FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Mark Albanese, Assistant Athletic Director for Sports Media Relations

SOMERS, Wis. (Oct 29, 2013)-- The University of Wisconsin-Parkside soccer squads close out the regular season against Lewis University on Wednesday with plenty to play for as both the Ranger men and women jockey for positioning for the Great Lakes Valley Conference Tournament.

The Ranger women look to secure a home game with a win and face the Flyers at 5 p.m. while the men look to stay alive in the hunt for the final playoff spot, hitting the pitch at 7:30 p.m. against Lewis.

About the UW-Parkside women's soccer team: The Rangers (10-3-3, 8-3-3 GLVC) saw their five game win streak and eight game unbeaten run (7-0-1) come to a halt on Friday evening, falling 2-0 to host Drury University.  UW-P returned to the pitch two days later, earning a 1-1 double overtime draw against Missouri University S&T.

The Rangers yielded goals in the 17th and 71st minutes in the loss to the Panthers. On Sunday against S&T, Karley Mecko tallied a goal in the seventh minute of play, collecting her own rebounded shot and scoring before the homestanding Miners equalized in the 17th minute. Neither squad was able to find the back of the net the rest of the way, settling for a draw.

With seven goals on the season, including four game-winners, Kaela Hoecherl is the Rangers' top offensive threat, leading the team in goals and points (15). Emily Konior has six goals on the season and is a perfect three-for-three on the season in penalty kicks. Jasmine Espino and Stephanie Barsuli have each tallied four goals in 2013 while Vianey Hernandez and Karley Mecko have each found the back of the net twice this season.

Alex Johnson is the team leader in assists with six on the season while Katie Gavin has four and Hernandez and Espino each have three.

Mallory Geurts has started all 16 games in net for the Rangers, making 55 saves and recording eight shutouts. The freshman has logged 1,476 minutes between the posts and owns a goals against average of 0.73 on the year.

UW-Parkside controls its own destiny in terms of tournament seeding, owning the tiebreaker on Rockhurst University as the two squads sit tied for fourth in the league at 8-3-3. A win and the Rangers will host a first round game on Sunday, Nov. 3 at 12 p.m. If the Rangers tie Lewis, UW-P would need a Rockhurst loss or tie while the Ranger could still secure a home game with a loss but would need some help from other squads around the league.

About the Flyers: Lewis (8-6-2, 6-6-2 GLVC) is still in the hunt for a spot in the GLVC Tournament but needs some help. A win by the University of Southern Indiana or McKendree University and the Flyers are eliminated regardless of the outcome of the Lewis-UW-Parkside showdown while a Flyer win and a loss or tie by both USI and McKendree gives Lewis the eighth and final spot in the GLVC Tournament.

The Flyers split their road trip over the weekend, blowing out Missouri S&T 4-0 on Friday before falling 2-0 at the hands of Drury on Sunday.

Over half of the Flyers 28 goals this season have come off the shoes of Jessica Chavez and Lauren Grady. Chavez leads the team in goals (nine) and points (21) while Grady is second in scoring with six goals in 2013. Maggie Moran has four goals on the year and shares the team lead in assists at four with Meg Carmody and Jennie Coughlon.

The Flyers have utilized three different keepers over the course of the season with Jennifer Meyer logging the bulk of the work with 10 starts on the season. Meyer owns a team-best goals against average of 0.91 with 21 saves and one shutout. Mara Bennett has appeared in five games and has logged four starts. Bennett leads the squad with 25 saves and sports a goals against average of 1.09. Arianna Nie is the third keeper logging minutes for the Flyers, starting two games and making six appearances with 19 saves and a GAA of 1.40.

Lewis owns a 6-2-1 record in home games this season and is 12-5-1 over the past two years at Lewis Stadium.

The Rangers and Flyers have met 12 times on the soccer pitch since 2001 with UW-Parkside enjoying a 9-2-1 advantage in those games. The Rangers have won the last five meetings, including a 1-0 victory last season on Oct. 24 at Wood Road Field. In that game, Emily Konior emerged as the hero, netting the lone score in the 56th minute on a free kick while Michelle Girard notched her seventh shutout of the year.

15 and Counting: Under head coach Troy Fabiano the Rangers have experienced 15 straight winning seasons a streak spanning all the way back to 1999, Fabiano's second year as coach. He currently owns a 200-71-26 career mark in 16 seasons at the helm, making six NCAA appearances and winning four GLVC Championships. Fabiano became the 21st active coach in NCAA Division II to eclipse 200 wins on Oct. 20 with a 1-0 win over Rockhurst University.

Three and Counting: UW-Parkside has made the NCAA Tournament the past three seasons and four of the last five years. The Rangers earned a berth to the Sweet 16 in both 2012 and 2010 while advancing to the second round in 2011.

Home Sweet Home: The Rangers have been nearly invincible at home in recent years, posting a 32-1-4 record over the last 37 games at Wood Road Field. The lone loss was a 3-2 defeat to Rockhurst on Oct. 28, 2012 in the GLVC Tournament. UW-Parkside is 9-0 at the friendly confines of Wood Road Field in 2013.

GLVC in the Top 25: Two teams represent the GLVC in this week's NSCAA Top 25 Poll. Quincy University remains No. 9 for the second consecutive week while Truman State University falls one spot to 24th. UW-Parkside is one of four teams appearing in the also receiving votes section of the poll.

About the UW-Parkside men's soccer team: The Rangers (7-7-2, 6-7-1 GLVC) find themselves in a dogfight for the eighth and final berth to the GLVC Tournament with Missouri S&T and Truman State. With losses to both S&T and Truman, the Rangers will need a win and some help if they want to secure the final tournament spot. UW-Parkside will need S&T to drop its regular season finale at home against Drury while Truman must either tie or fall to visiting Quincy.

The Rangers dropped a pair of contests over the weekend, yielding two goals in 10 minutes in a 2-1 loss to Drury on Friday while allowing two goals in five minutes in a 2-0 defeat at Missouri S&T on Sunday.

Thomas Diehl and Ryan Shogren lead the Rangers on offense, as the duo are tied for the team lead in goals (four), assists (three) and points (11). Milan Filipovic sits third in points with three goals and two assists while Jorge Ontiveros has found the back of the net on three occasions in 2013.

In goal, Marcos Perez has started all but one game this season, recording 72 saves and boasting three shutouts while owning a goals against average of 1.44.

About the Flyers: Lewis (11-1-4, 10-1-3 GLVC), winners of three straight, have already locked up a top four seed and a first round home game for the GLVC Tournament. The Flyers are now jostling for seeding positioning and will be either the second, third or fourth seed depending on how things shake out on Wednesday night.

Lewis's three straight wins have all been by shutout, entering Wednesday with a streak of 280 minutes without conceding a goal. The Flyers blasted William Jewell College 5-0 on Oct. 20 before picking up road wins at Missouri S&T (1-0) and Drury (2-0) over the weekend.

Cristhian Ramirez leads the Flyers in goals (six) and points (15) while George Thomson is second in scoring with four goals on the year. Thomson shares the team lead in assists with Luke Comerouski and Alexandro Ayala as all three have four on the season.

Alec Pickett has started all 16 games for the Flyers in goal, allowing just eight goals on the season and posting eight shutouts. Pickett has tallied 55 saves on the season and boasts a goals against average of 0.48.

The Rangers and Flyers have met 38 times with Lewis owning a slim 19-14-5 advantage in the series. The Flyers have won the last five meetings, including a 3-0 victory on Oct. 24 at Wood Road Field.

Around the World: UW-Parkside's roster includes players from four states and four foreign countries. 14 players hail from the Badger State while four hail from Illinois. Minnesota and Michigan each claim a Ranger student-athlete while the squad boasts international players from France, Gambia, Germany and Serbia.

Z is for Zitzke: Jason Zitzke enters his 15th season as a member of the coaching staff and his third season as head coach. During the span, the UW-Parkside graduate and 2010 Hall of Fame Inductee owns a 164-91-24 record, including three trips to the NCAA Tournament and one GLVC Championship (2000).

GLVC in the Top 25: Two GLVC squads appear in this week's NSCAA Top 25 Poll. The University of Indianapolis leads the way, climbing seven spots to ninth while Lewis jumps six spots to 14th. Rockhurst tumbles out of the poll after surging to ninth in last week's rankings while Quincy University is one of eight teams in the also receiving votes section.