MOSCOW, Idaho- Vandal soccer will travel to Spokane, WA to take on No. 8 Gonzaga in the first round of the NCAA Tournament on Saturday, November 11th at 5:00 p.m. PST. The game will be broadcast on ESPN+.
ABOUT IDAHO: Entering the first round, the Vandals are 12-4-2 in non-conference and 5-2-1 in conference. This past weekend the Vandals were named Big Sky Champions for the first time in program history. Idaho defeated Northern Arizona 2-1 in Flagstaff on Sunday afternoon. Maddy Lasher scored her second goal of the season to give the Vandals the lead in the 28th minute. Naomi Alvarez solidified the win with her second career goal in the 39th minute.
Seven athletes were recognized for All-Tournament Honors including Rebekah Reyes who won Big Sky Tournament MVP when fellow teammate, Cassidy Elicker, was pulled due to injury.
ABOUT GONZAGA: The Bulldogs also made history this past weekend in a 3-1 win over Pepperdine to win the West Coast Conference title – the first time in program history. This will be Gonzaga's second appearance in the NCAA tournament, their first time since 2005 when they fell to Southern California 1-0 in the first round. Gonzaga's overall record is 13-3-2 and they finished 6-1-1 in conference.
In the United Soccer Coaches poll, the Zags were ranked No. 19 (as of October 29th) adding to their RPI ranking of 31 after last weekend's games.
THE MATCHUP: Gonzaga ranks top 10 nationally in goal differential (34), points per game (8.44), total goals (54), and total points (152). They are also ranked top five for scoring offense. The Bulldog's leading scorer is sophomore, Gianna Riley with 12 goals this season. 12 seems to be the lucky number for Gonzaga considering Kelsey Oyler leads the team with that many assists. The Vandals offense is led by Hannah Alfaro and Jadyn Hanks, each with five goals this season. Idaho's assists are dominated by Alyssa Peters with eight and Margo Schoesler with five so far.
HISTORY: This will be the first official matchup between Idaho and Gonzaga since a 2-2 draw in 2016. This is the 17th official meeting for the Vandals and Bulldogs; however, they have met numerous times since 2016 for unofficial spring games and scrimmages. The Vandals are 4-10-2 overall against Gonzaga going 2-5-1 from home and 2-5-1 away.
TICKETS: Tickets are now on sale priced at $15. Visit here to buy yours today.
