Homestand Continues Against FAU And UConn
FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – Arkansas Soccer’s three-match homestand continues this weekend as it will hope to stay undefeated at home when it takes on Florida Atlantic on Friday and UConn on Sunday at Razorback Field. Match times are scheduled for 7 p.m. and 1 p.m., respectively, and both will be broadcast on SEC Network+.
Match Six Info
Opponent: Florida Atlantic Owls (2-4-0)
Date: Friday, Sept. 7
First Kick: 7 p.m.
Live Stats: ArkansasRazorbacks.com
TV: SEC Network+
Match Seven Info
Opponent: UConn Huskies (1-5-0)
Date: Sunday, Sept. 9
First Kick: 1 p.m.
Live Stats: ArkansasRazorbacks.com
TV: SEC Network+
Arkansas (3-1-1) is coming off another successful weekend where it defeated Baylor, 3-2, in front of 2,529 fans at Razorback Field. It was the third-largest crowd in Razorback Field history and the fifth-straight year the Razorbacks have hosted at least one top-five crowd.
Junior Kayla McKeon scored her second goal and second game winner of the year in the 58th minute to help defeat the Bears in what ended up being a shootout. McKeon was awarded the SEC Offensive Player of the Year earlier this week for her performance and is the second Razorback (Carly Hoke) to earn a conference weekly award this year.
McKeon, along with fellow junior Marissa Kinsey, lead all Razorbacks into week four with two goals on the year. Sophomore Taylor Malham is also tied for the team lead in points (4) as he has tallied at least one point in three of the five matches this season.
Defensively, the Razorbacks continue to boast one of the best back lines in the SEC as it has limited opponents to a .113 shot percentage and only six goals conceded. Before last Friday’s win over Baylor, Arkansas had won seven-consecutive matches via shutout dating back to last season.
In goal, the Razorbacks will have sophomore Rachel Harris, who has racked up 24 saves in 472 minutes and a 3-1-1 record. In all four of Arkansas’ results (wins or ties), Harris is averaging 4.5 saves per game.
Tickets for this weekend’s matches are available via the Razorback Ticket Office starting at $5 with kids 17 or younger getting in free. Fans can also buy season tickets for $25 and will receive a free 2018 Razorback Soccer scarf with their purchase.
Razorback Field will also be hosting two matches with fellow SEC member Ole Miss taking on UConn and Florida Atlantic. The Rebels will face the Huskies on Friday at 4 p.m. and the Owls on Sunday at 10:30 a.m. Admission is free to those matches, but will not be broadcast online in any form.
Quick Kicks
>> Arkansas continues its three-match homestand this weekend with matches against Florida Atlantic and UConn on Friday and Sunday, respectively. The Razorbacks and Owls have only faced off once, a 1-1 draw in 2009. Last year’s match against the Huskies in Storrs was the first meeting between the two programs.
>> The Razorbacks defeated Baylor in their only match last week, 3-2, with the help of two first half goals from Abbi Neece and Maddie Ricketts, followed by a second-half goal from Kayla McKeon.
>> With scores from Neece and Ricketts, seven different Razorbacks have scored at least one time over five matches. Going into Friday, 11 different Arkansas players have tallied at least one point.
>> In its last seven matches against top-10 opponents going back to 2016, Arkansas has won or tied four times. Arkansas’ tie against West Virginia in Week 1 was its second-straight result over a top-10 team.
>> Arkansas has won 25 of 41 (.610) home matches dating back to 2014. The most recent coming in a 3-2 victory against Baylor last Friday.
>> Seven of Arkansas’ last eight wins have come in the form of a shutout going back to Oct. 5, 2017. Last week’s 3-2 win over Baylor broke a streak of seven-straight wins via shutout.
>> Juniors Marissa Kinsey and Kayla McKeon lead the Razorbacks with two goals each through the season’s first five matches. Kinsey scored both of her goals in a 2-0 win over Omaha, while McKeon scored her second game winner of the year last week against Baylor.
>> After having the third largest crowd (2,529) in Razorback Field history last week in the win against Baylor, Arkansas is third in the conference in average attendance (1,598) with two less home games than the top two teams.
>> After its win over Baylor last week, Arkansas is now 7-3-1 against Power 5 schools at home since 2012.
>> Since Colby Hale became the head coach, Arkansas has won nine matches against Power 5 opponents overall and the Razorbacks have averaged two goals per match while holding their opponents to one per match.
>> Junior Kayla McKeon earned SEC Offensive Player of the Week after her performance against Baylor last Friday. She played a total 81 minutes and attempted a team high of five shots with the game-winning goal.
>> McKeon has 15 goals in her career, including six game winners, which are the most of any active Razorback, she has 37 career points to go along with seven career assists.
>> McKeon ranks 15th nationally in game-winning goals with two. One coming in the win against Baylor last Friday and another in the season-opener against Duquesne (Aug. 17, 2018).
>> Sophomore Rachel Harris is second in the conference with 24 saves and an average of 4.80 a match. Harris had seven saves last week to help the Razorbacks edge out the win against Baylor.
For more information on Razorback Soccer, follow @RazorbackSoccer on Twitter.
