hawai'i has a young core and welcomed 10 freshmen this season while only having two seniors on the roster. The Gaels firmly hold the all-time record between the two teams, 8-2, although Hawai'i snapped SMC's five-game winning streak the last time the teams met in 2016.

ABOUT NEVADA
The Wolfpack currently boast an undefeated record at 3-0-1 and won their last match 2-1 over Southern Utah. UNR has outscored their opponents 5-2 this season and the team's defensive corps has two shutouts under their belt so far.

Leading the charge on offense for Nevada is Peyton Lieb who has scored a goal in all three games she's played this season. Kylie Minamishin is first on the Wolfpack with 10 shots and also has a goal and assist.

Freshman keeper Kendal Stovall has had a bright beginning to her collegiate career, starting all four games for Nevada and recording 17 saves en route to a 0.47 goals-against average and a 0.895 save percentage. UNR has not allowed more than one goal in a match this season.
Saint Mary's is 4-1 all-time against Nevada. The last meeting between the two teams was in 2015 in Moraga where the Gaels emerged victorious 1-0 in overtime.

QUICK FACTS
  • SMC is averaging 9.8 shots per contest.
  • Maleah Milner has made 19 saves in four matches.
  • Jaylen Crim leads the team with 11 shots, five of which have landed on goal.
  • The Gaels have not been carded this year.
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Players Mentioned

Jaylen Crim

#17 Jaylen Crim

F
5' 8"
Junior
Maleah Milner

#1 Maleah Milner

GK
5' 8"
Sophomore

Players Mentioned

Jaylen Crim

#17 Jaylen Crim

5' 8"
Junior
F
Maleah Milner

#1 Maleah Milner

5' 8"
Sophomore
GK