Griz to face pair of one-loss teams on the road

The Montana soccer team, which went unbeaten in two home matches over the weekend, will face a pair of one-loss teams on the road this week as the Grizzlies' pre-Big Sky Conference schedule nears its endpoint.

Montana (1-3-1) will play at Wyoming (3-1-1) at 4 p.m. on Friday in Laramie, then make its way to Las Vegas for a Sunday match at 2 p.m. (MT) against UNLV (4-1-1).

The Grizzlies' final pre-league match will come on the road against Washington State (4-0-0) on Friday, Sept. 14. The Cougars are currently ranked No. 17 in the nation.

Montana will open its Big Sky schedule at home, hosting Northern Colorado on Sunday, Sept. 23, on a weekend that celebrates the 25th year of the program.

Coverage: Both matches this weekend can be tracked through live stats, the links to which can be found on the soccer schedule page at gogriz.com.

At a glance (Montana): The Grizzlies went 1-0-1 at the Montana Invitational over the weekend, picking up their first win of the season on Friday with a 1-0 victory over Vermont. They played to a 0-0 draw against North Dakota on Sunday.

At a glance (Wyoming): After opening 3-0-1 through their first four matches, the Cowgirls took their first loss on Tuesday, falling 4-1 at Northern Colorado. Wyoming was picked to finish eighth out of 12 teams in the Mountain West Conference preseason coaches' poll.

At a glance (UNLV): The Rebels, who play at Northern Arizona on Friday, have lost just once this season, 2-0 on the road at Southern Utah, and are coming off a 6-0 dismantling of Cal State Bakersfield. UNLV won 13 matches a year ago and was picked fourth in the Mountain West preseason poll.

Montana Notes:

* The Grizzlies picked up their first win of the season at home on Friday evening, 1-0 over Vermont, when Hallie Widner scored off a loose ball in front of goal with 48 seconds remaining.

* On Sunday, Montana put eight shots on goal to North Dakota's three and had the same advantage in corner kicks but could not put in the game-winner in a 0-0 draw.

* Goalkeeper Claire Howard was named the Big Sky Defensive Player of the Week on Tuesday after posting a pair of shutouts at the Montana Invitational. That gives her nine shutouts for her career.

* Howard dropped her goals-against average from 2.00 to 1.15 in two matches over the weekend and improved her save percentage from .700 to .786.

* Widner was named the Big Sky Offensive Player of the Week on Tuesday. It was her third time receiving the award in her career. She was named POW once as a freshman, once as a sophomore.

* With Sunday's scoreless draw, Montana remained unbeaten (6-0-1) at home against North Dakota in the programs' series history.

* The Grizzlies outshot the Catamounts and Fighting Hawks 35-17 and created 18 corner kicks to those teams' five.

* Nine players have been in Montana's starting 11 all five matches this season, with Howard, at goalkeeper, and Taryn Miller, at center back, playing every minute.

* Widner's goal on Friday was the 12th of her career but only her fifth since her freshman season in 2014. She needs four more goals to crack the top 10 on the Montana career list.

* Coyle's assist on Friday -- her potential game-winning shot was blocked and went to Widner -- was the third of her career. She had two last year as a freshman when she led the team in scoring with 10 points.

* Sunday's high temperature in Las Vegas is forecasted to be 106 degrees. That would be a 31-degree change from the 75-degree temperature expected in Laramie on Friday.

Historically speaking:

* Montana is 5-3-3 against Wyoming but hasn't picked up a win against the Cowgirls in the teams' last four matchups (0-1-3), during which the Grizzlies have scored just a single goal. ... The teams had played for seven consecutive seasons before missing each other on the schedule last fall. ... Montana is 3-2-1 against Wyoming in Laramie. ... The Cowgirls have scored just seven goals against the Grizzlies in the teams' 11 matchups, never more than a single goal in a match.

* Montana is 2-2-0 against UNLV. ... The teams' last meeting came in 2012, a 3-1 Rebels' victory on their home field. ... Montana has been outscored by UNLV 6-1 in their last two meetings, but those came years apart, in 2004 and 2012. ... The Grizzlies won the teams' first two matchups, 2-1 in overtime in Las Vegas in 2002 and 2-0 in Missoula in 2003.

The state of Montana:

According to first-year coach Chris Citowicki, nearly everything is in place now as he continues to mold his first Montana team. Unfortunately the piece that's been slow to develop -- the Grizzlies' scoring punch -- is the one that's most noticeable to people following and evaluating the program.

Yes, Montana has scored just two goals this season and only once in four home matches, but a closer look at the numbers reveals a team that's creating more and more chances. The Grizzlies had season highs in two matches last week in shots, shots on goal and corner kicks.

"After this weekend I'm a lot happier with how we're attacking and all the opportunities we're creating. Obviously the massive thing that's missing is we only scored one goal in that time, but it's getting closer. We're creating the right chances," Citowicki said.

"Every game we're getting better and better. All the pieces are there. Sometimes it comes down to luck, and it's just not with us right now. But it's all following the right trajectory. The ball's just got to go in the net, and when it does, we're good."

If (and when) that happens, Montana will be in a good position, because the Grizzlies are defending so well.

Vermont got off only six shots on Friday and created just two corner kicks. North Dakota put three shots on goal on Sunday and had the same number of corners.

"On the front end, we're creating chances," Citowick said. "On the other side of the field, we've been playing lockdown defense.

"Claire Howard is awesome to watch, and in terms of our back line, we've been doing a lot of individual and group work, and it's all coming together. It's very organized. The timing is right, all the body positions are right. All the small details are coming into place. I'm very happy with what they're doing."

On Friday against Vermont, Montana took control early and stuck to its game plan throughout, even though it appeared the teams would be heading to overtime in a 0-0 deadlock.

But late in regulation, McKenzie Warren took a shot that was saved, giving Kennedy Yost a final-minute corner kick. Taryn Miller won the first ball with her head. Then it was Alexa Coyle who took a shot that was blocked before the ball found Hallie Widner for the game-winner with just 48 seconds on the clock.

Widner got the recognition, but it was a collective effort, starting with Warren's shot that had to be pushed out the end line to be saved from being its own game-winner. The Grizzlies won each of the moments that followed.

"It's kind of our mantra, to win one moment, then the next," said senior Janessa Fowler. "Take each moment one by one, and if you win enough of them, you're going to come out on top."

Two days later Montana faced a North Dakota team that was 3-0 and hadn't allowed a goal all season.

The Grizzlies nearly became the first team to break through against the Fighting Hawks, starting with Ellie Otteson's header in the 15th minute. Warren hit the post in the 24th minute and Yost hit the top of the crossbar in the 83rd.

"Knowing (North Dakota coach Chris Logan) and how he was going to play, which was to sit back and defend, then try to hit us on the counter, you're only going to get a couple of chances in a game like that," said Citowicki. "We had them. We just didn't put them away."

"It was definitely a tough day, especially with the injuries," added senior Ellie Otteson. "But we were able to pick out the good things. There were a lot of positives to take away from Sunday.

"For me it's about confidence. You do one good thing and it builds. Another good thing happens and you start scoring. Hopefully that's what starts happening for us."

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Players Mentioned

Alexa Coyle

Janessa Fowler

Claire Howard

Taryn Miller

Ellie Otteson

McKenzie Warren

Hallie Widner

Kennedy Yost

University of Montana Athletics