ST. JOSEPH, Mo. — Sitting at .500 in the conference, Missouri Western State Soccer looks to punch its ticket into the postseason as it heads into the last two games of the regular season.

The team will begin the final stretch on the road against the No. 15-ranked Central Missouri Jennies and then will travel home to play its Senior Day game against the Northwest Missouri State Bearcats.

WHERE TO WATCH
Fans can watch all Griffon Soccer games for a subscription fee on the MIAA Network. Director of Athletic Communications Derek Zimmerman-Guyer will call the action this Sunday, with pregame starting 20 minutes before each kickoff. Game admission is available in the "Tickets" tab. 

NOTABLES

• Junior goalkeeper Keeley Kroonenberg made seven saves for the Griffons on the weekend.
• Senior forward Jaden Skinner's nine goals tie her for second in the MIAA.
• Junior defender Lauren Nylund got her third assist against Northeastern State, tying her for first on the team.
• Missouri Western is sixth in the MIAA. Central Missouri sits in first place, and Northwest is in fifth. Both of MWSU's opponents are locked into the MIAA Tournament.

10/27 - SCOUTING CENTRAL MISSOURI | 7 PM
Central Missouri (12-3-1, 7-1-1 MIAA) comes in winners of two in a row, holding a home record of 5-0. The Jennies are coming off a 5-0 victory over Nebraska Kearney and a 3-0 win against Fort Hays State last weekend in Warrensburg, Missouri. 

Who to Watch
Redshirt junior forward/midfielder Caroline Cole leads the team with six goals, while freshman forward Mikayla Ernst is right behind her with five. The Jennies have been led defensively by their freshman keeper Kristen Wright. She leads the MIAA in goals against average at .294 per game and save percentage at 89.5% 

Head Coach
The Jennies are coached by Lewis Theobald, who is in his 16th season and is 287-44-24 with UCM. In his time at Central Missouri Theobald has coached 20 All-Americans and 126 all-conference players. He is 29-1 vs. MWSU and is 15-0 when the Griffons come to Warrensburg.

Rivalry Record Rabbit Hole
The Griffons are on a nine-game losing streak against UCM. The team has not won against the Jennies since 2017 and is 1-33 overall.

Last Time Out
The last time these two met was over a month ago on Sept. 22 at Spratt Stadium. In that match, the Jennies scored the game-winning goal in the 53rd minute off the boot of junior forward Lexie Ruf.

The game will begin at 7 p.m. in Warrensburg at the South Recreation Complex.

10/29 - SCOUTING NORTHWEST | 1 PM
After competing in Warrensburg, the Griffons have a one-day turnaround to return for their final regular season home game of the season. Northwest (7-4-5, 4-2-3 MIAA) has won four in a row and will play Missouri Southern in Joplin, Missouri, on Friday before heading to Spratt Stadium. The Bearcats are 2-2-2 on the road this season.

Who to Watch
Tied for second in the MIAA with Skinner in goals scored is Northwest Missouri's senior forward Kylie Rock. She has collected nine goals and four assists for 22 points this season. Sophomore goalkeeper Lily Ellis has had an impressive second-year campaign. Thus far in 2023, she has 64 saves and averages 5.33 saves per game, which is second in the MIAA. 

Head Coach
Marc Gordon is in his sixth year as the Bearcats' head coach and is only the third coach in program history. In his term as the head coach, Gordon is 41-42-12 at Northwest, is 154-80-27 overall and has led his team to back-to-back NCAA Tournament appearances in 2021 and 2022. Since 2018, he has gone 3-4-2 against MWSU and 1-2-1 at Spratt Stadium.

Rivalry Record Rabbit Hole
Overall, the Bearcats have gotten the better side of the rivalry. The Griffons' record vs. Northwest stands at 9-16-7, but from 2015 to 2019, the Griffons won nine in a row The Griffons are looking for their first win vs. Northwest since then.

Last Time Out
In their last matchup on Sept. 15 of this year, the two teams ended in a 1-1 draw. In the matchup, freshman midfielder Kendall Knisley scored the Griffons' lone goal thanks to an assist from Nylund in the 38th minute. Kroonenberg kept the tie intact with a last-second save in Maryville.

Sunday's match is set to start at 1 p.m. on Sunday, Oct. 29 at Spratt Stadium.

Senior Day/Halloween Game
Prior to Sunday's matchup, Missouri Western will honor its soon-to-be graduates with Senior Day. The team will celebrate the careers and achievements of Skinner, Brianna Davis, Elizabeth Musilek, Paula Burillo-Blasco, Lauren Street and Carly Zabloudil. The festivities start at 11:45 a.m.
 
ON THIS DAY IN GRIFFON SOCCER HISTORY
Oct. 27 | Box Score
On this day in 2017, the Griffons shut out Northwest 2-0 in Maryville. Both of the Griffons' goals were scored less than a minute apart. Sophomore Anika Nobs scored the team's first goal in the 37th minute, while the second was tapped in by senior Sarah Blakely. 

Oct. 29 | Box Score
Just two years ago in 2021, the Griffons had their Senior Day game on the exact same day they'll have it this fall against the exact same team. In that game, the Griffons were shut out by the Bearcats 2-0. The game-sealing goal was scored in the 67th minute by then-freshman Hannah Sterling.