Eagles Hit the Road for Two Cross-Divisional Contests

YPSILANTI, Mich. (EMUEagles.com) -- Following the 2-0-0 start to defending the Mid-American Conference regular season crown, the Eastern Michigan University soccer team will hit the road once again for a pair of conference games. First, EMU (6-2-1, 2-0-0 MAC) heads to the University of Akron to face the Zips (4-5-1, 0-2-0 MAC), Oct. 3, in a Friday night matchup. The contest is set to begin at 7 p.m. under the lights of Cub Cadet Field. To end the weekend, Eastern will square off against the Bulls of the University at Buffalo (6-2-1, 2-0-0 MAC), Oct. 5, at noon.
   The EMU attack is led by senior forward Angela Vultaggio. The reigning MAC Offensvie Player of the Year has recorded team highs in goals (5) and points (11) with both numbers ranking second in conference leaders. Fellow senior Bianca Rossi follows closely behind Vultaggio with three goals and a pair of assists to total eight points. Meanwhile, Madison Hirsch and Chelsie Oddan pace the Green and White in assists with three apiece. In goal for Eastern, junior keeper Megan McCabe holds down the defensive side of the pitch. Through the first nine games of the season, McCabe has posted four shut outs to go along with a 0.72 goals against average. She has made 41 saves for a .872 save percentage.

SWEET REVENGE: The Eagles began MAC play against the two teams that defeated them during last year's regular season championship run. However, EMU tasted revenge with both teams, beating Miami 2-0 on the road, Sept. 26, before coming from behind to take down Ball State, 2-1, in overtime, Sept. 28, at Scicluna Field.
   Starting the weekend off against the defending MAC East champs, the Eagles used a pair of goals in the final minute of both halves, while shutting out the RedHawks on the other side of the field, to pick up a win. Miami, which entered the game with an RPI of 21st in the nation, was held scoreless for the first time in 2014. Ellie Tillar scored the game's first goal right at the end of the first half, using a corner kick from Chelsie Oddan and a pass from Emily Dzik to find the back of the net. Angela Vultaggio scored her fifth goal of the season on a counter attack with 16 seconds to go as she and Bianca Rossi took advantage of a two-on-one opportunity. In goal, Megan McCabe tied her season high by making nine saves for her fourth shutout of the year.
   The first home game in 35 days proved to be a memorable one as Eastern rallied from one goal down to beat Ball State at Scicluna Field, 2-1. Rossi scored both goals for the Eagles, including the game-winner just four minutes into overtime to cap off a perfect opening MAC weekend for the Green and White. McCabe was fantastic between the posts, making save after save to keep the Eagles in the match. The Arlington Heights, Ill. native completed a strong weekend with seven saves after seeing 23 shots from 11 different Cardinals.

CRACKING THE NSCAA GREAT LAKES REGION POLL: Following a perfect 2-0 opening MAC weekend, the EMU soccer team came in at No. 8 in the NSCAA/Continental Tire NCAA Division I Great Lakes Region rankings for the period ending, Sept. 30. Eastern was one-of-two MAC schools in the rankings with rival Western Michigan University at No. 9. Illinois State University cracked the poll at No. 10, and the remaining seven teams were Big Ten Conference institutions. Penn State University topped the rankings, while the University of Michigan and Michigan State University were No. 5 and No. 7, respectively.

CENTURY MARKS: The win over Ball State, Sept. 28, was not only a major victory in Eastern's hopes of defending its MAC regular season title, but it was also a milestone win. The overtime victory was the program's 100th win at Scicluna Field, improving its record to 100-44-24 over the team's 20-year history. The century mark was also reached by EMU Head Coach Scott Hall, who won his 100th MAC game at the helm of the EMU soccer, becoming just the second coach in conference history to accomplish the feat.

MEGAN MCCABE NAMED MAC SCHOLAR ATHLETE OF THE WEEK: After leading the Eastern Michigan University soccer team to a pair of victories to start the Mid-American Conference season, junior Megan McCabe has been named MAC Female Scholar Athlete of the Week, the conference announced for the period ending Sept. 29. McCabe earns the award for the second time, improving her weekly conference accolade total to six for her career.
   McCabe was a primary factor in the Eagles beginning their MAC regular season title defense with a pair of victories last weekend. The junior made 16 saves over 184 total minutes as EMU defeated Miami 2-0 on the road, Sept. 26, before taking down Ball State 2-1 in overtime, Sept. 28. Against the RedHawks, McCabe tied her season high by making nine saves for her fourth shutout of the season. McCabe also became the only goalkeeper to keep Miami off the scoreboard for an entire game in 2014. In Sunday's overtime win versus the Cardinals, McCabe was fantastic between the posts, making save after save to keep the Eagles in the match. The Arlington Heights, Ill. native completed a strong weekend with seven saves against Ball State. McCabe saw 23 shots from 11 different Cardinals, but only allowed a single goal early in the first half as she constantly sacrificed her body to prevent the ball from finding the back of the net.
   McCabe, an exercise science major with a 3.58 GPA, was named MAC Scholar Athlete of the week for the first time in her career, Oct. 27, 2013, as the Eagles zeroed in on their conference regular season title. She also earned MAC Defensive Player of the Week honors three times as a junior, while sharing the honor once during her sophomore season.

ATTENTION ON AKRON: The Zips, who host the Eagles on Friday night under the lights, are looking for their first MAC victory of the season. Akron allowed three goals in both of the losses to Ohio and Kent State last weekend as the squad saw its four-match unbeaten streak come to an end. The scoring wealth is shared throughout the lineup as four Zips have recorded two goals apiece to tie for the team high. Freshman Loreana Lonigro has done a great job of finding the UA scorers, posting four assists. In between the posts, Akron uses two different keepers. Junior Klaire Adee has a 3-3-1 record with 33 saves in eight games. However, senior Alex Luevano-Harden holds the better goals against average, 1.39, and higher save percentage, .789, of the two through her five games of playing time.
   EMU leads the all-time series between the cross-divisional rivals, 9-2-2. In last season's affair at Scicluna Field, the Eagles soared to a 4-1 victory on Senior Day, Oct. 27, 2013. Angela Vultaggio continued her strong season with a pair of goals to go along with an assist, scoring in both halves. Cara Cutaia also added a goal and an assist in her final regular season match on the home turf.

BUFFALO SCOUTING REPORT: Buffalo enters the weekend all alone atop the MAC East division as the only team on that side of the conference to start 2-0-0. The Bulls (6-2-1, 2-0-0 MAC) shut out both Kent State and Ohio last weekend, needing double overtime to top the Bobcats. UB has kept opponents off the scoreboard in all six of its wins this season, while allowing a combined eight goals in two defeats. In eight appearances, freshman goalkeeper Laura Dougall leads the conference in shutouts (6), while ranking second in save percentage (.921) and goals against average (0.36). On the offensive side of the field, senior Katie Roberts leads the Bulls with four goals. Her goals scored as well as her 10 points on the season rank third in the MAC.
   Eastern holds a 10-4-5 advantage over Buffalo in the history between the two women's soccer programs. The Green and White have had the Bulls' number as of late, going 4-0-3 over the past seven seasons. The last time the Eagles fell to UB was Sept. 29, 2006, as the hometown Bulls escaped with a 3-2 decision. In the 2013 meeting, the two squads played to a 1-1 draw in Ypsilanti. Angela Vultaggio scored the lone goal for the Green and White on an assist from senior Stephanie Clarke. In goal for the Eagles, Megan McCabe made five saves on the afternoon.

STATISTICAL LEADERS: Through the first nine games of the 2014 season, multiple Eagles find themselves near the top in conference and national rankings. Angela Vultaggio is second in the conference in goals (10) and points (11), while leading the MAC with 1.22 points per game. Fellow senior forward Bianca Rossi is also at the top of both categories as she is fifth with three goals and sixth with eight points. Recording three assists each in 2014, Madison Hirsch and Chelsie Oddan crack the top five in the conference's category, sitting in a tie for fourth. As a team, EMU leads the MAC in assists, while ranking in 50th nationally. In goal, Megan McCabe's four shutouts are just two behind conference leader Laura Dougall of Buffalo. To go along with her shutouts, the Arlington Heights, Ill. native boasts a save percentage of .872 for the 23rd-best mark in the nation. Allowing an average of just .723 goals per game, McCabe ranks fourth in the MAC as well as 54th nationally.

ROSSI LIKES #MACTION: Mid-American Conference games seem to bring the best out of Bianca Rossi. Throughout her four-year career, the senior forward has recorded 14 of her 21 goals in MAC contests. As a freshman, she tied for a team-high four goals against conference oppenents before adding five more as a sophomore. During her junior season, Rossi recorded three goals and found scoring opportunities for her teammates with an additional four assists. In her final season donning the Green and White, Rossi has gotten off on the right foot to begin MAC play. The Mississauga, Ontario native tallied five points over the weekend to help the EMU get off to a perfect start in its quest to defend the MAC regular season crown. Rossi recorded an assist in the 2-0 win over Miami, Sept. 26, before scoring both goals in the Eagles' 2-1 overtime victory against Ball State, Sept. 28. In the victory versus the Cardinals, Rossi's scoring performance was the second multi-goal game of her career as she also scored twice against Oakland during the 2012 season.

FINDING THE NET FIRST: Scoring first can be an important aspect of any game when it comes to momentum, confidence and strategy. In 2013, Head Coach Scott Hall's squad was extremely successful when posting the first number on the scoreboard, managing games efficiently when they are the first to find the net and holding a record of 9-1-1 in those contests. This year is nothing different as the Eagles have scored first in seven-of-nine games. compiling a 5-1-1 mark in those contests. EMU also has one come-from-behind win to its credit. Despite Ball State scoring in the seventh minute of the MAC West battle, Sept. 28, the Green and White scored late in the first half as well as early in overtime to complete the comeback victory.

BACK TO YPSILANTI: Following a stretch in which EMU will have played eight-of-nine games away from home, the Eagles return to Ypsilanti to begin a four-game homestand. During the first weekend of back-to-back weekends at Scicluna Field, Eastern host MAC West rivals Toledo and Central Michigan. The Eagles and Rockets will square off Friday, Oct. 10 at 4 p.m., while the two in-state foes do battle in a Sunday afternoon matchup, Oct. 12, with a first touch set for 1 p.m.

Next Event

Players Mentioned

Stephanie Clarke

Cara Cutaia

Emily Dzik

Madison Hirsch

Megan McCabe

Chelsie Oddan

Bianca Rossi

Ellie Tillar

Angela Vultaggio

Eastern Michigan Athletics