BILLIKENS, FLYERS RENEW RIVALRY SUNDAY
WHEN: Sunday, Sept. 29, 2019 • 1 p.m. CDT
WHERE: Robert R. Hermann Stadium • St. Louis, Missouri
RECORDS: SLU 7-3-1, 2-0 A-10; UD 3-5-2, 1-0-1 A-10
SLU-UD SERIES: UD leads 10-4-3
LAST MEETING: at SLU 3, UD 0 (10/28/18, A-10 Championship quarterfinals) RECAP
BILLIKENS' LAST GAME: SLU 4, at VCU 0 (Sept. 26) RECAP
FLYERS' LAST GAME: at Dayton 0, Rhode Island 0 (Sept. 26) RECAP
GAME NOTES: Saint Louis | Dayton
WATCH: ESPN+
LIVE STATS: StatBroadcast
UP NEXT FOR THE BILLIKENS: Saint Joseph's • Thursday, Oct. 3 • 7 p.m. CDT • Hermann Stadium
A LOOK AT THE BILLIKENS
• Ranked No. 4 in the United Soccer Coaches East Region poll, the Saint Louis Billikens begin a four-game homestand Sunday, Sept. 29, against the Dayton Flyers. Game time at Hermann Stadium is 1 p.m.
• Sunday's game is the 18th meeting between the Billikens and Flyers, tying Dayton with Missouri State and Charlotte as SLU's most frequent opponent.
• Dayton leads the series 10-4-3, but Saint Louis has won the last two match-ups. Both victories occurred last season; the Billikens won 3-1 in Dayton, Ohio, during the regular season and 3-0 at Hermann Stadium in the A-10 Championship quarterfinals.
• Hannah Friedrich and Courtney Reimer were among SLU's goal scorers in Dayton last year, while Reimer, Emma Farley and Annabelle Copeland found the back of the net in St. Louis.
• SLU's 4-0 victory at VCU Thursday night extended its unbeaten streak to five games (4-0-1) and gave the Billikens a 15-game winning streak against A-10 opponents.
• The Billikens are 29-1-5 in their last 35 games at Hermann Stadium, a stretch that dates to the final home game of 2015.
• Saint Louis is No. 57 – highest among A-10 teams – in the first NCAA Ratings Percentage Index (RPI), which was released Monday. SLU has played four teams in the RPI top 30 – Purdue (No. 23), Louisville (No. 26), Oklahoma State (No. 29) and Notre Dame (No. 30).
• The Billikens rose three spots to No. 4 in this week's United Soccer Coaches East Region poll. Georgetown is No. 1, followed by Xavier, VCU, Saint Louis, Princeton, Butler, Dartmouth, Brown, Hofstra and Villanova.
• Saint Louis is enjoying the offensive balance it featured the past two years. Eleven different player combinations have accounted for the Billikens' 12 assisted goals this season. Nine Billikens have scored at least one goal, and 13 have tallied at least one point.
• The Billikens lead the A-10 in goals against average (0.53) and save percentage (.846) and are second in corner kicks (55).
• Mary Niehaus tops the conference in GAA (0.31), save percentage (.906) and shutouts (six). Niehaus has 35 career wins, good for second place on the Billikens' all-time list.
• Hannah Friedrich is tied for the league lead in game-winning goals (three), tied for seventh in goals (four) and tied for eighth in points (nine).
• Evie Lavelle is tied for third in the A-10 in assists (four), while Anna Lawler is tied for fourth in game-winning goals (two).
• 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 FLYERS
• Dayton defeated George Mason 2-0 in its A-10 opener last Sunday before tying Rhode Island 0-0 Thursday night.
• Five starters and 11 additional letter winners returned from the Flyers' 2018 team that was 8-9-2 overall and 4-5-1 (eighth) in the A-10.
• Dayton was picked for a sixth-place A-10 finish in the league's 2019 preseason coaches' poll.
• Among the returnees are sophomore forward Izzy Greene, who earned A-10 All-Rookie plaudits a season ago, and senior forward Micayla Livingston, who led last year's team with 12 points (5G, 2A).
• Two freshmen, midfielder Alexis Goins (4G) and forward Laney Huber (3G, 2A), lead the Flyers with eight points apiece.
