MOSCOW, Idaho - Idaho women's soccer returns home for games on Friday at 6 p.m. against Louisiana and Sunday at 1 p.m. against UC Santa Barbara. The Vandals are 3-1-1 on the year after going 1-0-1 on a Midwest road tip where they topped Chicago State 2-0 and played to a scoreless draw against St. Thomas. The match is the first-ever meeting with Louisiana, but the 11th against UC Santa Barbara, one of Idaho's oldest foes.
ABOUT IDAHO: Hannah Alfaro and
Makenzie Burks scored in the second half to lift Idaho to a 2-0 win over Chicago State.
Kira Witte notched her third and fourth career shutouts on the swing. She has recorded shutouts in all but one of the games she has played in her short career. Six Vandals have scored goals this season,
Maddy Lasher leads the way with two.
ABOUT LOUISIANA: The Ragin' Cajuns are 1-1-3 on the season with a win at Florida International, a loss at Lamar and ties against Stephen F. Austin, Louisiana Tech and Abilene Christian. Hailly Waterhouse leads the way for UL with two goals. Libby Harper has allowed eight goals in five games.
ABOUT UC SANTA BARBARA: UCSB has yet to crack into the win column and are 0-4-2 after starting the season with a brutal schedule that included a pair of games against top-10 teams Stanford and Pepperdine. They recorded draws against Sacramento State (1-1) and San Jose State (2-2). Sophomore Meg Bruling has a team-high two goals and Evann Smith has led the way in goal for the Gouchos.
ADDING DEPTH: The Vandals return their top six scorers off of last year's team, including Honorable Mention All-Big Sky honoree
Jadyn Hanks (five goals, 11 points) and fifth-year player Savannah Foster (five goals, three GWG). Six transfers and six freshman have joined the Vandal squad this season, adding depth and talent to an already solid roster.
SPREADING THE BALL AROUND: Six Vandal players have scored goals so far this season.
Maddy Lasher has two goals so far this season while
Savannah Foster, Ariel Lofton,
Jadyn Hanks,
Makenzie Burks and
Hannah Alfaro have a goal each.
SUPER SENIOR: Savannah Foster took advantage of her extra season due to the COVID-19 Pandemic. She will be entering her fifth year as a Vandal. She has played in 64 games and made 51 starts, including the last 42 consecutive games. The last game that she didn't start for Idaho was Sept. 8, 2019 against UC Riverside.