Friday vs. Truman State at 5:00 PM:  Game Notes  l  Live Stats  l  Video

ALLENDALE, Mich.—The soccer season is winding down, yet the gravity of each postseason game continues to weigh heavily on the teams involved. At this stage, nothing is guaranteed, no outcome is certain and only one team comes out on top. With just sixteen teams left in the fold, the second-ranked Grand Valley State women's soccer team has no plans of departing the field before achieving their goal from the onset of the this season; to win a national title, their fourth in a row.
 
These Lakers have been here before, they've tasted postseason glory and they are just a few wins away from potentially tasting it again, yet the task at hand is this weekend's Midwest Regional Championship game with #22 Truman State on Friday. Grand Valley State has found itself in this same game in each of the past seven seasons and emerged victorious in each of those seasons, but face a tough test in the Bulldogs (15-1-4), the second seed in the region who are eager to down the Lakers. To look past Friday's opponent would be folly, for the Bulldogs are as tough an opponent on paper as any team the Lakers have faced this season.
 
Grand Valley State has been dominant defensively this season, and has gone all season without meeting their equal in that regard until now. The Bulldogs have yielded the same amount of goals (five) as the Lakers this season, hold nearly identical goals-against-averages (0.24-0.25) and have recorded 16 shutouts to the Laker's 18 this season. A team this stalwart hasn't gotten to this point without a talented individual between the sticks, and Truman Stat's Katie Mattingly is just that. A D2CCA Player of the Year candidate, Mattingly also earned Great Lakes Valley Conference Defensive Player of the Year for compiling a 15-1-4 record, making 71 saves and notching 15 shutouts.
 
"Truman State is a different team offensively than last season due to losing some dynamic attackers, but I think this year's team is also better defensively for them", said GVSU head coach Jeff Hosler. "They have a very good goalkeeper, she makes all the saves she's supposed to and is capable of making the big-time, highlight type saves as well. Their back four is fundamentally sound and good in the air, but the word that really describes them is disciplined. They don't get caught out of position, they don't bite at the wrong moments, so you've got to create something very clean and creative to break them down and get to goal."
 
Offenses both clean and creative enough to break down the Bulldogs were in short supply this year, as the Bulldogs allowed more than one goal to just one opponent (2-0 loss to Lewis), and shutout 16 of their 20 opponents on the season. Their effectiveness on defense made up for a lack of firepower on offense, as Truman State has scored just 28 goals on the season, and scored more than one goal in just eight of their games this season. Their discipline in close games and their success in coming out on top is both a tribute to Truman State's players and the man at the helm, 24-year veteran Mike Cannon. Cannon has amassed a 320-110-53 overall record in his time leading the Bulldogs, and has got his program running like a well-oiled machine.
 
"Mike Cannon a coach who has been there for a long time and has a great track record of success over that long period of time", Hosler said. "He's one of the best coaches in the country, his team plays an attractive style of soccer, they're very well organized and keep the ball well, and I admire the way their players understand their roles in the system and execute those roles. "
 
To combat the tough Bulldogs defense, the Lakers will bring their own "ace-in-the-hole" to Friday's contest, in the form of their dynamic and skillful trio of forwards. That trio of Gabriella Mencotti, Kendra Stauffer and Jayma Martin form the bulk of an offense that has led Division II in goals, points and assists this season. There's no denying that the Lakers can score in bunches, as evidenced by the 14 games in which they scored three or more goals this season, as well as the fact that no team has kept the Lakers off the scoreboard yet this season. GVSU has scored 92 goals this season, as nine different players have scored at least three goals in the 2016 campaign.
 
"When our front three are on, and on at the same time, they are very difficult to stop", said Hosler. "The challenge has been getting them to all be on at the same time, and we haven't had that in any match outside of the Tiffin match. We've been challenging our kids this week that this is the time that players need to start stepping up more and being more consistent, to not have as many peaks and valleys in their performance. If our front three can get rolling, then that will be something Truman has not faced the likes of this season, but that requires our kids to be focused and consistent in our approach and execution."
 
Given the Bulldog's penchant for keeping the score low and the game close, added importance goes to the decisive first goal, and whichever team allows it will gain a huge boost due to the nature of neither team to allow goals, and the virtually unheard of idea of either team surrendering a second strike. For the Lakers, the question will be how well they can execute on their home turf, where they have traditionally been at their best, and how well they rise to meet the challenge of facing a new postseason opponent.
 
"I think our kids have been pretty focused these past three weeks. We've been sharp at training, we've been in tuned in and they're excited about the unique experience of playing at home this weekend as well as playing somebody different at this stage", Hosler said. "We haven't played Truman State in a game at this stage before, and so it provides our kids with a unique challenge to prepare for this weekend."
 
The GVSU-Truman State matchup will determine the winner of the Midwest Regional Championship, while a game immediately afterwards between the #3 University of Central Missouri and the #24 Fort Hays State Tigers will determine the winner of the Central Region Championship. The winner of each matchup will meet on Sunday at GVSU Soccer Field at 1 p.m. in the NCAA Quarterfinals.