BILLIKENS AT RHODE ISLAND SUNDAY FOR A-10 OPENER

WHEN: Sunday, Sept. 22, 2019 • Noon CDT

WHERE: URI Soccer Complex • Kingston, Rhode Island

RECORDS: SLU 5-3-1; URI 3-3-2

SLU-URI SERIES: SLU leads 11-2 and has won six straight

LAST MEETING: at SLU 1, URI 0 (9/27/18)  RECAP

BILLIKENS' LAST GAME: SLU 1, at Missouri State 0 (Sept. 18)  RECAP

RAMS' LAST GAME: at Dartmouth 2, URI 0 (Sept. 19)  RECAP

GAME NOTES: Saint Louis | Rhode Island

LIVE STATS: StatBroadcast (there will be no video stream for this game)

UP NEXT FOR THE BILLIKENS: at VCU • Thursday, Sept. 26 • 6 p.m. CDT • Richmond, Virginia

A LOOK AT THE BILLIKENS

• Ranked No. 7 in this week's United Soccer Coaches East Region poll, Saint Louis begins Atlantic 10 Conference play Sunday, Sept. 22, against Rhode Island. Game time is noon (CDT).

• Sunday's contest is the second of three consecutive road games for SLU. The Billikens won 1-0 at Missouri State Wednesday night – extending their unbeaten streak to three – and play at VCU Thursday night.

• Saint Louis has turned up the defensive intensity, recording a shutout in each of its last three games to bring its season total to five. The Billikens had a school-record 13 clean sheets in each of the past two seasons.
• Sunday's game is the 14th meeting between SLU and Rhode Island. Saint Louis owns an 11-2 series lead and has won six straight, including a 1-0 victory in St. Louis last year.
• Goalkeeper Mary Niehaus is the Atlantic 10 Conference Defensive Player of the Week for Sept. 9-15. Niehaus leads the A-10 in GAA (0.37), save percentage (.897) and shutouts (five).

• Saint Louis is enjoying the offensive balance it featured the past two years. Eight different player combinations have accounted for the Billikens' eight assisted goals this season.

• Last Sunday's draw vs. Purdue gave the Billikens a 29-1-5 record in their last 35 games at Robert R. Hermann Stadium, a stretch that dates to the final home game of the 2015 season.

• Hannah Friedrich (3G, 1A) leads the Bills with seven points, while Anna Lawler (2G) is second with four points. Friedrich and Lawler are tied for the league lead in game-winning goals (two).

• Friedrich also is tied for seventh in goals and 10th in points in the A-10. Evie Lavelle is tied for fifth in assists (three).

• With 33 wins in goal, Mary Niehaus needs one more victory to tie Amanda Martin (2003-05) for second place on the Saint Louis career list.

• After winning Atlantic 10 Conference regular-season and tournament titles and posting a school-record 18 wins a year ago, the Billikens were selected to finish atop the league again in the A-10 head coaches' preseason poll. Seven starters and 10 additional players are back from SLU's 2018 team.

• Senior defender Alli Klug appears on the MAC Hermann Trophy Watch List for a second straight season. Klug also is one of four Billikens on the A-10 preseason All-Conference team, joining senior goalkeeper Mary Niehaus, senior midfielder Courtney Reimer and sophomore forward Hannah Friedrich.

• Saint Louis will host the semifinals and final of the 2019 Atlantic 10 Conference Championship Friday and Sunday, Nov. 8 and 10. Four first-round games will be played on the home fields of the top four teams in the final regular-season standings, with the winners advancing to SLU's Robert R. Hermann Stadium.

A LOOK AT THE RAMS

• Rhode Island's most notable result this season is a 1-1 draw at Pittsburgh.

• The Rams have allowed only six goals this season. 

• Freshman forward Brooke Cavino leads Rhode Island with two goals, while freshman defender Kelly Fitzgerald has a team-high two assists.

• Freshman Teresa Morrissey has played every minute in goal.