Women's Soccer Kicks Off A-10 Play At Home With City-Rival Saint Joseph's Saturday

LIVE STATS

AMBLER - Closing out non-conference play on a high note last Sunday at Marist, Temple Women's Soccer (3-6-2) opens Atlantic 10 Conference play and begins its final go-around in the league when it welcomes the Saint Joseph's Hawks (5-4-1) to the Ambler Sports Complex on Saturday at 1:00 p.m. Live stats will be provided throughout the match by clicking the link above.

TEMPLE NOTES...

As mentioned the Owls are opening their final Atlantic 10 Conference schedule on Saturday, because in 2013 the program will beome an official member of the BIG EAST Conference.

In its last six games, the Temple defense has made it extremely difficult for their opposition to beat them. The stinginess of the unit has allowed only three goals, while goalkeepers Shauni Kerkhoff and Tara Murphy have padded together the nation's 16th-best save percentage at 0.879 and a narrow goals against average of 0.48 coming into today's match.

Still leading the way for the Owls in scoring is senior Kate Yurkovic, who has found the back of the net twice, yielding her to four points thus far. Sitting close behind her for the team lead is freshman Paula Jurewicz, who netted the first goal of her Cherry & White career in a very clutch moment, as she tallied the game-winner in the Owls' victory at Marist. Having an assist on her stat line prior to that, Jurewicz has three points so far in her rookie campaign.

As mentioned, the Owls defense has been stifiling especially with the consistent play of its netminders. Murphy made her first start in Temple's last game since Sept. 2 at Penn and returned to the lineup in style, making eight saves and recording her second shutout of the season. Kerkhoff, who also has two clean sheets to her credit, has anchored the defense in her rookie season. Through the six games that she has played, she has made 37 saves and holds a goals against average of 0.56.

SAINT JOSEPH'S NOTES...

In the midst of a six-game road trip, the Hawks head up to Ambler for game four of the stretch when they face the Owls. On its current road swing, SJU is 2-1-0. When the ball is kicked off, it will be the first game for the Hawks in more than a week when it defeated Lehigh, 2-1 in overtime last Friday.

Saint Joseph's started the season red hot, going undefeated through its first four games, including a three-game winning streack that followed after opening the slate with a draw against American. Outside of A-10 play, the Owls and Hawks had three common opponents in non-conference play:?Hartford, Princeton and Iona. While SJU dropped all three, Temple went 1-1-1.

Igniting the team on offense has been junior Mo Hawkins. Entering the season as the program's fifth all-time leading scorer, she is atop of the leaderboard with nine points on the year, including four goals - two of which have been game-winners. Saint Joseph's has had an abundance of scoring throughout its lineup, as nine different players have tallied goals this season. Senior Christine Neal has made all 10 starts in between the posts for the Hawks, allowing her to have made 51 saves. On the year she has posted a goal against average of 1.62 and has claimed a pair of shutouts.

ALL-TIME SERIES...

Saint Joseph's holds a commanding lead in the all-time series with Temple, owning a record of 10-2-3. In last year's meeting at Finnesey Field, Hawkins tallied a natural hat trick and dished out an assist to pace SJU to a 7-1 win over the Owls.

UP NEXT...

From here, Temple will have off until Friday when it makes its way to Olean, N.Y. to take on the Saint Bonaventure Bonnies at 3:00 p.m.

SOCIAL CONNECTIONS...

Be sure to follow Temple Women's Soccer on twitter @TempleWSoccer. You can also get all Temple athletics' latest news by following the Owls on twitter (@Owlsports_com) and facebook (www.facebook.com/TempleAthletics).

Temple University Athletics

Women's Soccer Kicks Off A-10 Play At Home With City-Rival Saint Joseph's Saturday

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