Women’s soccer set for crucial tilts with Xavier (La.), North American

Entering the final four matches of the season, everything is still on the table for the UHV women's soccer team.

The Jaguars (9-3-0, 6-3-0) are set to host Xavier (La.) on Thursday and North American on Saturday for Senior Day.

UHV sits in sixth place in the Red River athletic conference entering the final two weeks of play. The Jaguars are on 18 points, one behind Our Lady of the Lake and four behind fourth-place Texas A&M-Texarkana. The top four teams in the conference host quarterfinal matches Nov. 7-8.

The Jaguars are coming off a week of close contests in which they won 1-0 at LSU Alexandria, but fell by the same score to Louisiana Christian two days later.

Kyleigh Spree-Kolos continued her strong season with her 11^th goal of the year against the Generals, moving her two away from tying the single season record shared by Sheliat Akapo (2013) and Emily Lupton (2015). She leads the team in goals and points (24), which is seven away from tying the single-season record of 31 last accomplished by Lupton in 2016.

The Victoria native ranks sixth in the RRAC in goals and ninth in points.

Thursday's contest with the second-place Gold Nuggets (9-3-1, 8-0-1) will feature one of the conference's best offenses going toe-to-toe with one of its best defenses.

The Jaguars enter the clash with the fifth-best defense in the conference thanks to a 1.08 Goals Allowed Average while Xavier has the second-best offense, averaging 4.77 goals per game – a mark which ranks eighth nationally.

UHV's defense has been stout behind sophomore Franciezca Blancaflor, who ranks second in the RRAC with a .794 save percentage. The sophomore from Salado has also made 27 saves this year, three off her career-high last year. She made eight saves to beat the Generals last week.

Xavier boasts two of the best goal scorers in the conference in Samira Roper (14) and Luci Schroeder (12). Schroeder ranks fourth nationally in assists (14) as well.

This will be the second all-time meeting between UHV and Xavier, with the Gold Nuggets winning the first meeting 2-0 at Lafraniere Park in Metairie, La., last year.

Saturday will be UHV's third meeting all-time with NAU (3-9-2, 1-7-1). The Jaguars won each of the previous meetings 5-0.

Estelle Flanagan, Chloe Spencer and Trine Stenderup-Jorgensen each had a goal in last year's win.

At halftime on Saturday, UHV will recognize its 10 seniors: Flanagan, Spencer, Spree-Kolos, Arianna Rios, Hayli Nichols, Lexi Day, Kaitlyn Kongdara, Noa Txintxurreta, Nickole Stroman and Ana Maria Munoz.