Women's Soccer | 8/30/2017 2:19:00 PM

GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. – The 2017 Cornerstone Women's Soccer season is set to begin, with a weekend road series in Illinois against Saint Xavier University and the University of Saint Francis. The Golden Eagles are very familiar with these two Chicagoland Collegiate Athletic Conference (CCAC) foes, as they hosted both squads to open the season just a year ago. Both games will have live stats and video coverage that is available on cugoldeneagles.com.

Opponent: Saint Xavier (Ill.)
Date: Friday, September 1
Time: 8 p.m. EST
Location: Chicago, Ill. (Bruce R. Deaton Memorial Field)
Internet Coverage: Live Video/Stats
 
Opponent: Saint Francis (Ill.)
Date: Saturday, September 2
Time: 6 p.m. EST
Location: Joliet, Ill. (ATI Field at Joliet Memorial Stadium)
Internet Coverage: Live Video/Stats
 


Season Preview
Cornerstone will enter the 2017 season tied for the youngest roster in the WHAC with seven freshman and seven sophomores. Coming off an 8-8-1, 3-7-0 WHAC record, CU will look to get back into the conference tournament picture after finishing ninth last year and missing the tourney for the first time since 2009. The Golden Eagles will begin their season on the road in Illinois for a beginning of September weekend set at Saint Xavier and Saint Francis. The Cornerstone home opener will take place on Friday, September 8 vs. Huntington University to begin the annual Night of Nets weekend.
 
Scouting Saint Xavier
SXU is coming off of a 5-13-1 record and an eighth place finish in the Chicagoland Collegiate Athletic Conference in 2016. A roster with just two seniors, returns to the pitch in 2017 with a 0-1-0 record, losing 1-0 to Chicago State University in their season opener. Saint Xavier still has one game to play vs. Bethel College on August 30 before their match vs. Cornerstone. The Cougars lost both of their leading scorers from last season, as they will look upon the young local talent of their roster to lead them in 2017. CU holds a 2-0-1 record all-time vs. SXU.
 
Scouting Saint Francis
The Saints are another familiar opponent of the Golden Eagles, as CU hosted USF for a match just last year, winning 3-2. Saint Francis is another Chicagoland Collegiate Athletic Conference foe who has gotten off to a 1-0 start, after finishing 2016 with a 7-9-1 record and sixth place finish in league play. USF is another opponent looking to depend on new faces in 2017, as they graduated their top three goal scorers from 2016.
 
Local Talent
Head coach Randy Strawser and the Golden Eagles added seven freshman to the 2017 roster. Three standout signings include the local talent of Mikayla Johnson (GK/South Christian HS), Phoebe LaCroix (MF/Zeeland West HS), and Taylor Pratt (D/Thornapple Kellogg HS). All three of these local standouts received at least one All-State honor throughout their high school career.
 
What to Expect
According to preseason Wolverine-Hoosier Athletic Conference polls, the Golden Eagles have been picked to finish eighth in the conference by league coaches. CU will see two new opponents in league action this season, as Rochester College will enter the WHAC as a full member for the first time in 2017 and UM-Dearborn will embark upon their inaugural women's soccer season. The WHAC will now have 12 members, the most since the conference originated.
 
A Little Bit About Strawser
Coach Randy Strawser will be entering his 18th season as head man at Cornerstone, holding a 177-118-31 (.600) all-time record. Strawser is a three time WHAC Coach of the Year, and has led the Golden Eagles to a pair of regular season (2006, 2010) and conference tournament titles (2004, 2010). Strawser will return two assistant coaches in David Wood (6th season) and Riley Steen (2nd season), while also adding goalkeepers coach Eric Mikel who returns to the Golden Eagle sideline for the first time since 2013.