Sooners Head to Morgantown

Oklahoma

¹² West Virginia

Saturday, Oct. 2 / 11 a.m. CT / Morgantown, W. Va.

NORMAN — The University of Oklahoma soccer team (4-7-1) continues Big 12 conference play Saturday as the Sooners head to Morgantown, W. Va., for a matchup with the No. 12 West Virginia Mountaineers. The game is set for a 11 a.m. CT start time. Due to weather issues delaying OU's arrival, the game was rescheduled from its originally-scheduled gametime of Friday at 6 p.m. CT. The match will no longer be broadcast on Big 12 NOW on ESPN+ but live stats will be available via WVUSports.com.

STORYLINES

LAST TIME OUT

The Sooners stormed back from a 3-0 deficit against Texas to tie the match in the 84th minute courtesy of two goals from senior Megan Reilly (56', 69') and an own goal from Texas. The Longhorns edged the Sooners, 4-3, on a goal in the 88^th minute. It marked Reilly's first career brace and the first multi-goal game for any Sooner this season.

MAINTAINING MOMENTUM

The Sooners have shown improvement in the 2021 campaign and sit at 4-7-1 heading to Morgantown for a tough road test. The team has tallied 18 goals, compared to seven in 2020. In addition, the team has threatened offensively, averaging 13.8 shots per game, over five more than last season. Oklahoma's 6.7 shots on goal per game rank sixth in the Big 12. The Sooners are efficient in their attempts on net, putting 45 percent of their shots on frame. Senior Jazzy Richards paces the team with four goals while fellow senior Bri Amos has found the back of the net three times and three other Sooners have scored twice. Senior keeper Nikki Panas has been a force in goal for the Sooners in 2021, making 30 saves in 907 minutes played.

QUOTABLE: COACH CARR ON TRIP TO WVU

"I'm excited for our opportunity. I have a lot of respect for the West Virginia program and (head coach) Nikki Izzo-Brown with the job she's done there over a number of years. We know it won't be an easy game, but I think we're starting to come into our own. You know, last week we had a really good performance even though we didn't get the result we wanted against Texas, but we're in a good place and had a really good week of training. Now we're starting to focus in on the game plan. You get better by playing these opponents and we're just excited to get out there and do our best to improve upon our performance last weekend."

KNOW YOUR FOE

West Virginia enters Friday's match at 7-2-1 overall and 1-0 in conference play. The 12^th-ranked Mountaineers are averaging 2.3 goals per match and 14.5 shots per game. The team is led by redshirt senior forward Lauren Segalla with her five goals on the year, followed closely by junior Julianne Vallerand's four goals and three assists. In goal, junior Kayza Massey has started every game for the Mountaineers (856 minutes played) and made 18 saves and allowed just six goals.

CARR WELCOMES 13 FRESHMEN

Carr will look to his first full recruiting class of 13 freshmen to make an impact on and off the field this season. The 13 signees come to Norman from all over the world, with seven domestic players and six internationals.

"We have high expectations for OU soccer and the 2021 class will be expected to impact the program right away and provide immediate competition," Carr said on his freshman class. "Here at OU, we love and embrace competition as we know this will only bring out the best in all of us. By adding this class to our core group of returners, the future is bright for soccer here at OU."

Seven of the 13 freshmen have played for the Sooners, with Weber, Ella Pappas and Sheridan Michel all tallying points for OU. Pappas scored the game-winning golden goal in double overtime to beat Nebraska with an assist going to Michel.

INTERNATIONAL FLAIR

OU soccer is quickly making a name for itself as a haven for international prospects and coaches to cement their places at the top of college soccer in America. All three members of the Sooner coaching staff are from other nations, with Carr coming from England, Gough from Wales and Bard-Martel from Canada. But the international flair in Norman reaches far beyond the touchline.

A total of seven student-athletes have elected to call Norman home, including six first-year students. Freshman forward Leo Weber was named one of Top Drawer Soccer's top international players to watch this season, while Canadian prospects Sheridan Michel, Keera Melenhorst and Nikki Panas spent time in the Canadian youth national team program. Muriel Kroflin joins Carr's 2021 class from Langenargen, Germany, where she spent her youth leading SC Freiburg to Bundesliga titles and playing on the German youth national squad. Norweigan players Une Hebnes Georgsen and Andrine Westlie round out OU's international group, with Georgsen starting in net for the Norweigan youth national team at the U17 UEFA women's qualifiers, while Westlie led Bærum SK and the league in scoring after making her debut at 14.

DIFFERENCE-MAKING TRANSFERS

Carr didn't just retool his roster with a large freshman class but also utilized the transfer portal to bring three ACC student-athletes to Norman.

Makala Thomas spent three seasons at Florida State, helping the Seminoles to the 2018 national championship and playing in 29 games in her time at FSU. Alexis Strickland joins the Sooners from perennial powerhouse North Carolina, where she played in 27 games for the Tar Heels as a freshman before not appearing last season. The final transfer in 2021 is Molly Feighan, who played 16 games last season at Virginia Tech and started all 19 games as a junior in 2019. All three players can play any position in the attacking third for Carr's side.

They join Erika Middleton (Miami), Sakky Yoshida (Oregon), Bri Amos (Kansas) and Olivia Odle (Virginia Tech) as transfers into the OU program.

LED BY THE SENIORS

Despite such a large group of newcomers, the Sooners' leadership comes in the form of their 12 seniors who have combined for nearly 25,000 minutes played at the Division I level. Lauren Haivala, Jazzy Richards and Erika Middleton are all familiar names for Sooner fans, playing in over 100 matches for the Crimson & Cream.

UP NEXT

The Sooners return to action Thursday, Oct. 7 against another top-15 foe as the team travels to Fort Worth to take on No. 10 TCU at 7 p.m. CT. The game can be seen via subscription on Big 12 NOW on ESPN+.

For updates and more information on Oklahoma Soccer, follow the Sooners on Twitter and Instagram (@OU_WSoccer) and like Oklahoma Soccer on Facebook.