EVANSVILLE, Ind. – University of Southern Indiana Women's Soccer kicks off Ohio Valley Conference play on the road Saturday at 7 p.m. when the Screaming Eagles visit the University of Tennessee at Martin.
Saturday's match can be seen with a subscription to ESPN+.
USI (3-5-1) and UT Martin (0-4-5) have essentially split their first three meetings, 1-1-1. The Screaming Eagles won last year's matchup at home, 4-1. In USI's last trip to Martin, Tennessee, in 2023, the Screaming Eagles and Skyhawks tied 1-1.
The Eagles head into Saturday's OVC opener on a four-match unbeaten streak, going 3-0-1 in the last four matches.
Last time out, USI came away with a 6-1 victory at home against Purdue University Fort Wayne last Sunday. The six goals in the game marked a program best since USI made the jump to Division I in 2022, and the most scored in a single game since 2019, when USI scored six against the University of Missouri-St. Louis.
Five different Screaming Eagles scored a goal in USI's win against Purdue Fort Wayne. The last time five different Eagles scored a goal in a single game was in the 2020-21 championship spring season in a win against Southwest Baptist University.
Sophomore forward
Josie Pochocki led USI with her first career multi-goal game, becoming the second Screaming Eagle to record a brace this season. Senior forward
Emerson Grafton posted the first brace of the season a couple of weeks ago and tallied her third goal this season last Sunday against the Mastodons. Redshirt sophomore forward
Eva Boer notched her second goal of the season last Sunday. Pochocki and freshman forward
Brooke Shafer each scored their first career goals in the contest, while junior forward
Erica Cox scored her first goal in a USI uniform.
The Screaming Eagles have scored 14 goals over the last six matches, which is the most for the program entering the conference season since USI joined the OVC in 2022. 10 different Screaming Eagles have scored a goal this season, already matching the number of Eagles to score last season in 2024.
USI is second in the OVC in goals scored and first with 13 assists, adding up to be second in the OVC with 41 points on the season. USI is also among the top teams in the OVC in shooting, ranking first in shots (111), second in shots per game (12.3), first in shots on goal (43), and second in shots on goal per match (4.8).
Additionally, USI's defense has been strong as of late. Before Purdue Fort Wayne scored in the 28
th minute last Sunday, USI extended its defensive scoreless streak to 313 consecutive minutes, marking the longest defensive scoreless stretch for USI since the D-I jump in 2022. The 313 straight minutes without allowing a goal is the longest stretch among OVC teams this season. Against Purdue Fort Wayne, the Eagles' defense limited the Mastodons to only five shot attempts, which were the fewest by a USI opponent this season.
Individually, Grafton leads USI in scoring with seven points off three goals and an assist. Three players have five points, including Boer and Pochocki with two goals and an assist. Senior forward
Peyton Murphy is the other with three assists and a goal. Grafton paces the Eagles and is first in the OVC with 22 shots, while topping the squad with eight shots on goal. In goal, redshirt junior goalkeeper
Anna Markland has a 1.79 GAA with 19 saves and three shutouts in eight starts.
UT Martin enters Saturday with five results on the year but is still seeking its first win of the season. The Skyhawks began the season with three straight draws before four consecutive setbacks. However, the Skyhawks head into conference play on the heels of back-to-back scoreless draws against the University of Evansville and Southern Illinois University. Four of UT Martin's five ties have been 0-0.
UT Martin's sophomore defender Anna Ostergaard Ibsen and redshirt freshman forward Kylee Thompson are responsible for UT Martin's two goals on the season. Three players are tied for a team-high 12 shots, with junior forward Peyton Cook leading with eight shots on goal.
Defensively, UT Martin has been strong, surrendering only six goals and 0.67 goals per game on the campaign. Graduate defender Parker Gelinas and redshirt senior goalkeeper Mac Titus headline UT Martin's defensive effort as multiple-time OVC player of the week award winners this season. Titus has a 0.58 GAA with 38 saves and four clean sheets in seven starts.
Following Saturday's OVC opener at UT Martin, USI Women's Soccer will return to Strassweg Field next week for back-to-back home OVC contests against Morehead State University on Thursday and Southeast Missouri State University next Sunday.
