NEWARK, NJ—The end of the ASUN Conference Women's Soccer regular season is just a few days away as NJIT will host North Alabama on Sunday at 1pm on the campus of Kean University East Campus Facility. Sunday will be Senior Day for NJIT's graduating seniors, which will begin at 12:45pm.
Highlander Sports Network
The match can be seen live on the Highlander Sports Network.
A simple way to find Highlanders Sports Network is on NJIT's official athletics website, http://www.njithighlanders.com. Near the middle of the home page, click Upcoming Events for a list of scheduled NJIT contests. After finding the event, click the camera icon to the left next to the live stats icon in the red box. That brings you to the Highlander Sports Network portal where you can access the desired program.
ASUN Conference Tournament
NJIT clinched it's first-ever ASUN Championship berth thanks to a pair of victories by Lipscomb and North Alabama last Friday. NJIT can secure a first-round bye if the Highlanders are able to defeat first-time opponent North Alabama.
The 2018 ASUN Women's Soccer Tournament is played at campus sites. Six teams qualify, with the higher-seeded team hosting. When the field is reduced to four, those teams all play at the home field of the highest-seeded team remaining in the competition, with the champion advancing to the 2018 NCAA Women's College Cup.
The tournament begins on October 26 with the semifinals and finals scheduled for October 28 and November 3.
United Soccer Coaches South Region Ranking
The historic NJIT women's soccer season continues as the Highlanders receive the programs first-ever, ranking (No. 10) in the latest United Soccer Coaches South Region.
Other teams represented in the South Region Poll include: South Florida, Central Florida, North Texas, Memphis, Southern Methodist, East Carolina, Florida Gulf Coast, Kennesaw State and Lipscomb from the ASUN Conference.
Scouting the Highlanders
NJIT (11-4-1) is coming off a 2-1 victory over Kennesaw State (ranked No. 8 in the South Poll), heading into the final weekend of the regular season with a potential first-round bye into the 2018 ASUN Conference Women's Soccer Championship.
The Highlanders have clinched the programs first-ever spot in the ASUN Conference Tournament, since joining the league in 2015-16, and sit atop the women's soccer standings.
The program-record 11 wins included wins over both Florida Gulf Coast and Kennesaw State.
Freshman Fiona Wright reigning ASUN Conference Player of the Week scored a pair of goals in her performance against Kennesaw State.
Wright now has 11 goals on the season, more than any first-year player for the Highlanders and just one off the overall mark in program history as a Division I team. She ranks second among D-I freshman scorers, sitting behind Emma Van der Vorst of George Mason.
Her 11 career goals rank one-shy the NJIT Division I record (12) held by Kori Washington (2007-10) and two-shy the NJIT all-time single-season record (13) held by Cathy Wasko '01.
The Ajax, Ontario, Canada native ranks second in the league in total goals (11), third in points (22) and fifth in total shots (49).
Graduate student Amelia Sapirman recorded the NJIT all-time record for career wins as a goalkeeper with 18, in the Highlanders 2-1 win over Kennesaw State.
Sapirman ranks fourth in saves (80), save percentage (.816) and goals against average (1.11) and ranks in the top five in goals against (18).
Scouting North Alabama
North Alabama, new to the ASUN Conference, enters Sunday's contest with a 9-8 overall mark, 3-4 in the league, most recently falling, 2-0, to Lipscomb on Thursday night.
The Lady Bisons clinched at least a share of the regular season title for the second-straight season.
Shelby Wall ranks in the top five of goals (7) and assists (9) in the ASUN this year, joining Evdokia Popadinova of FGCU. Wall ranks fifth in total goals and paces the league with nine assists.
Lions keeper Shelby Horton sits fourth in goals against (18), tied with NJIT's Sapirman and fifth in goals against average (1.21) just below Sapirman.
ASUN Conference Scenarios (as of 10/19/18)
NJIT has the following scenario(s) in which we can clinch a first-round bye this weekend and hosting rights for the ASUN Championship First Round and Semifinals:
1) WIN + Kennesaw State loss
OR
2) WIN + Kennesaw State draw
OR
3) Draw/loss + Kennesaw State loss/draw
OR
4) WIN + Kennesaw State win over Lipscomb by 8+ goals
Kennesaw State vs. Lipscomb - October 21 - 6pm (at Kennesaw State)
If KSU, Lipscomb and NJIT end in a three-way tie with 18 points, goal differential will be used as the tiebreaker in those three contests.
If KSU beats Lipscomb by 1-2 goals, Lipscomb will be the one seed, KSU the two and NJIT third.
If KSU wins over Lipscomb by 3-7 goals, then the seeding will be 1) KSU, 2) Lipscomb and 3) NJIT.
If KSU wins by 8+ goals, the seeds will be 1)KSU 2)NJIT 3) Lipscomb
