Border Battle
The Golden Gophers are set for a tough stretch with a road trip to Milwaukee, Wis. this weekend. On Sept. 11, Minnesota takes on Wisconsin-Milwaukee at 7:00 p.m., and on Sept. 13 they match up with Marquette at 2:15 p.m. Each of the Golden Gophers neighbors to the east were NCAA Tournament participants last season.  

The Records
Wisconsin-Milwaukee is riding two straight losses and a 2-2-2 overall record into the weekend, while Marquette lost their last match and sits at 3-2-0 on the season. Before meeting Minnesota, Marquette will host Wisconsin-Green Bay on Sept. 10.

The Series
The Golden Gophers and Panthers have met nine times in their history, and while Wisconsin Milwaukee is 1-0-1 in the last two match-ups, Minnesota leads all-time 5-2-2. The Golden Gophers and Marquette have met three times previously and Minnesota leads 2-0-1 all-time. 

Last Match-Up
Minnesota last faced Wisconsin-Milwaukee in the 2002 season, and came away with a 2-2 tie on the road. All nine meetings between the two teams happened in the ten years prior, but they have not met since. Minnesota and Marquette ended a 14-year hiatus when they met for the first time since 1994 last season in the NCAA Tournament. Minnesota won the match by the 2-1 final.

Watch Live
Fans can watch live stats for each match this weekend, as well as a live video feed for the Marquette match. To access just visit Wisconsin-Milwaukee's website at UWMPanthers.com and Marquette's website at GoMarquette.com. 

Last Time Out
Last weekend the Golden Gophers went unbeaten with a tie and a win. First on Sept. 4, Minnesota played 110:00 scoreless minutes in a 0-0 2OT tie against Tennessee, but came back on Sept. 6 to put up a four-spot in a 4-0 win over North Dakota State.

Next Up
Following their Milwaukee swing, the Golden Gophers return to Elizabeth Lyle Robbie Stadium to host the annual Minnesota Gold Classic. Minnesota welcomes Montana, Nevada and North Dakota to the Classic, and will  face off with Nevada and Montana on Sept. 18 and 20 respectively.

Big Ten Freshman of the Week
Cat Parkhill was named Big Ten Freshman of the Week on Sept. 7 following her two-shutout performance in last weekend's matches. This is the first Big Ten honor of Parkhill's career, and the first of the season for the Golden Gophers.   

Big Ten Leader
Parkhill is also the Big Ten leader in shutouts with four on the season, sharing the lead with Lauren Robertson of Ohio State.  

Shutout Streak
The Golden Gophers are currently riding a three-match shutout steak, starting with the 1-0 win over Kennesaw State on Aug. 30. The record for consecutive shutouts is four, first set in the inaugural season of 1993.  The record has been matched on three separate occasions, all coming last season. The most recent event came in a stretch from 10/26 to 11/7, and ended with the 1-2 loss to Penn State in the Big Ten Championship match.

23rd in the Nation
Despite an unbeaten weekend the Golden Gophers continue to slip in the polls, this week falling to #23.  The #23 ranking comes from the NSCAA poll while Minnesota is unranked in the Soccer Times and Soccer America polls. 

Record in the Polls
With their four straight week in the national polls this season, Minnesota continues to match the record set in 1995. That season the Golden Gophers went wire-to-wire in the national rankings, and 2009 is the only time since that they have opened a season ranked for four straight weeks.

7th in the Region
For the second consecutive week, Minnesota lands as the #7 team in the Great Lakes Region.  This week, the Golden Gophers are behind six Big Ten teams that grace the top of the poll.  Currently, number one in the region is unbeaten Purdue. 

Ranked Opponents
The Golden Gophers have still faced just one ranked opponent, falling to then #16 Georgia on Aug. 28. The loss dropped Golden Gophers record to 2-12-0 against ranked teams under Mikki Denney Wright. Of teams currently ranked, four remain on Minnesota's schedule in #7 Purdue, #11 Illinois, #24 Penn State and #25 Indiana.
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In the Tournament
This marks the first and only weekend this season that Minnesota matches up with two teams that played in the NCAA Tournament last season. Each of this weekend's opponents fell in last year's opening round. Minnesota is 1-1-1 this against last years playoff teams, beating South Dakota State, falling the Georgia, and tying Tennessee. 2008 tournament teams left to play include Wisconsin-Milwaukee, Marquette, Illinois, Penn State, and Michigan State.
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Shot Assault
The Golden Gophers fired off 24 shots against Kennesaw State, their highest total of the season and the most since another 24 shot performance last on 9/19/08.  With six shots individually, Katie Bethke holds the second best mark in the Big Ten early in the season. 

Shooter
Katie Bethke is currently second in the Big Ten in both total shots with 19, and in shots per game with a 3.80 clip though five matches.   

In a League of Her Own
With two goals against North Dakota State, Molly Rouse joins eight others as the only players with a single-game high two goals this season.  However, with her two assists in the season opener, she is the only player in the Big Ten this season with a two-goal match, and a two-assist match. 

Tough To Beat At the Robbie
Their record 13-match winning streak at Robbie Stadium came to an end with the tie to Tennessee, but after a win against North Dakota State, the Golden Gophers can still boast a 15-match unbeaten streak at home. Their last home loss came on 11/8/07 to Illinois in the first round of the Big Ten tournament.

That is Not Allowed
The Golden Gophers have allowed just two goals this season, tied with Indiana and Ohio State for second in the Big Ten.  Michigan State has allowed just one goal, which leads the league.

Takin' Attendance
The Golden Gophers had their first crowd over 1,000 of the season, when 1,023 packed the Robbie Stadium stands to watch Minnesota play North Dakota State.  After three home matches, the Golden Gophers average attendance is at 955, second only to Penn State at 1,782.

MYSA Weekend at The Robbie
When the Golden Gophers return home on Sept. 18 and 20, it will be MYSA Weekend at Golden Gopher Women's Soccer.  All youth wearing soccer jerseys get in free, while their parents tickets are just one dollar.  Also, bring a food donation in support of Second Harvest and receive a raffle ticket for a chance to win halftime prizes including a $100 gift certificate.

Get Score Updates on Your Phone
Fans can get scoring updates from all of Golden Gopher athletics through the Twitter page @GopherScores. Just find and follow @GopherScores, then set up your phone or mobile device to receive the text updates. If you are not already on Twitter, you will need to create an account.

Facebook/Twitter
Follow the Golden Gophers on Facebook and Twitter.  On Facebook search "Golden Gopher Soccer" and on Twitter search @gophersoccer.

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