Pitt
Georgetown
No. 19 Women's Soccer Set To Meet No. 18 Georgetown in 2022 NCAA Championship Second Round
11/17/2022 9:52:00 AM | Women's Soccer
THE MATCHUP
PITTSBURGH - The No. 19-ranked Pitt women's soccer team (13-4-3, 5-3-2 ACC) looks to continue its postseason as it squares off against No. 18-ranked Georgetown (15-1-5, 8-0-2 Big East) in the 2022 NCAA Championship Second Round Friday at the Seminole Soccer Complex in Tallahassee, Fla. The contest is slated to get underway at 2 p.m. and will be streamed live on ESPN+.
The No. 4 nationally seeded Panthers made history by winning their first NCAA Tournament game in their first try, blanking Buffalo, 1-0, in First Round action last Saturday in front of the home crowd at Ambrose Urbanic Field. The No. 5-seeded Hoyas advanced to the Second Round by way of a 1-0 win over Hofstra last Saturday.
The winner of the matchup between Pitt and Georgetown will take on either No. 1 overall seed Florida State or No. 8-seeded LSU in the Third Round Sunday at 5 p.m. in Tallahassee.
PICK UP THE PAIS
Leah Pais lifted Pitt to the 1-0 victory over Buffalo with a header goal in the 85th minute. The game winner marked her second such goal this season and increased her team lead in goals scored to eight. Her eight goals mark the most scored in a single season by a Pitt senior. She increased her career goal total to 17, which is tied for the sixth most in program history. Her 21 points in 2022 rank as the most by a senior in a single season in program history and are tied for the sixth most in a single season in program history.
Anna Bout assisted on the game winner by Pais, tying her for the team lead with seven helpers this season. Bout is fourth in program history with 17 career assists.
HISTORY MADE
Pitt has been growing accustomed to making history.
The Panthers qualified for both the ACC Championship and NCAA Championship fields for the first time in program history in 2022. Pitt joined New Mexico State and Omaha as first-time participants in the NCAA Tournament this season.
Pitt clinched its first-ever berth in the ACC Championship field courtesy of a 0-0 draw with Clemson to close out the 2022 regular season. The Panthers had last appeared in postseason play in 2010 - a 1-0 loss at DePaul in the Big East Tournament First Round.
Pitt fell to No. 4-ranked Notre Dame in a penalty kick shootout, 5-4, in the 2022 ACC Championship First Round after playing to a 1-1 draw following two overtime periods. Freshman Katie Zailski came up clutch for Pitt in the 70th minute, converting on a scramble in front of the net to ultimately send the game to overtime. Leah Pais assisted on the game-tying goal.
BUILDING THE PROGRAM
The Panthers are now 44-38-7 under the leadership of fifth-year head coach Randy Waldrum. After going 9-22-4 in the first two years of a massive rebuild, Pitt has gone 35-18-3 over the last two-plus seasons.
PILING UP POINTS
Pitt has set a program record for points in a single season with 131 (45 goals, 41 assists). The previous high-water mark was shared by the 2020-21 and 1998 teams with 104. The Panthers' 131 points are tied for 21st in NCAA Division I while their 6.55 points per game rank 21st.
OFFENSIVE ONSLAUGHT
Pitt has outscored the opposition 45-17 so far in 2022. The Panthers' 45 goals are a program record and are tied for the 18th-most in NCAA Division I this season. Pitt is 21st in the nation in scoring offense with 2.25 goals per game.
FINDING BALANCE
The Panthers have seen 13 different players find the back of the net so far this season. Leah Pais is pacing Pitt, scoring a team-high eight goals. Amanda West, who is out for the rest of the season following an injury in the win over Cincinnati, is tied for second on the team with Landy Mertz and Sarah Schupansky with six goals. Mertz has compiled a team-high four game winners, which is tied for most among ACC players. Ellie Coffield, Samiah Phiri and Katie Zailski round out Pitt's top seven goal scorers. Fleming Dean, Bri Hilsenteger and Emily Yaple have each cashed in twice. Anna Bout, Mackenzie Evers and Ashton Gordon have each found the back of the net once.
HOW MAY WE ASSIST?
Eleven different Panthers have distributed assists this season, with Anna Bout and Sarah Schupansky leading the way with seven apiece, tying them for 54th in the country and ranking them fifth among ACC players. Leah Pais has distributed five assists to rank third on the squad while Landy Mertz has tallied four to rank fourth. Ellie Coffield, Ashton Gordon, Keera Melenhorst, Samiah Phiri, Amanda West and Emily Yaple have each dished out three assists while Ashley Moon has logged one helper. Pitt's 41 assists rank as the second-most in program history behind the 2021 squad's 47. The Panthers are currently tied for 29th in the country in total assists and tied for 29th in the nation in assists per game with 2.05.
HOME IS WHERE THE WINS ARE
Pitt has gone 8-1-1 at home this year, setting a new program record for home victories in a single season.
SHUT IT DOWN
The Panthers opened the 2022 season by earning a pair of shutout victories at the Rumble in the Rockies in Missoula, Mont. Pitt blanked Gonzaga, 1-0, in the season opener, then stifled host Montana, 2-0, three days later. The Panthers started a new season with back-to-back shutout victories for the first time since 2017. Pitt has added seven more shutouts to its total courtesy of a 6-0 rout of Cleveland State, a 7-0 romp over Kent State, a 2-0 blanking of Cincinnati, a 1-0 win over Louisville, a 2-0 victory over Syracuse, a 0-0 tie with Clemson and last Saturday's 1-0 win over Buffalo in the NCAA Championship First Round. Pitt's nine shutouts are tied for the second-most in a single season in program history.
SCOUTING GEORGETOWN
Friday's Second Round matchup pits a pair of former Big East Conference foes against each other. Pitt and Georgetown will be facing off for the 17th time, with the Hoyas holding an 8-6-2 lead in the all-time series. The Panthers last met Georgetown on Sept. 30, 2012, falling by a score of 8-0. Pitt has lost four in a row to Georgetown, with the Panthers' last win over the Hoyas coming on Oct. 19, 2008 - a 2-1 double overtime victory.
Dave Nolan is in his 19th season as the head coach at Georgetown, with the Hoyas going 258-89-54 during his tenure. Georgetown has not lost since the third game of the season on August 25 - a 1-0 home setback to Virginia. The Hoyas claimed an automatic bid to the NCAA Championship field by winning the Big East after 1-0 wins over both Creighton and Xavier in the conference tournament.
The Hoyas have outscored the opposition 33-8 this season and are coming off three-straight 1-0 wins. Georgetown leads the country in goals against average (.381) and shutout percentage (.762) while ranking 13th in saves percentage (.855).
Julia Leas was unanimously selected as the Big East Defensive Player of the Year while Allie Augur was named Big East Goalkeeper of the Year. Augur leads the nation in both goals against average (.182) and save percentage (.909) and has tallied 20 saves while permitting just two goals. Gia Vicari leads the Hoyas with 16 points off a team-high six goals. Maja Lardner leads Georgetown with six assists.
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