ADRIAN, Mich. – The Siena Heights University women's soccer team debuts inside O'Laughlin Stadium for the 2021 season. The Saints look to improve their position in the Wolverine-Hoosier Athletic Conference (WHAC) standings from the shortened season last year.
Siena Heights was chosen sixth in the 2021 WHAC Women's Soccer Preseason Coaches Poll that was released earlier in August.
LAST SEASON
The SHU women's soccer team finished the regular season with a 5-6 overall record and a 4-5 mark in league play to secure the seventh spot in the conference standings and qualified the team for a spot in the WHAC tournament. Unfortunately, the season was cut short when the WHAC quarterfinal match against third-seeded Madonna was canceled due to COVID-19 protocols.
2021 SCHEDULE
The Saints will play an 18-game regular-season schedule that kicks off at home on Saturday, August 21 when Olivet Nazarene comes to town. SHU has a front-loaded schedule with the first five games of the season being played at home (7 out of the first 10 are played at O'Laughlin Stadium).
The WHAC season is set to begin on Saturday, September 25 when the Saints host Lourdes at 4:00 p.m. SHU will host 12 regular-season home games during the 2021 slate. All home games will be streamed on the SHU Saints YouTube page. Links for the video feed, live stats, and tickets for these contests can be found on the team's schedule page.
THE TEAM
SHU returns a large contingent of players from the 2020 roster including both 2nd-Team All-WHAC recipients Kaleigh Mahaz (Sr./Canton, Mich.) and Marissa Young (So./Genoa, Ohio). Mahaz will continue to anchor the Saints' defense this season. Young was the leading scorer for Siena Heights a year ago as she finished with 10 points (4 goals, 2 assists). WHAC All-Newcomer team members from 2020, Allie Balasico (So./Westerville, Ohio), Emily Broman (So./White Lake, Mich.), and MacKenzie Stenzel (So./Shelby Township, Mich.) all return to the team this year as well.
RECORD WATCH
Kara Bishop is on the hunt to join the career-records list of every category for a goalie. She currently sits tied for seventh in wins with 16 and needs only three to move up. She is third in goals against with 22 and fifth in goals against average with 0.87. She needs five shutouts, 26 saves, and 636 minutes to crack the top-10 in each of those categories.
THE COACHING STAFF
Scott Oliver returns for his 21st season as the head coach of the team. Oliver needs just two wins this year to hit the 250-career win total. He is currently the 10th Most Winningest Active Coach in NAIA Women's Soccer (14th Winningest Coach All-Time). Alexis Donnelly and Crystal Wilcoxen both return for a seventh season as assistant coaches. Samantha Bartelotti starts her fourth season as a member of the coaching staff.
