The women’s soccer team will begin its second two-game weekend homestand of the season on Friday at 3 p.m. when they take on Rhode Island at Temple’s Ambler Sports Complex.

Coming off a 1-0 double-overtime win at Duquesne on Sunday, Oct. 7, the Owls will enter with momentum on their side, sophomore defender Alyssa Kirk said.

“I think Rhode Island is one of the tougher teams we will face,” freshman goalkeeper Shauni Kerkhoff said.

Temple will enter Friday’s match with a 4-8-2 record (2-1-0 in Atlantic 10 Conference) while Rhode Island will enter with a 7-6-1 record and losers of their last three matches, all of which were A-10 conference matches.

“I expect to win, 100 percent,” Kirk said. “We are going to go out there and do whatever it takes to get the win Friday and Sunday.”

On the season, Rhode Island has scored 23 goals compared to Temple’s six on the year. On the defensive side, the Owls have let up 10 less goals that Rhode Island has to opponents, as Rhode Island goalkeepers have allowed 23 goals compared to Temple’s 13 given up by Owl goalkeepers.

“This weekend is going to be the turning point in our season,” Kerkhoff said. “The outcomes of these two games will affect the rest of our year.”

-John Murrow

The women’s soccer team will open Atlantic 10 Conference play on Saturday, Sept. 29, against visiting Saint Joseph’s University at the Ambler Sports Complex at 1 p.m.

“The mentality is that it’s all or nothing now,” junior defender Karly O’Toole said. “It is our time to show what we have worked so hard for in the off-season, summer, and so far this season.”

“We know it’s a city game and a great rivalry,” coach Matt Gwilliam said. “All of our kids know it too and we are extremely excited.”

After a 7-1 loss last season at St. Joe’s, the Owl’s will look to carry their winning record at home this season into Saturday’s game, Gwilliam said.

“We are trying to establish our home field as an unwelcoming place for opponents and we look to continue to get some of the same results that we have had,” Gwilliam said.

A St. Joe’s player to keep an eye on for Saturday’s match is junior forward/midfielder Mo Hawkins, who in last year’s match notched three goals on four shots and recorded an assist as well.

“Coach Gwilliam told us that we have two seasons,” freshman midfielder Katie Burgess said. “We are now beginning our second season as we begin A-10 play.”

Temple will enter Saturday’s match with a 3-6-2 record, while St. Joe’s will begin play with a 5-4-1 record. On the year, the Hawks are 3-3 on the road, while the Owls are 2-1-1 while at home.

“It’s payback time,” O’Toole said. “We do not need a pre-game talk to get excited for this game. After all that we went through last year, we want to show how much we have improved.”

-John Murrow

             Following the 1-0 loss to Siena on Friday, Sept. 21, the women’s soccer team hopes to grab the second match of the weekend on Sunday, Sept. 23 against Marist at 4 pm.

            “[Marist] is a team that likes to get in your face a lot,” coach Matt Gwilliam said. “To this point, they have had a great season.”

            The Owls will look to grab their first win of the season on the road, as well as their first win since Sept. 7, when they faced Iona at the Ambler Sports Complex.

-John Murrow

            Since the 1-0 win against Iona at home, the Owls have been shutout in four straight matches, three of which resulted in 1-0 losses and one match which ended in a 0-0 tie.

            On the year, Marist has 16 goals in comparison to Temple’s 4 this season. The problem for the Owls is not the defense, but it is scoring the ball when the team has their opportunities, Gwilliam said.

            “We have our defense down,” freshman goalkeeper Shauni Kerkhoff said. “We are creating chances but we just are not finishing.”

            “Marist is in the process of building their program,” Gwilliam added. “They have been riding some good results this season.”

            Entering Sunday’s match, Temple enters with a 2-6-2 record and an 0-4-1 record on the road. Marist will begin Sunday’s match with a record of 6-4-0 and 3-0-0 record when playing at home.

            “Marist is another good team on our schedule and I expect a good competition,” Kerkhoff said.

            For the Owls, the team will have their last chance at a non-conference opponent against Marist before the Atlantic-10 conference matches begin on Saturday, Sept. 29 against Saint Joseph’s at the Ambler Sports Complex.

The women’s soccer team will be opening up their first of two games in New York this weekend against Siena on Friday, Sept. 21, at 4 pm.

“Our team loves road trips,” freshman goalkeeper Shauni Kerkhoff said. “Away games allow for our team to bond on the bus more than usual.”

The first match of the road trip on Friday against Siena will be one that the Owls plan to match up well against, coach Matt Gwilliam said.

“We played them in a tough match last year at home,” Gwilliam said. “We dropped that game last year and do not know a whole lot about [Siena] this year.”

Nearly a year ago to date on Sept. 25, 2011, Temple fell to Siena 3-1 at the Ambler Sports Complex. In the match, Owls’ midfielder Kate Yurkovic scored her lone goal of the 2011 season, but it was not enough to answer the Sienna offensive attack.

This week in practice, Temple has addressed the offensive attack as the team looks to finish the many opportunities they have been unable to finish to this point, Gwilliam said.

Temple is entering Friday’s match with a record of 2-5-2, while opposing Siena is 3-4-0 on the season.

“Every game is a new game so you never know what to expect,” Kerkhoff said. “We always expect to win every game, so we will see.”

-John Murrow

The women’s soccer team will complete their first home series of the season on Sunday when the Owls take on Hartford at the Ambler Sports Complex at 2 pm.

After a 1-0 loss to Drexel on Friday, Sept. 14, the Owls will look to grab their third win at Ambler, as well as their third win of the season.

“Hartford is going to be similar to Drexel,” redshirt-junior forward Jackie Krostek said. “They are going to come at us strong, but our defense is going to have to be strong again.”

Just like Temple, Hartford has yet to win a match on the road this year, as they have posted a record of 0-1-1 away from home. This season, the Owls are 2-1-0 on the season when playing at home.

“[Hartford] is a very offensively gifted team,” coach Matt Gwilliam said. “They have a couple of special kids and we are going to be wary of them.”

Hartford senior Amelia Pereira is one of those special kids, as she currently leads Hartford with thirteen points, five goals and three assists on the season.

“Hartford is a team that we didn’t have much success against last year,” Gwilliam said. “We all remember that, and we want to show them how far our program has come in one year.”

Last season, the Owls fell to Hartford at home 5-1, allowing three goals in the first half, and two goals in the second half. Temple hopes for a different result in this season’s match, Gwilliam said.

“I think Hartford believes they have an easy match again this year,” Krostek said. “I believe they will be in for a big surprise this time.”

-John Murrow