Date Posted: 10/30/2007

MACON, Ga. - Like Michigan and Ohio State in football, rivals often meet in the regular-season finale with a conference title on the line. In the Atlantic Sun, in-state foes Mercer and Kennesaw State will meet at 7:00pm on Wednesday in Macon, Ga., to determine the champion in women's soccer. For those unable to attend the match, it will air on ASun.TV.

Kennesaw State expected to be competing for the title. The Owls, regular-season champions in 2006 and preseason pick by the coaches, have gone 25-3-1 in their three seasons in the Atlantic Sun. They feature the most potent offense in the league, averaging 2.9 goals per game in conference play. The next closest offense averages only 1.9 goals per game. The conference tracks nine offensive categories and someone from Kennesaw State leads in all nine.

A three-headed monster sparks the Kennesaw offense. Sara Clapham leads the league in assists and assists per game. Many of her passes have been deposited into the net by Annie Phillips and Caitlin Dingle. Phillips ranks first with Dingle second in A-Sun Conference play in goals, points, goals per game and points per game. Dingle leads in shots and shots per game.

In the rare instances where the KSU offense might not be lighting up the scoreboard, the Owls will often remain in matches thanks to the play of freshman goalkeeper Katie Piotrowski. In nine A-Sun games, she has recorded four shutouts and sports a 0.82 goals-against average in conference play.

While Kennesaw State expected to be in competition for the title, Mercer's run to the title was an unexpected one. The Bears feature 17 freshman or sophomores on the 25-woman roster. The coaches picked the Bears to finish fifth in their preseason poll but following a loss to Florida Gulf Coast in their conference opener, the Bears have rattled off nine consecutive victories and sit one win away from ther first women's soccer regular-season title.

Kennesaw State's strengths lie with it high-powered offense but Mercer has matched the Owls' 9-1 league mark thanks to a stingy defense and an ability to win the close matches. Six of the nine Bears' conference wins have been by one goal to go along with two two-goal wins. The Bears also own the best goals-against average in conference play at 0.69.

Two youngsters have been at the forefront of the backline for the Bears. Freshman defender Kacie Hudson owns a pair of defensive Player of the Week awards for her stellar play in her first year. Sophomore goalkeeper Jean Worts paces the A-Sun with a 0.70 goals-against average in conference play. She owns five shutouts in A-Sun games, one off the A-Sun lead, set currently by Florida Gulf Coast's Kirsi Keenan.

Should the match should end in a tie, the Owls would own the tiebreaker, and thus earn the No. 1 seed at the upcoming Atlantic Sun Championship, due to a better goal differential in overall conference play.

Related Links:
 • Preview at KSUOwls.com
 • Preview at MercerBears.com