The Matchup
- The Greyhounds will continue their non-conference schedule as they will host the Youngstown State Penguins on Sunday afternoon.
- This will be the first-ever matchup between the two programs, as the matchup will start a 5-game home stretch for the Greyhounds.
Last Time Out
- The Greyhounds traveled to face the Rice Owls on Thursday August 25, as they went on to win 1-0 to secure their first win of the season.
- Baylee DeSmit scored the lone goal for the Greyhounds off of a free kick in the 12th minute to get them on the board. DeSmit has now scored in two of the first three games of the season.
- From there, the Greyhound defense came up big as Paige Sim posted a career best with 9 saves on the night.
- Despite being out-shot on the night, the Greyhounds defense managed to absorb the Owls attack to hold on to their first shutout victory of the year.
- Sim set a career high against the Owls with 9 saves on the night.
Key Returners and Newcomers
- The Greyhounds will return a strong core from last years team, as there will be 9 members of the team that tallied at least 10 starts last season.
- This group is led by Preseason Patriot League Goalkeeper of the Year, Paige Sim, who started all 18 games last season.
- The Greyhounds also return Sarah Mirr, Chloe Kuminkoski, Alex Searing, and Gillian Borton who all also started all 18 games last season.
- Three of the top four scorers from last years team also return in Baylee DeSmit (4 goals, 1 assist), Sarah Mirr (3 goals, 3 assists), and Ada Clare Tempert (3 goals, 1 assist).
- Other notable returners for the Greyhounds are seniors MK Barnes, Lea Kristjansdottir, and junior Kelly Hutton.
- On top of the deep returners for the Greyhounds, they also brought in a talented freshman class, as they brought in 5 freshman to bolster their roster, and also brought in sophomore transfer Michaela Virgin, who comes to Loyola after a year at NC State.
Defense Wins
- The Greyhounds owned the top defensive team in the Patriot League in 2021 as they allowed just 1.01 goals per game.
- Paige Sim anchored the Greyhounds defense as she led the conference with a .809 save percentage on the season and also tallied 4.22 saves per game last season. Sim also tallied 7 shutouts on the season.
Scouting Youngstown State
- The Penguins come into the matchup with a 0-3-0 record on the season so far. Their loses come from Akron, Valparaiso, and Duquesne.
- The Penguins have been slightly outshot this season by a total of 37-35, but their opponents have had more shots on goal (19) compared to the Penguins (12).
- In the Horizon League Preseason Poll, the Penguins were picked to finish in 9th place out of 11 teams, but did receive a first place vote in the poll.
- Coming off of a 2-11-5 (2-5-4) record in the 2021 season, the Penguins are returning a deep team, as they return 10 seniors for the 2022 season, including their two leading goal scorers in Regan LaVigna and Abriana Rondin.
- Junior goalkeeper Brooklynn Kirkpatrick as been solid for the Penguins so far this season as she is averaging 5 saves a game, on a .789 save percentage.
- Maddie Root is the lone Penguins player that has tallied a goal on the season, with Abby Knight providing the assist.
Quick Notes Entering the Weekend
-This is the first ever matchup between both programs.
- This is also just the second ever Horizon League matchup for the Greyhounds, with their first matchup coming against Oakland in 2012 in what was a 2-1 Greyhounds win.
- The Greyhounds were 3-4-2 last season coming off of a win.
- Loyola's eight victories last season are the program's most since the 2012 team went 12-6-4 and advanced to the NCAA tournament. The Greyhounds' 18 points in Patriot League play were also their most since joining the conference.
- 15 returning players appeared in at least 10 games during the 2021 season, including seven of them that tallied over 1,000 game minutes (Paige Sim, Alex Searing, Chloe Kuminkoski, Sarah Mirr, MK Barnes, Gillian Borton, and Baylee DeSmit)
- Five Loyola players combined for eight weekly Patriot League awards last season. Sim was a four-time Goalkeeper of the Week, while Baylee DeSmit (Midfielder of the Week), Kaleigh Gallagher (Offensive POW), Elizabeth Gallagher (Rookie of the Week) and MK Barnes (Defensive POW) were also recognized individually.
- Paige Sim was named the 2021 Goalkeeper of the Year and earned 1st Team All-Conference nods, as Baylee DeSmit was named 2nd Team All-Conference, and Alex Searning named 3rd Team All-Conference following the 2021 season.
Recipes for Success
- The Greyhounds have won each of the last 12 games in which they have scored two goals or more, a streak which dates back to Sept. 6, 2018. Loyola was 4-0-0 in 2021 when scoring multiple goals this season.
- The Greyhounds were 8-0-2 when scoring first and 6-0-1 when leading at halftime during the 2021 season.
What's Next
- The Greyhounds will be back home on Thursday September 1 as they host Columbia..
- Following Youngstown State, the Greyhounds will host Columbia, Kent State, Howard, and Wake Forest before they begin Patriot League play on the road against Colgate.
More on Sim
- Paige Sim played 1,690 out of a possible 1,701 minutes this season, and she tallied 5+ saves in nine of her 18 appearances. She led the Patriot League in goals-against average (0.96), save percentage (.809) and shutouts (7) this fall.
- Sim was a first team All-Patriot League honoree during the 2021 season, was a third team All-Conference selection during the 2021 spring season and she was a second team selection following her freshman season in 2019.
- For her career, Sim is 17-10-10 with a 0.73 GAA, a .835 save percentage and 15 shutouts in 37 starts.
- Sims current ranks all-time at Loyola; in 5th in saves, 2nd in save percentage, 3rd in goals against average, 5th in wins, tied for 1st in ties, tied for 3rd in shutouts, tied for 5th in goalie games played and goalie games started, and 4th in goalie minutes played.
