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

SOMERS, Wis. (Oct. 9, 2014)-- The University of Wisconsin-Parkside men's and women's soccer teams hit the road again this weekend, heading to Saint Louis to face Great Lakes Valley Conference opponents Maryville University and the University of Missouri-Saint Louis.
 
The UW-Parkside men's soccer team takes on Maryville at 1 p.m. on Friday with the women following at 3:30 p.m. On Sunday the Ranger women hit the pitch at noon against the Tritons with the Ranger men kicking off 2:30 p.m.
 
About the UW-Parkside men's soccer team: The Rangers (6-5, 3-5 GLVC) head to the Show Me State having won four of their last five games. UW-Parkside's recent run started on Sept. 26, notching a 1-0 victory over host University of Southern Indiana before posting a 2-0 shutout of University of Illinois Springfield two days later.
 
Parkside smothered Oakland City University 6-0 on Oct. 1, getting a pair of goals from Jorge Ontiveros while knocking off Bellarmine University 2-1 last Friday as Ontiveros netted the game-winner with 48 seconds left. The Rangers notched an early goal from Evan Garcia on Sunday against McKendree University but was unable to hold on, stumbling 2-1 to the visiting Bearcats.
 
Antonio Gonzalez leads the team in both assists (six) and points (16) while Nemanja Medic paces the squad in goals with six on the season. Ontiveros and Abraham Kanneh each have four goals and nine points on the year while Ryan Shogren is second on the team in assists with four in 2014.
 
Marcos Perez has started 10 of the team's 11 games this season in goal, logging 45 saves with a goals against average if 1.33. Perez and the Ranger defense have pitched four shutouts on the season, including two against GLVC foes.
 
About the Saints: Maryville (3-4-4, 2-4-2 GLVC) has won just one game in its last five tries, generating just two goals of offense during that stretch. The Saints woes began on Sept. 21 when they were outgunned 5-1 by Southern Indiana. MU rebounded with a 1-0 victory over William Jewell College but have been goalless the last three games, falling 4-0 to Rockhurst University, 6-0 to Drury University and salvaging a scoreless tie against Missouri S&T last Sunday.
 
Nine Maryville players have scored goals on the season with Ryan Butchart, Lance Kohler and Nick Doherty leading the way with two goals apiece. Butchart additionally leads the team in assists with two of the squad's five helpers this season.
 
Between the posts, Eddie Starr has played in 10 of the team's 11 games, making 33 saves with a goals against average of 1.78. Starr and CJ Hendricks have combined for five shutouts on the year.
 
About the Tritons: Missouri-Saint Louis (7-2-1, 6-2 GLVC) opened conference play with four consecutive wins but has gone just 2-2 since, claiming wins over William Jewell (2-0) and Missouri S&T (3-2 in OT) sandwiched around losses to both Rockhurst and Drury. The Tritons were blanked 1-0 by Rockhurst on Sept. 26 for the team's first loss of the season before getting edged 3-1 by Drury last Sunday.
 
Jon Huelsman leads UMSL in goals (four), assists (four) and points (12) while DJ Bednar is tied for the team lead in goals (four) and ranks second in points (10). Tyler Collico has three goals and three assists on the year while Nick Werner and Leo Sanchez have found the back of the net on three occasions.
 
Goalkeeper Nick Lenkman has played all 10 games in goal for UMSL, making 29 saves and owning a goals against average of 1.02.
 
GLVC Preseason Poll: UW-Parkside was picked to finish 11th in the annual GLVC Preseason Coaches' Poll released on August 27. The Rangers tallied 75 points in the rankings, falling 30 points shy of 10th place Truman State University. University of Indianapolis sits atop the rankings, claiming 213 points and eight of the 16 first place votes. Quincy University had four first place votes and sits second followed by Rockhurst in third place with three first place nods. Lewis University rounds out the top four with 189 points and the remaining first place endorsement.
 
Around the World: The Rangers' roster features three international student-athletes, including Remi Bibal from Toulouse, France, Kawsu Samba from Banjul, Gambia, and Szymon Owczarek from Gdansk, Poland.

Z is for Zitzke: Jason Zitzke enters his 16th season as a member of the coaching staff and his fourth season as head coach. During that span, the UW-Parkside graduate and 2010 Hall of Fame Inductee owns a 170-97-24 record, including three trips to the NCAA Tournament and one GLVC Championship (2000).
 
GLVC Player of the Week: UW-Parkside has had two players secure GLVC Player of the Week honors this season. Antonio Gonzalez was named the GLVC Offensive Player of the Week on Sept. 8 after scoring four goals and three assists in just two games while Marcos Perez was the GLVC Defender of the Week on Sept. 29.
 
Perez was additionally named the NSCAA Disney Soccer Player of the Week on Sept. 30 after collecting a pair of shutouts, including a 12-save outing on Sept. 26 as the short-staffed Rangers held off host University of Southern Indiana 1-0.
 
About the UW-Parkside women's soccer team: The 13th-ranked Rangers (8-0-2, 6-0-2 GLVC) own a half-game lead in the GLVC standings and remain the lone unbeaten squad in the conference. UW-Parkside opened last weekend's homestand with a 1-1 double overtime draw against Bellarmine University at Wood Road Field. Karley Mecko tallied a header goal in the 32nd minute but a defensive miscue allowed the Knights to equalize in the 82nd minute.  Two days later, Emily Konior emerged as the hero, netting a penalty kick score in the 54th minute as the Rangers outlasted McKendree 1-0.
 
UW-Parkside's suffocating defense has posted eight shutouts this season, leading the nation in shutout percentage (80%) and has allowed just 23 shots on goal all season (2.3 per game). The Rangers have outscored the opposition by a 24-2 margin and sit second nationally in goals against average, yielding a paltry 0.19 goals per game. Parkside ranks sixth in Division II in save percentage (.913) and 13th in total assists (23).
 
Individually, Emily Konior leads the team in points (12) and is tied with Karley Mecko for the team lead in goals with five on the season. Jillian Hetfleisch has four goals on the year while Bailey Reed, Taylor Schiffer-Jander and Kelsey Armour all have a pair of goals. Niekie Pellens leads the team and ranks sixth nationally in assists with seven while Ashley Meyer and Jenna Brzeski each have three helpers in 2014.
 
In goal, Mallory Geurts has logged all but three minutes between the posts, ranking second nationally in goals against average (0.192), seventh in save percentage (.913) and 24th in minutes played (937). The sophomore has 21 saves on the season and has seven clean sheets on the year.
 
About the Saints: Maryville (3-4-3, 2-4-2 GLVC) heads into the weekend looking to snap its winless streak having gone 0-3-2 over the past five games. The Saints settled for a 1-1 double overtime draw against Drury University on Oct. 3 before getting blanked 1-0 by Missouri University S&T two days later.
 
Katy Rood powers the Maryville offense, leading the team in goals (four), assists (three) and points (11). Amanda Wiechens has three goals on the season while Shannon Foley is the only other Saint with more than one goal, collecting two on the season. Ashley Pogue sits tied with Rood for the team lead in assists with three helpers.
 
Bailey Doerflinger has handled a majority of the goalkeeping duties, playing in seven games and owned a 0.91 goals against average with 35 saves.
 
About the Tritons: Missouri-Saint Louis (5-5, 3-5 GLVC) heads into Friday's clash with Lewis University looking to shake off a four fame skid. The Tritons had a hot start to 2014, winning five of their first six games, outscoring opponents by a 12-2 margin during that stretch with shutout wins over GLVc rivals McKendree (1-0), Southern Indiana (3-0) and UIS (2-0).
 
Since UMSL's 2-0 win over UIS on Sept. 21 it has been rough sailing falling 2-0 to Rockhurst on Sept. 26 while suffering 1-0 setbacks to William Jewell, Missouri S&T and Drury.
 
Laura Hurlbut leads the Tritons in both scoring (four goals) and points (nine) while Jen Eaton is second in goals (two) and points (four) while tying for the team lead in assists (two) with Cassie McFadden and Mary Kopsky.
 
In goal, Megan Ohm has started all 10 games, making 27 saves and posting four shutouts with a 0.72 goals against average.
 
GLVC Prognostications: The Rangers were picked to finish fifth in the annual GLVC Coaches' Preseason Poll, released on August 28. UW-Parkside tallied 185 points, falling one point shy of fourth place Bellarmine University. Defending GLVC Champion Quincy University accrued 14 first place votes to snag the top spot followed by Truman State University in second and Rockhurst University in third.
 
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 212-73-28 career mark at UW-Parkside, making seven NCAA appearances and winning four GLVC Championships.

Four and Counting: UW-Parkside has made the NCAA Tournament the past four seasons and five of the last six years. The Rangers have qualified for the Big Dance in 2013, 2012, 2011, 2010, 2008, 2004 and 2003. The Rangers advanced to the quarterfinals of the NCAA Tournament in 2008 while making an appearance in the Sweet 16 in 2012 and 2010. UW-Parkside has advanced past the first round every time except for an opening round exit in 2003. The Rangers are 7-7-1 all-time in NCAA games.
 
Home Sweet Home: The Rangers have been nearly invincible at home in recent years, post­ing a 37-1-6 record over the last 44 games at Wood Road Field. The lone loss in that stretch was a 3-2 defeat to Rockhurst on Oct. 28, 2012 in the GLVC Tournament. UW-Parkside hasn't lost a regular season home game since falling 1-0 to Saginaw Valley State University in the 2010 season opener on Sept. 2 and hasn't dropped a regular season GLVC contest at Wood Road Field since suffering a 1-0 setback to the University of Indianapolis on October 2, 2009.
 
GLVC Player of the Week: Two Rangers have collected GLVC Defender of the Week honors this season. Karley Mecko claimed the honor on Sept. 8, helping the Rangers allow just one shot on goal in a pair of non-conference shutout wins. Fellow defender Emily Konior claimed the accolade on Sept. 22 after collecting a pair of road wins, including a big 2-1 victory over then No. 20 Rockhurst University. Konior was additionally named the NSCAA Disney Soccer Player of the Week on Sept. 23. She became the second women's soccer player to land the honor since the award was created at the start of the 2013 season. Goalie Mallory Geurts won National Player of the Week on Oct. 8, 2013.
 
RangerNation: The 2014 UW-Parkside women's soccer roster features 27 student-athletes from eight different states and one foreign country. The Rangers hail from Wisconsin, Illinois, Michigan, California, Missouri, Kansas, Texas, Florida and the Netherlands.