Salem at Mary Baldwin | Wednesday, October 5th | 4:00 p.m.
SMA Worth Field | Staunton, Va.
LAST TIME OUT
Methodist claimed just its second shutout in the all-time series with Salem on Thursday, September 29th, when the Monarchs capped off their third USA South Conference win of the season with a 9-0 win at Varsity Field.
Salem finished off the match with three shots, one each from Caelan Gaul, Darilyn Nieto and Olivia Nivens. Gaul was responsible for the Spirits' lone shot on goal. Jordan Tomberlin, who suffered the setback in net, led the way with four saves. Alexcina Wartski came through with three saves for the Spirits, logging 54:03 in net.
FIRST ROAD CONTEST IN USA SOUTH ACTION
Wednesday marks the first road contest in USA South Conference action for the Spirits this season. Salem is 2-2 away from Varsity Field through the first nine matches of the season, claiming road victories at Regent (9-0) and Agnes Scott (4-1) during the month of September.
Since joining the USA South Conference, Salem is 3-2 all-time in its first road match of the league slate. The Spirits claimed their first win on the road in USA South action in 2016, defeating Maryville by a 2-1 margin in overtime. The following season, Salem emerged with a 1-0 win in Fayetteville, N.C., against Methodist.
Averett handed the Spirits a 2-0 defeat in the first road contest in USA South Conference play in 2018, but Salem rebounded the following year to claim a 3-0 victory in its first league contest on the road at Meredith.
The Spirits suffered a 1-0 setback to Methodist in 2021 when the two met in 2021, which marked the first road match of the conference slate for Salem.
ALL-TIME SERIES WITH THE FIGHTING SQUIRRELS
Salem is 1-1-0 in its all-time series with Mary Baldwin. The Spirits had their first-ever meeting with Mary Baldwin on October 26, 2019, posting an 8-2 victory in that match.
The first meeting marked Salem's 2019 Senior Day, which was highlighted by Spirit senior Jae Lehman, who entered the final regular season game of her collegiate career without a goal. She quickly changed that against the Fighting Squirrels, recording a hat trick as the Spirits earned an 8-2 win at Varsity Field.
Lehman was one of eight seniors playing their last regular season contest for the Spirits, who improved to 11-5-1 overall and 6-2 in the USA South with the six-goal victory. Salem also received goals from Baylee Greenwood, Courtney Chaplin, Kim Sephaphathi, Amy Bounds and Callie Adams in that match.
Two years later, when the Fighting Squirrels made their second trip to Varsity Field, on October 12, 2021, Mary Baldwin evened the series with a 2-0 triumph.
SALEM'S STATISTICAL LEADERS
Salem heads into its second USA South Conference match of the season led in goals by first year Darilyn Nieto. Nieto, with 10 goals to her credit, is one of six Spirits with multiple goals on the season, including Ashley Linden (four), Cristina Battistini (two), Nathaly Berrezueta (two), Layla Locklear (two) and Olivia Nivens (two).
Nieto, who tops the list with 10 goals and 21 points, is not only ranked atop the Salem statistical leaders in goals scored, but she ranks 16th nationally in goals scored and first in the USA South.
Nivens has been instrumental in getting her teammates involved in the offensive attack, dishing out a team-best three assists. That is one more than Linden, Alyson Gammons, Caelan Gaul and Miriam Moctezuma, who have two assists apiece for Salem.
The Salem defense, which accounts for three shutouts, has played a key role in the success on the pitch this season. The combination of Isabel Scott, Kylie Clark, Serenity Powell, Nivens, Moctezuma, Berrezueta and Battistini among others have proven solid throughout the non-conference slate.
Also key in Salem's success have been goalkeepers Jordan Tomberlin and Alexcina Wartski. Tomberlin leads the way in minutes (586:50) and saves (45), while Wartski has logged 176:29 minutes and made 11 saves, earning a victory against Agnes Scott. First year Mireya Sanchez, who has seen 46:41 minutes between the pipes for Salem, is responsible for two saves and one combined shutout.
ANALYZING THE FIGHTING SQUIRRELS
Mary Baldwin (7-2-1, 1-0 USA South) enters the match having won four of its last five matches, including back-to-back victories against Pfeiffer (2-0) and Averett (2-0) to close out September play. Six of the seven wins for Mary Baldwin have come in Staunton, Va., while the road win came in 3-2 fashion at Eastern Mennonite on September 17th.
The Fighting Squirrels have earned four of their seven victories by virtue of shut outs, the first of which came 1-0 in the season opener against Ferrum (Sept. 1). Mary Baldwin also notched eight goals in a shutout of Sweet Briar on September 15th.
Mary Baldwin has outscored the opposition 30-13 in 2022 due in large part to a Brenna Kehoe's team-leading seven goals. Kehoe is one of eight players on the roster with at least two goals for the Fighting Squirrels, including three each from the trio of Vanessa Alfaro-Young, Anna Cook and Shea Rider.
The combination of Alfaro-Young, Cook and Emma Forrest have complemented Kehoe's offensive production with three assists each, placing them in a three-way tie for first in that category.
Meanwhile, the combination of Maddy Vinson and Anyka Wilkin in net have limited the opposition to 13 goals against and 63 shots on goal. Vinson leads the team with a perfect 5-0-0 mark, appearing in six matches and making five starts along the way, and has logged 479:44 minutes between the pipes. She has 12 saves (.632 save percentage) this season. Wilkin has started three matches, totaling 184:40 minutes, and has made 19 saves (.950 save percentage) for Mary Baldwin.