Northwestern University Athletics
'Cats Host Spartans Sunday in Only October Home Match
10/16/2009 12:00:00 AM | Women's Soccer
Oct. 16, 2009
Women's Soccer Weekly Release (10/16) 
The Weekend
Northwestern plays its only home game in the month of October Sunday when it hosts Michigan State. The 1 p.m. match is the third conference home game at Lakeside Field for Northwestern this season.
Catching the 'Cats
Fans can follow Sunday's action with a live video stream of the game on NUSports.com All Access (subscription required), or through the free Game Tracker on NUSports.com. Live, in-game tweets will also be available by following @NU_SportsLIVE on Twitter.
Scouting the Spartans
Michigan State enters today's match 8-1-4 and receiving votes in this week's NSCAA poll, following a 1-0 win at Loyola Chicago Thursday night. Senior Lauren Hill leads MSU with eight goals scored, good for second place in the Big Ten conference, while sophomore Laura Heyboer's 19 points also rank second. The Spartans tied a school record for longest unbeaten streak to open a season by racing out to a 7-0-2 start. MSU has allowed just seven goals on the year, and their team goals-against average of 0.54 is the best in the Big Ten.
Series Information
Michigan State leads the all-time series, 10-4-2, including a 3-0 win last season at Lakeside Field. Northwestern's last win in the series came in a 4-0 victory at East Lansing in 2007; the 'Cats last victory over the Spartans in Evanston was a 1-0 win in 1999.
There's No Place Like Home
Northwestern returns to the friendly confines of Lakeside Field for the first time in three weeks today - and it's the Wildcats' only home match during the month of October. Not only is NU the only Big Ten school to play at home just once this month, no other team in the conference has fewer than three home matches (Purdue plays six home games in Oct.). There is a light at the end of the tunnel for the 'Cats, who are the only Big Ten team to have two home games in November.
Getting Their Chances
NU enters the weekend having registered double-digit shot totals in three consecutive games, the second time this season the Wildcats have set that mark. Northwestern took a season-high 17 shots at Michigan on Oct. 4, then followed it up with 12 and 10 at Penn State and Ohio State, respectively, last weekend. The 'Cats have now taken at least 10 shots in eight of their 14 games this season.
Immediate Impact
Freshman Briana Westlund is one of six newcomers to the Northwestern program to see significant playing time this season. Westlund, though, is the only newcomer to have played every minute for the Wildcats in 2009 and she's doing it at one of the most demanding positions on the field - center back. The Cottage Grove, Minn., native has been rock solid on the back line, playing a key role in the Wildcats' four shutouts to date this season. Beyond Westlund, sophomore transfer Caroline Dagley and freshmen Meredith Finsand, Catherine Parish, Jessica Rubin and Kendall Thoreson have all logged game minutes for Northwestern this season.
Bertie's Back
Kelsey Bertamus saw action in consecutive games for the first time in her Northwestern career last weekend. The redshirt freshman suffered a season-ending injury in the 2008 opener against Nebraska and missed over a year while rehabbing. She made her 2009 debut at DePaul but was sidelined again until last Friday. Bertamus has one career assist, recorded against the Cornhuskers last season.
