TicketsCINCINNATI — With post-season hopes on the line, the University of Cincinnati women's soccer team (3-7-6) heads to Morgantown W. Va., for its regular season finale against West Virginia (7-7-3) on Monday inside Dick Dlesk Soccer Stadium.
The match will kick off at 7 p.m. ET and will be streamed on ESPN+/Big 12 Now. A subscription to the streaming service is required to watch the game. Fans can also follow along with the live stats found here.
// CONFERENCE COMPETITION COMMENCES
The Bearcats are in their inaugural season in the Big 12 since the university joined the conference on July 1. Cincinnati is 2-3-4 in conference play and currently is 10th in the standings with three matches remaining. The top 10 teams in the conference will qualify for the 2023 Sprouts Farmers Market Big 12 Soccer Championship, held in Round Rock, Texas. The tournament begins on Oct. 28.
// WIN AND WE'RE IN
Cincinnati enters the match 10th in the conference, holding the final spot for the Big 12 tournament.
Bearcats can claim their tournament bid with a…
Scenario 1: WIN over West Virginia.
Scenario 2: TIE and an Iowa State loss or draw.
Scenario 3: LOSS and BOTH Iowa State and Houston lose.
With every team in the conference to play its final game on Monday, UC controls its destiny and can claim its spot in the tournament with a win. Iowa State is currently one point behind UC and can leapfrog the Bearcats with a win over Texas Tech and a Cincinnati loss. The Bearcats hold the tiebreaker over the Cyclones as UC won the head-to-head match-up.
Houston is three points behind Cincinnati and would be tied for the 10th and final spot with a win over Baylor and a UC loss. Houston would hold the tiebreaker over Cincinnati as they would have more wins against common conference opponents.
If all three schools lose their final match, Cincinnati would remain the final team in the tournament. The Bearcats can finish as high as seventh with a win on Monday.
// LAST TIME OUT
The Bearcats tied Baylor 2-2, then fell to UCF, 1-0, on Senior Day last week. Against Baylor, both Graduate Student Ashley Barron and sophomore Sarah Kate Rath scored their first goals for the season in Cincinnati's second multi-goal game of the season.
// THE MATCHUP
The former Big East conference opponents will clash for the first time in 13 years. Monday's match will be the third-ever meeting between the two schools. West Virginia won both previous matches, with the last being a 4-0 victory over Cincinnati inside Gettler Stadium in 2010. The last time the match was played in Morgantown, UC fell 2-0 in 2007.
Fun Fact: Cincinnati holds a record of 3-0-0 in Monday night matches since 2009. The Bearcats last time played on a Monday was in 2016 where they defeated Boston University 2-1 on the road.
// SCOUTING THE COMPETITION
Last time out, West Virginia (5-3-1) defeated Kansas, 1-0, to earn its fourth straight conference victory. Cincinnati native Taylor White leads the Mountaineers in goals with nine, which is also tied for fifth in the Big 12.
West Virginia is led by head coach Nikki Izzo-Brown, who is in her 28th season at the helm of the Mountaineers. In her 29 years of coaching, she holds a career record of 403-144-71 and is 390-139-71 at WVU.
// TEAM LEADERS
Sophomore midfielder Megan Smith and senior forward Ellie Flower are tied for the team lead in goals with three apiece. Junior Fran Stables has been the team's primary playmaker this season, as she leads the team in Assist with three.
// CAREER HISTORY TO WATCH
Graduate student Ashley Barron moved to third all-time in non-GK minutes played, passing former bearcat Kim Sykes with 6,841 after playing the full time against UCF. She also recorded her 78th career start in her 79th career cap against UCF, the 10th most in program history. She has started 74 straight matches, dating back to 2019.
Senior goalkeeper Anna Rexford continues to climb the UC all-time career top-10 list in three different categories. She claimed her third clean sheet of the season against Oklahoma State and her 15th career shutout, the seventh-most in program history.
The Wilmore Ky., native also ranks sixth in career wins (22) and 10th in career saves (183).
// A NEW FACE TAKES CENTER STAGE
True freshman Emma Gioffre has made quite the impact for the Bearcats this season. She has appeared in all 16 games this season, starting in 14. She became the first true freshman to start in double-digit matches since Ashley Barron started 18 in 2019.
Gioffre has totaled 1,173 minutes this season, which ranks fourth in the Big 12 among freshmen. She is also one of three freshmen to reach the 1,000-minute mark in 14 games.
// FOLLOW THE BEARCATS
For all the latest information on Cincinnati women's soccer, please visit GoBEARCATS.com and follow @GoBearcatsWSOC on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook.
The match will kick off at 7 p.m. ET and will be streamed on ESPN+/Big 12 Now. A subscription to the streaming service is required to watch the game. Fans can also follow along with the live stats found here.
// CONFERENCE COMPETITION COMMENCES
The Bearcats are in their inaugural season in the Big 12 since the university joined the conference on July 1. Cincinnati is 2-3-4 in conference play and currently is 10th in the standings with three matches remaining. The top 10 teams in the conference will qualify for the 2023 Sprouts Farmers Market Big 12 Soccer Championship, held in Round Rock, Texas. The tournament begins on Oct. 28.
// WIN AND WE'RE IN
Cincinnati enters the match 10th in the conference, holding the final spot for the Big 12 tournament.
Bearcats can claim their tournament bid with a…
Scenario 1: WIN over West Virginia.
Scenario 2: TIE and an Iowa State loss or draw.
Scenario 3: LOSS and BOTH Iowa State and Houston lose.
With every team in the conference to play its final game on Monday, UC controls its destiny and can claim its spot in the tournament with a win. Iowa State is currently one point behind UC and can leapfrog the Bearcats with a win over Texas Tech and a Cincinnati loss. The Bearcats hold the tiebreaker over the Cyclones as UC won the head-to-head match-up.
Houston is three points behind Cincinnati and would be tied for the 10th and final spot with a win over Baylor and a UC loss. Houston would hold the tiebreaker over Cincinnati as they would have more wins against common conference opponents.
If all three schools lose their final match, Cincinnati would remain the final team in the tournament. The Bearcats can finish as high as seventh with a win on Monday.
// LAST TIME OUT
The Bearcats tied Baylor 2-2, then fell to UCF, 1-0, on Senior Day last week. Against Baylor, both Graduate Student Ashley Barron and sophomore Sarah Kate Rath scored their first goals for the season in Cincinnati's second multi-goal game of the season.
// THE MATCHUP
The former Big East conference opponents will clash for the first time in 13 years. Monday's match will be the third-ever meeting between the two schools. West Virginia won both previous matches, with the last being a 4-0 victory over Cincinnati inside Gettler Stadium in 2010. The last time the match was played in Morgantown, UC fell 2-0 in 2007.
Fun Fact: Cincinnati holds a record of 3-0-0 in Monday night matches since 2009. The Bearcats last time played on a Monday was in 2016 where they defeated Boston University 2-1 on the road.
// SCOUTING THE COMPETITION
Last time out, West Virginia (5-3-1) defeated Kansas, 1-0, to earn its fourth straight conference victory. Cincinnati native Taylor White leads the Mountaineers in goals with nine, which is also tied for fifth in the Big 12.
West Virginia is led by head coach Nikki Izzo-Brown, who is in her 28th season at the helm of the Mountaineers. In her 29 years of coaching, she holds a career record of 403-144-71 and is 390-139-71 at WVU.
// TEAM LEADERS
Sophomore midfielder Megan Smith and senior forward Ellie Flower are tied for the team lead in goals with three apiece. Junior Fran Stables has been the team's primary playmaker this season, as she leads the team in Assist with three.
// CAREER HISTORY TO WATCH
Graduate student Ashley Barron moved to third all-time in non-GK minutes played, passing former bearcat Kim Sykes with 6,841 after playing the full time against UCF. She also recorded her 78th career start in her 79th career cap against UCF, the 10th most in program history. She has started 74 straight matches, dating back to 2019.
Senior goalkeeper Anna Rexford continues to climb the UC all-time career top-10 list in three different categories. She claimed her third clean sheet of the season against Oklahoma State and her 15th career shutout, the seventh-most in program history.
The Wilmore Ky., native also ranks sixth in career wins (22) and 10th in career saves (183).
// A NEW FACE TAKES CENTER STAGE
True freshman Emma Gioffre has made quite the impact for the Bearcats this season. She has appeared in all 16 games this season, starting in 14. She became the first true freshman to start in double-digit matches since Ashley Barron started 18 in 2019.
Gioffre has totaled 1,173 minutes this season, which ranks fourth in the Big 12 among freshmen. She is also one of three freshmen to reach the 1,000-minute mark in 14 games.
// FOLLOW THE BEARCATS
For all the latest information on Cincinnati women's soccer, please visit GoBEARCATS.com and follow @GoBearcatsWSOC on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook.