Horizon League Semifinal is on Deck for Mastodon WSOC

FORT WAYNE, Ind. - The Purdue Fort Wayne women's soccer team will play in a Horizon League semifinal match against Youngstown State on Thursday (Nov. 3) in Milwaukee.

Game Day Information
Who: Youngstown State Penguins
When: Thursday, November 3 | 5 PM ET
Where: Milwaukee, Wis. | Engelmann Stadium
Live Stats: Link
Watch: ESPN+
Game Notes: Purdue Fort Wayne

Know Your Foe
Youngstown State is 8-7-3, picking up a berth to the Horizon League Championship semifinal after knocking off No. 4 seeded Wright State 2-1 in the quarterfinal. The Penguins have won six of their last seven. YSU was the only team to beat Purdue Fort Wayne in the Horizon League regular season. Offensive Player of the Week Elis Klein Spindola became YSU's leading scorer with a hat trick at Robert Morris.

Series History
Purdue Fort Wayne is 7-6 against the Penguins all-time, including two wins in the last three meetings. This will be the first neutral meeting between these two teams. Rylee Vruggink scored the game-winning goal against YSU in overtime in March of 2021.

All-League Picks
Four players and head coach Jason Burr were picked for All-Horizon League honors on October 28. Samantha Castaneda was named the Goalkeeper of the Year and an All-League First Team pick, Gabrielle Fanning joined her on the First Team, and Morgan Reitano and Lizzie Haub were All-League Second Team selections. Burr was named the Horizon League Coach of the Year. The four All-League selections ties the most in a single season in program history.

Save Your Tears
The Mastodons have the third-best save percentage in the country at 0.885. Samantha Castaneda is ninth in the country with a save percentage of 0.881.

Smart Attack
Mackenzie Evans and Kelsey Gallagher were named to the Horizon League All-Academic Team on October 25. Gallagher is the first player in program history to be named to two All-Academic teams. Evans has a 4.00 GPA in communication sciences and disorders and Gallagher has a 3.98 in elementary education.

Home Sweet Hefner!
Purdue Fort Wayne finished the regular season with an unbeaten record at the Hefner Soccer Complex, going 6-0-3 in front of its home crowd. The 'Dons beat Chicago State, Ball State, Southern Indiana, Robert Morris, Northern Kentucky and Green Bay, and tied Bellarmine, IUPUI and Milwaukee. It is the first time in program history that the Mastodons have had an unbeaten record at home in a season.

Shut Down and Shut Out
Purdue Fort Wayne has eight shutouts this season, which is a program-best.

Familiar Faces
Eight Mastodons have started all 18 matches this season: Kelsey Gallagher, Zoe Greenhalge, Bella Reitano, Marisa Metzger, Lizzie Haub, Isabelle Wissel, Samantha Castaneda and Gabrielle Fanning.

These Are Good Things
This is the best season in Mastodon women's soccer history. The team's winning percentage of .667 is the best of any season. This is the first time that Purdue Fort Wayne has had just one loss in league play. Second is also the best league finish in program history, matching the 2012 team that tied for second in the Summit League. The Mastodons are guaranteed to have the fewest losses in a season in program history with either three or four.

Last Time Out
The Mastodons tied Cleveland State 1-1 with a goal from Bella Reitano.

Coming Up
With a win, the 'Dons will move on to play the winner of Milwaukee and IUPUI for the Horizon League Championship.

~ Feel the Rumble ~

Purdue University Fort Wayne Athletics

Horizon League Semifinal is on Deck for Mastodon WSOC

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