Nov. 2, 2009

Game Notes: Big Sky Tournament

Pocatello, ID--Idaho State (9-7-0, BSC 4-3-0) will make its sixth Big Sky Conference Tournament appearance when the Bengals travel to Portland, Ore. to take on Eastern Washington (7-8-2, BSC 4-2-1) in the semifinals on Friday, November 6 at 2:30 p.m. The Bengals have captured four Big Sky Tournament Championships in their five appearances. All of the tournament contests will be held at PCC-Rock Creek and are free to the public. Fans can also follow along with live stats provided at www.goviks.com.

The Bengals clinched its Big Sky Tournament appearance with a 4-0 victory over Weber State on Halloween at Davis Field to end the regular season tied for third place. ISU captured a third place seed in the conference tournament. Idaho State has never gone more than two years without making a Big Sky Conference tournament appearance. ISU's four Big Sky Tournament Championships include three-straight back-to-back titles from 2001-03. The all-time Big Sky Tournament Championship record is 7-1-1 for Idaho State with the Bengals advancing on its tie with Sacramento State in 2006 with a 4-3 penalty kick shootout. Head coach Allison Gibson has experience in the tournament as she captured a Big Sky Tournament Championship (and regular season title) her first year with Idaho State in 2006.

Idaho State out-shoots its opponents 231-to-187 for the season. The Bengals have posted 25 goals and 24 assists this season for 74 points. ISU posts a .472 shot on goal percentage and a .108 shot percentage. The Bengals post the second most goals per game in the conference with 1.56 and lead the Big Sky in assists with 1.50 per game. Senior Kacey Ball has made an appearance as a forwards since Idaho State's contest against Boise State and has already matched Annamarie Hofstetter's shot count with 37 each. Ball posted a goal in her first game as a forward. Her second goal of the season was against Portland State. Both of her goals have been on the road.

ISU posts the lowest save percentage in the Big Sky Conference with 3.81 per game. However, these low numbers should stand out to fans as a strong defensive line because opponents find it difficult to line up a good shot with the ISU defenders on their tails. ISU has reduced opponents to under five shots on goal in seven of their games this year. Idaho State reduced Weber State to just two shots on goal on Halloween at Davis Field. The most shots on goal that ISU has allowed is nine from the regular season title winner Portland State.

The Bengals have played on Portland State's artificial turf earlier this season, and although the Bengals fell to the Vikings in the regular season, they have a bit of an edge as ISU's semifinal opponent Eastern Washington hosted have not competed on the unusual turf. Also, the Bengals have been able to practice in ISU's Holt Arena a few times this season due to weather issues. Holt Arena houses Babe Caccia field, which is artificial turf.

ISU keeper Bailey Williams has played every minute for the Bengals this season and posts a .732 save percentage. She recorded her third shutout of the season against Weber State to help the Bengals clinch a post season berth. Williams recorded two shutouts her freshman year to record five for her career and tie for the fifth most shutouts in school history.

Eastern Washington captured a second place seed in the Big Sky Tournament after going 4-2-1 in conference play. The Eagles are 7-8-2 overall. EWU comes off a 1-0 victory over Montana on the road. The Eagles are led by Brittany Sparks who has recorded 11 goals this season. She is tied with Portland State's Dolly Enneking for the season high. Idaho State leads the series 8-4-1 having fallen in their last meeting 1-0 in Cheney. However, the Bengals are 1-0-0 against the Eagles in Big Sky tournament play.