2025 POSTSEASON PREVIEW: No. 20 USAO is Well Prepared for the Road Ahead in the Postseason
CHICKASHA, Okla. – On Wednesday, Nov. 5 the No. 20 ranked USAO Drovers women's soccer team will open the postseason against No. 7 seed Nelson University at 7:00 PM CT at McLaughlin Field.
The Drovers enter the Sooner Athletic Conference Tournament as the No. 2 seed after producing a 6-0-3 record against conference opponents, and 11-2-5 overall. USAO has outscored opponents 49-12 this season, including 10 shutout performances. Furthermore, the Drovers currently own a 14-game unbeaten streak, during which they have outscored their opponents 41-5.
The last time USAO went undefeated in conference play was in 2022 when they went 9-0. Since the start of the 2021 season, the Drovers are 38-4-3 against conference foes.
The top eight teams in the standings qualify for the SAC Tournament, with the top four teams hosting quarterfinal matchups. The highest remaining seeds will host for the semifinals and finals.
USAO has appeared in the last 10 SAC Tournament championship games, including each of the last five coming against John Brown University. In total, the Drovers have claimed seven tournament championships in program history (2001, 2002, 2011, 2015, 2017, 2018, 2019).
The Drovers are undefeated in their last 15 regular season conference games, going 12-0-3 against the league since Oct. 8, 2024.
USAO's strength of schedule has been very impressive this season, producing a 3-2-4 record against opponents that are ranked or receiving votes in the NAIA Coaches' Top 25 Poll, including wins against No. 7 College of Idaho, RV Oklahoma City, and RV Columbia. Losses against No. 22 MidAmerica Nazarene (Kan.) and RV Hastings (Neb.). The Drovers earned ties against No. 8 Embry-Riddle (Ariz.), No. 11 John Brown (Ark.), RV Mid-America Christian, and RV Concordia (Neb.).
The Drovers' strength of schedule ranks 6th in the NAIA and they rank 10th in RPI.
The Drovers have earned a good amount of hardware so far this season as well, with one player earning SAC Offensive Player of the Week (Dagbjort Gudmundsdottir), and three different players earning SAC Defensive Player of the Week awards (Agnes Aas, Chiara Schillinger, Ashlyn Lonberg x2).
Paula Casajus and Dagbjort Gudmundsdottir have each scored 11 goals this season, which ranks fourth in the Sooner Athletic Conference, followed by Ilse de Jong with eight goals, ranking 10th. Casajus ranks fifth in the SAC in points (26), followed by Gudmundsdottir in seventh (23), and de Jong in 14th (18).
Ashlee Davison ranks second in the conference in assists with seven, in addition to six goals for a total of 19 points. Davison ranks 12th in the league in points.
Ashlyn Lonberg has been stellar for USAO between the pipes this season and has played in every game except for one, producing a 10-2-5 record. Amongst her SAC peers, she ranks third in save percentage (.821) and goals against average (0.72), while ranking fifth in saves (55).
In her marvelous career as a Drover, Lonberg owns a 36-5-6 record, with 17 shutouts. In the program record book, Lonberg ranks first in goals against average (0.95), third in wins (36), and fifth in shutouts (17).
WHAT'S NEXT?
The No. 2 seed Drovers will host the quarterfinals of the Sooner Athletic Conference Tournament against No. 7 seed Nelson University on Wednesday, Nov. 5. Kick-off is slated for 7:00 PM CT at McLaughlin Field.
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