In-State Showdown on Tap as Akron Visits Ohio

Sunday, September 21

Athens, Ohio

1:00 PM

University of Akron

Ohio

September 20 | Women's Soccer

AKRON, Ohio – The University of Akron women's soccer team is set for a matinee affair at Ohio on Sunday (Sept. 21) as the Zips travel to Athens, Ohio, for a 1 p.m. showdown with the Bobcats.

GAME INFO
Akron at Ohio | Sept. 21 | 1 PM | Athens, Ohio | Live Stats | Live Video

HEAD COACHES
Ohio: Aaron Rodgers (North Texas), Overall Record: 97-109-29 (13th Season), Record at Ohio: 97-109-29 (13th Season)
Akron: Maggie Kuhn (Bethany, 2004), Overall Record: 81-86-14 (10th Season), Record at Akron: 3-3-1 (First Season)

SCOUTING AKRON
The Zips dropped a 1-0 decision versus UMass on Thursday (Sept. 18) to move to 3-3-1 on the campaign, including 0-1-0 in the Mid-American Conference.

Freshman Addison Hall (Manchester, Conn.) and senior Emma King (Akron, Ohio) lead the Zips in goals (2), while senior Kylie Schiemann (Geneva, Ohio) along with freshmen Fineen Cregan (Rochester, N.Y.), Luisa Fragnoli (Medina, Ohio) and Olivia Pilato (Rochester, N.Y.) have each tallied a goal. King directs the squad in shots (15) and shots on goal (9). Cregan and junior Jordanne Oberhaus (Wadsworth, Ohio) own a team-best two assists apiece for Akron. Junior goalkeeper Sara Bower (Cincinnati, Ohio) and redshirt freshman GK Ariana Vakos (Avon, Ohio) own 28 and three saves, respectively, on the campaign en route to posting three shutouts and recording a 1.43 goals against average.

The Zips under the leadership of first-year head coach Maggie Kuhn return six starters in 2025, including sophomores Kailyn Biecker (Wadsworth, Ohio) and Olivia Heskett (Lewis Center, Ohio), King, Oberhaus, sophomore Kaitlyn Rogowski (Hilliard, Ohio) and redshirt sophomore Rachel Wenzel (Akron, Ohio).

Akron is led by team captains Bower and seniors Kaylen Goddard (Mechanicsville, Md.) and King as well as fellow returning players Schiemann, junior Emalee Szablewski (Lancaster, N.Y.) and sophomores Addison Lambert (Galena, Ohio), Allie McMillen (Shreve, Ohio), Eesha Sutharshan (Knoxville, Tenn.) and Vakos.

The Zips are bolstered by a talented 11-member 2025 signing class, which includes eight freshmen and three transfers.

The Zips boast 11 newcomers to the squad as donning the Akron uniform this fall will be senior Rielly Chesna (Chicago, Ill.), junior Lilly Touhey (Fishers, Ind.), sophomore Taylor Allen (Blacksburg, Va.) and freshmen Freya Blatz (Bethel Park, Pa.), Fiona Buczak (Brunswick, Ohio), Cregan, Fragnoli, Hall, Bailey Kerins (Dublin, Ohio), Pilato and Devyn Raymond (Shelby Township, Mich.).

AKRON NOTES
• Akron is meeting Ohio for the 26th time in program history.
• Seventeen of the 25 matches between Akron and Ohio have resulted in a shutout, with the Zips posting six wins and one draw in those matches.
• Akron has scored two or more goals in seven all-time meetings with Ohio.
• Seven of the last nine meetings between the two schools have resulted in a shutout.
• Akron is in search of its first road win against Ohio since 2011.
• Emma King ranks fourth in program history in goals per tilt (.255) and points per game (.617), seventh in game-winning goals (4), eighth in career goals (12) and points (29), ninth in assists per match (.106) and 11th in career assists (5).
• Sara Bower ranks sixth in shutouts (5) and eighth in goals against average (1.70), career saves (134) and goalie victories (7).
• Addison Hall's two-goal effort versus Southern Indiana represented the first brace for an Akron freshman King netted a pair of tallies in a 5-0 win past Toledo on Oct. 23, 2022, at FirstEnergy Stadium.
• Akron leads in the conference in attendance, while ranking 79th nationally averaging 601 fans per contest.
• King leads Akron's active leaders in career goals (12), assists (5), points (29), shots (77), shots on goal (43) and game-winners (4), while Bower paces active Zips in career saves (134), goals against average (1.70) and save percentage (.740).
• The Zips rank second in the Mid-American Conference in shutouts (3) and fourth in assists per tilt (1.14).
• King is rated first in the MAC in game-winners (2), fifth in shots on goal (1.29), seventh in shots (2.14) per game and ninth in total goals (2), while Bower leads the league in shutouts (3), fourth in saves per game (4.00) and ninth in save percentage (.757). Additionally, Fineen Cregan is ranked seventh in assists (2) and eighth in assists per match (0.29), Hall is ninth in total goals (2) and Jordanne Oberhaus is eighth in assists per match (0.29) and ninth in total assists (2).
• Bower's nine-save performance at Dayton (Sept. 12) stands as a conference-best single-game effort this season.
• Hall's five-point effort (2 goal | 1 assist) and two-goal match versus Southern Indiana (Aug. 24) represent single-game league-high performance in 2025.
• Cregan posted a league-high two assists in Akron's 5-3 win over Southern Indiana (Aug. 24).
• Akron registered single-game MAC-leading marks in points (15), goals (5) and assists (5) versus Southern Indiana (Aug. 24), while tallying a conference-best nine saves at Dayton (Sept. 12).
• Six different Zips have scored a goal this season, including four newcomers.
• Fourteen Zips have registered a shot this season, including six newcomers.
• The Zips saw their shutout streak snapped after seven consecutive non-conference regular season contests with a 3-0 setback at West Virginia (Aug. 21). Akron went 5-0-2 mark in those contests and outshot the opposition, 84-70. Bower posted 19 saves in those games, while King added a team-best 15 shots with nine falling on frame.
• The Zips posted shutouts in seven consecutive non-conference contests and didn't surrender a goal in those games in more than 800 minutes (802:16).
• Ariana Vakos made her collegiate debut in the second half at West Virginia (Aug. 21) recording a pair of saves.
• A trio of newcomers earned their first career start at Akron against Purdue Fort Wayne in Rielly Chesna, Luisa Fragnoli and Lilly Touhey. Overall, eight newcomers have appeared for the Zips this season.
• The Zips recorded the squad's initial seven-game unbeaten streak since 2007 in 2024. The unbeaten streak matched the longest in program history set during both the 2006 and 2007 campaigns.
• Akron matched its 2006 squad as the only Zips' teams to post an unbeaten record in non-conference play.
• Akron posted the second most shutouts in a non-conference campaign in school history, trailing only the 2006 squad that registered six straight to open the 2006 season.
• Akron posted five consecutive shutouts for the first time since the 2009 campaign.
• The four 1-0 clean sheet victories last season represented the second-highest total in program history matching identical marks in 2007, 2009 and 2011. The 2006 Akron team holds the top mark with six 1-0 wins.
• The six shutouts by the Zips were the most for Akron in a season since posting seven in the 2011 campaign.

FOUR ZIPS HONORED ON SENIOR DAY
The Zips' contest versus Green Bay on Aug. 31 marked Senior Day for four Zips as seniors Rielly Chesna, Kaylen Goddard, Emma King and Kylie Schiemann were honored in pregame ceremonies.

In her first season at Akron, Chesna has started six games for the Zips, en route to registering an assist, while sparking the squad to a pair of shutouts.

Goddard has appeared in 50 contests, including 38 starts, en route to recording 11 shots, with three shots coming on goal, and leading Akron to 13 shutouts over her career.

King has appeared in 47 contests, including 40 starts, en route to collecting a team-best 12 goals, five assists, 29 points and four game-winners fueled by 77 shots, including 43 on goal.

Schiemann has appeared in 39 contests, including 15 starts, en route to registering a goal and an assist on the strength of 16 shots, with nine shots falling on frame.

SCOUTING OHIO
Ohio enters play against Akron at 3-4-2 on the campaign, including 1-0-1 in the Mid-American Conference following a 1-1 draw versus Bowling Green on Thursday (Sept. 18).

The Bobcats are led by sophomore Sania Dearing, who owns team-high marks in goals (3) and points (6), while junior Anna Burchett paces the squad in shots (19), shots on goal (7) and game-winners (1). Senior GK Celeste Sloama has posted 33 saves en route to collecting a 0.78 goals against average and three shutouts.

SERIES HISTORY
Akron and Ohio are meeting for the 26th time in program history with Bobcats leading 16-6-3.

IN OUR LAST MEETING (OCT. 6, 2024 – AKRON, OHIO)
Akron women's soccer team fell 3-1 to Ohio on Oct. 6, 2024, at FirstEnergy Stadium.

Ohio took a 1-0 lead when Ella Deevers scored in the sixth minute (5:26), assisted by Rayann Pruss. The Bobcats extended their advantage to 2-0 at the 28:54 mark on a goal from Rylee Mensel, off assists from Iro Fakinou and Hailey Jeng.

Akron closed the gap to 2-1 on Allie McMillen's 42nd-minute (41:25) goal. Eesha Sutharshan assisted the tally. The Bobcats made it a 3-1 lead with a penalty kick goal from Lillian Weller at the 42:06 mark.

Penelope Cuirinier totaled three saves for the Zips out of 13 total Bobcats shots.

UP NEXT
Akron visits Northern Illinois for an 8 p.m. ET conference tilt on Thursday (Sept. 25) in DeKalb, Ill.