ROCHESTER, Mich - Oakland Women's Soccer Team is hosting the first conference game of the season against Youngstown State this Thursday, September 15th at 5:30 pm on the OU soccer fields. 

The Golden Grizzlies are 3-1-4 for the season with their recent tie against Western Michigan University. Starting with aggressive offense during the game, the team was able to stay ahead of the Broncos in shots. The Golden Grizzlies continue to play with this competitive strategy in all of their games so far this season.  

Alexa Sabbagh is currently leading the team in goals with two total this season, followed by seven other Oakland players to tie for one goal each. Golden Grizzlies offense continues to attack the net with multiple different shot takers with impressive ball passing this season. 

Noëmi Stadelmann and Hayley Lindow are proving to be a great goalkeeping combo for the Golden Grizzlies this season. Noemi is up with 22 goals saved and a 91.7% save percentage, with Haley following right behind her with increasing game time in the net and a 80% save percentage. It is exciting to see what the Oakland defense will do in the upcoming conference games of the season with their current goalkeeping assets.

The United Soccer Coaches revealed its week four North Region Poll on September 13 with Oakland the No. 9 team in the region. Oakland is the top Horizon League team in the poll alongside eight other Big Ten teams. 

SCOUTING REPORT

The Penguins are currently 2-4-1 in the 2022 season. Score leaders for the team are Regan LaVinga, Maddie Root, and Lily Welch with two goals each this season. 

Goalkeeper Brooklyn Kirkpatrick holds 85.3% save percentage with 39 saves so far this season. She is the only goalkeeper for the Penguins that has recorded game time for this season.

 

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NATIONAL RECOGNITION
The United Soccer Coaches revealed its week one North Region Poll on August 23 with Oakland the No. 6 team in the region just behind Michigan and above Indiana, respectively.

FAVERO CONTRACT EXTENDED
Head Coach Juan Pablo Favero's contract has been extended through the 2026 season, Oakland University announced in August.

PRESEASON NO. 1
Oakland was selected as the preseason favorite in the 2022 #HLWSOC Preseason Poll with 115 votes and five first-place votes. 

NEWCOMERS TO WATCH
Seven newcomers enter the 2022 Golden Grizzlies roster on both sides of the field including transfer Allie Tefend and freshman Anuhea Aluli from Hawaii. 

LOPEZ PLAYER TO WATCH
Midfielder Sami Lopez is one of 38 women named to an exclusive list that is the NCAA Division I Players to Watch release which included four returning All-Americans from a year ago. Lopez is the only Horizon League student-athlete mentioned. 

FOUR ON 2021 #HLWSOC ALL-LEAGUE TEAM
Lopez and Zak find themselves on the All-League First Team roster with Dhlamini on the Second Team List in 2021. Rounding out the honors was Sharon Sampson on the All-Freshman Team squad. 

NATIONAL TEAM - GOLDEN GRIZZLIES
Dhlamini and Sharon Sampson are two Golden Grizzlies playing on the national stage as Dhlamini's South African National Team won the 2022 WAFCON final to qualify for the Women's World Cup in 2023. Sampson made a roster spot on the U-20 "Black Princess of Ghana" National team, playing in the 2022 FIFA U-20 World Cup in Costa Rica.