Kent State University
Eastern Michigan
Soccer Opens Mid-American Conference Play in Michigan
9/20/2018 2:22:00 PM | Women's Soccer
Kent State (4-3-1) heads to the Mitten State to kick-off Mid-American Conference play by taking on Eastern Michigan (5-4-0) on Friday, Sept. 21 at 5 p.m. and Central Michigan (2-6-0) on Sunday, Sept. 23 at 1 p.m.
Last Time Out
The Golden Flashes defeated ACC foe Syracuse last week, 2-1, in double overtime on a golden goal from sophomore Isabelle Mihail. The Kitchener, Ontario native scored both of Kent State's goals and tallied her first multi-goal match of her career and third by a Golden Flash this season.
The Golden Flashes struck in the 80th minute, tying the game when the Syracuse goalkeeper overplayed the ball and Mihail scored from point blank range. She scored the game-winner on a shot from the left side that hit the crossbar and bounced into the net in the 103rd minute.
Senior goalkeeper Ashleah McDonald (2-0-0) made four saves and broke the school's career wins mark with her 36th career victory.
#FlashFacts
Isabelle Mihail now joins freshman Khyla Porter and junior Yasmine Hall with two-goal matches this season. It's the second consecutive year a freshman scored twice in the same match, as Cameron Shedenhelm accomplished the feat at St. Bonaventure in 2017.
Senior goalkeeper Ashleah McDonald now stands alone in the program record book with 36 career victories and passed Stephanie Senn (2013-15) against Syracuse.
Both of sophomore Vital Kats' goals this season have come on penalty kicks.
Kent State has won its last three MAC openers.
Mihail and McDonald Honored by MAC Weekly Awards
For her two-goal performance against the Orange, Isabelle Mihail was named the MAC Offensive Player of the Week for the first time in her career. Mihail leads the Golden Flashes this season in goals (3) and is second in points (7). McDonald garnered MAC Female Scholar-Athlete of the Week recognition for her four-save outing at Syracuse. The MAC Scholar-Athlete of the Week honor is presented weekly to a MAC male and female student-athlete who has a cumulative grade point average of 3.0 or better and performs well during the week's competition. The winners are selected by a group of the conference's faculty athletic representatives. The senior maintains a 3.941 GPA and is a biology pre-med major.
Culver Named Senior CLASS Award Candidate
Senior defender Paige Culver was named one of the 30 candidates for the Senior CLASS Award this week. To be eligible for the award, a student-athlete must be classified as an NCAA Division I senior and have notable achievements in four areas of excellence: community, classroom, character and competition. An acronym for Celebrating Loyalty and Achievement for Staying in School, the award focuses on the total student-athlete and encourages students to use their platform in athletics to make a positive impact as leaders in their communities. Last season, Culver was named a Third Team All-American and MAC Defensive Player of the Year.
Kent State Picked to win MAC Regular Season and Tournament
The Golden Flashes were selected to win the Mid-American Conference regular season and tournament championship in the preseason coaches' poll. Kent State has been selected to win a regular season championship in three consecutive years after they were named to win the MAC East Division in 2016 and 2017.
Scouting Eastern Michigan
The Eagles have won four of their last five matches to close out non-conference play. Eastern Michigan hit a bump in the road in their last non-league tilt to UMass, 6-1, but have victories over Creighton (2-1), Oakland (1-0), UIC (2-1) and UConn (1-0). Red-shirt sophomore Sabrina McNeill, and redshirt junior Kristin Mason lead the offensive attack for EMU, combining for five of the 10 goals scored this season Eastern Michigan was selected to finish seventh in the MAC Preseason Coaches Poll and is led by 20th-year head coach Scott Hall.
Scouting Central Michigan
The Chippewas enter the weekend having dropped five of their last six matches. Central Michigan last defeated Oakland, 5-0, in a home route against the Golden Grizzlies. Seniors Lexi Pelafas and Madison Costner have led the offense this season scoring nine goals, and combining for three multi-goal games. The Chippewas were selected to finish fifth in the MAC Preseason Coaches Poll and are led by 4th-year head coach Peter McGahey.
Series History
Kent State has outscored Eastern Michigan 8-0 in its last five matches and last lost to the Eagles in 2013. The Golden Flashes have also won three of their last four against Central Michigan. Kent State is 11-12-0 facing Eastern Michigan, and 9-11-3 all-time against Central Michigan.
Follow the Flashes
Be sure to follow Kent State Soccer on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook for news and in-match updates about the squad.
