LUBBOCK CHRISTIAN (3-3-2) vs.
UT PERMIAN BASIN (2-3-1)
Wednesday, Oct. 1 – 5 p.m.
LCU Soccer & Track Complex – Lubbock, Texas
 
LADY CHAP HEADERS

• Lubbock Christian will host UT Permian Basin on Wednesday night, looking for their first win since Sept. 17, when they beat Sul Ross 5-0
• Sophomore LCU defender Riley Espinoza is tied for the Lone Star Conference lead in assists this season with four, despite having spent only 307 minutes on the field
• UT Permian Basin is coming off back-to-back losses to Texas A&M International and UT Dallas. Their last win was on Sept. 20 against Eastern New Mexico
• Junior Casey Storer has anchored the Lady Chap back line that is allowing 1.38 goals per game. She leads the team with 696 minutes played
• Lubbock Christian is 2-1-1 at home so far this season. The wins came against CSU-Pueblo and Sul Ross, and the only loss came against No. 4 Colorado School of Mines

 
ELLA ENCHANTED
Sophomore forward Ella Spiller was an All-Conference Second Team, All-Freshman Team and All-Region Second Team selection in 2024, and she has already surpassed her numbers from a season ago. With two scores on Saturday – her second multi-goal game of the year – Spiller now has six goals, more than her five as a freshman. Her 14 points are enough to rank third in the LSC and her six goals are second-most in the league. She leads the Lady Chaps in both shots (24) and shots on goal (11).
 
OFFENSIVE OUTPUT
Lubbock Christian comes into Wednesday's contest averaging 1.74 goals per game, which ranks them in the top half of the LSC offensively. Overall, LCU has tallied 114 shots (14.3 per game) and put 52 of those on goal for a shots on goal percentage of 45.6 percent. Outside of Spiller, five other Lady Chaps have scored at least once this season, including three goals from Mia Chambliss, who last week clamed LSC Offensive Player of the Week honors, and Lexi De La Cruz. Journey Curs is second on the team in shots (18) and shots on goal (8) without finding the back of the net quite yet.
 
THE DEFENSE DOESN'T REST
On the flip side, LCU is averaging just 1.38 goals per game from opponents. The Lady Chap defense has allowed 98 shots (11.3 per game) with 40 of those on frame for a shots on goal percentage of 40.8 In their most recent game against UT Tyler, LCU outshot them 19 to 6, as the Patriots took advantage of one early mistake and a second-half penalty to escape with the draw. Storer and Emma Best are leading the defensive effort, both playing more than 650 minutes already this season.
 
IN THE WRIGHT PLACE
The last line of defense for this entire season has been Emma Wright, who has played all 720 minutes in goal for the Lady Chaps. Wright made a pair of saves against UTT, giving her 29 for the season, which is the second-most in the Lone Star Conference. She has a goals against average of 1.38 and a save percentage of .725. Earlier this season against Angelo State, Wright notched eight saves, which matched her career high. She has an all-time record of 3-3-2 collegiately.
 
WHERE THE HEART IS
Lubbock Christian is 2-1-1 at the friendly confines so far this year, beating CSU Pueblo and Sul Ross while suffering a loss to No. 4 Colorado School of Mines and Saturday's tie against UTT. Including Wednesday's game, they have six home games left this season. Last season they wen 4-3-2 on at their home field. The LCU Soccer & Track Complex was completed in August of 2020 and features an AstroTurf playing surface, a Musco lighting system to allow for night games and stadium seating for 500 fans. LCU's women's team has an all-time record of 70-35-23 all-time in home games. They have only posted losing records at home twice in 15 seasons. They did not lose a home game in 2015 (7-0-2) and won a program-high eight home games in 2019 (8-1-1).
 
NEW KIDS ON THE BLOCK
Thirteen spots on the 2025 roster are filled by newcomers, including 12 freshmen and a pair of transfers. Of the 12 freshmen, 10 hail from the state of Texas, along with one from Arizona and one from Colorado. LCU's freshman class includes Logan Holloway, Sydney Smith, Kali Guy, Bella Newell, Kenzie Tosch, Manderigh Santos, Julia Pesina, Katianna Worm, Samantha Simpson, Nancy Taylor, Cameron Beecham. The other two newbies are transfers from other Division II universities. Victoria Vidaurre is a Lubbock native who transferred in from conference foe Sul Ross. The other transfer is Espinoza, a New Mexico native who transferred from Missouri Western.
 
SCOUTING THE FALCONS

• UTPB's offense is led by local product Cassandra Ramirez, who has scored three goals and assisted two others
• Valeria Delgado has seen the majority of the time in goal for the Falcons, posting a save percentage of .862 and a goals against average of 0.67
• Garrett Kull is the head coach for UTPB, in his first season in the Permian Basin after previously coaching at Oklahoma Panhandle State
• UTPB's goals against average of 0.60 is the third-best in the LSC, behind only DBU and TWU, both of which are ranked nationally
• The two Falcon wins this season have come against Wayland Baptist and Eastern New Mexico

 
A WIN ON WEDNESDAY WOULD

• Be the 134th  in Lubbock Christian program history (133-101-36)
• Be the 12th under head coach Alistair Caldwell (11-10-5)
• Be the Lady Chaps' 14^th win against UT Permian Basin since the all-time series began in 2013 (13-2-2)