MILWAUKEE - The University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee women's soccer team will look to get back on track in their home finale this week, squaring off against Oakland Saturday at noon from Engelmann Stadium. Saturday will also serve as the annual "Pink Out" game for the Panthers, with the team sporting pink jerseys which will be auctioned off after the game.
 
Just the Facts...
• Saturday will mark the first time that Milwaukee and Oakland square off since their memorable Horizon League Tournament Championship match from last November. Milwaukee erased deficits of 1-0, 2-1, and 3-2, taking its first lead of the game on a Kelly Lewers' goal with 23 seconds remaining to send UWM to its sixth-straight NCAA Tournament.
 
• Both Oakland and Milwaukee find themselves in very unusual territory in the conference standings at the midway point. Milwaukee, which has won at least a share of the regular-season title the past 14 seasons, currently sits eighth. Meanwhile, Oakland - which advanced to the NCAA Tournament seven times since 2001 out of the Summit Conference - is in seventh place.
 
• The Panther offense has been struggling a bit of late. After scoring two or more goals in six of their eight games from Sept. 7 through Oct. 1 - a run that also saw a five-goal outburst against crosstown rival Marquette - the Panthers have found the back of the net just once over the past three games. That's certainly not for a lack of trying as UWM has outshot its last three opponents by a combined 42-20.
 
What's New?
The Panthers find themselves in a rather unusual spot in the conference standings heading into Saturday's contest with Oakland. Milwaukee currently sits eighth out of nine in the conference table after falling to 1-3-1 in Horizon League games. The last time Milwaukee dropped three league games in one year was all the way back in 1996 when they finished 3-3 in the MCC. For a little perspective, the majority of the current freshman class was less than one year old at that time.
 
About Oakland
The Golden Grizzlies enter Saturday's match with a 4-9-1 record overall under first-year head coach Margaret Saurin. Like Milwaukee, Oakland has taken on a difficult non-conference schedule, falling to Western Michigan, Notre Dame, Illinois, Michigan State and Colorado College.
 
OU has struggled to get things going offensively so far this season, netting 14 goals overall with eight of those 14 coming in two lopsided wins. Defensively, Oakland has been splitting time in net with Alison Holland starting seven games and Stephanie Bukovec getting the nod five times and appearing in eight games total.
 
Series Notes
With Oakland joining the Horizon League just last year, there is not a lot of history between Saturday's two programs. The Panthers played the Golden Grizzlies two last season, winning 1-0 in Rochester, Mich. on the final day of the season to clinch the regular season title. OU then came to Milwaukee for the league tournament, facing off against UWM in a thriller of a league championship. The Panthers trailed 1-0, 2-1 and 3-2 before Kelly Lewers' goal with 23 seconds left in the game sent Milwaukee to the NCAA Tournament for the sixth-straight season.
 
The Golden Grizzlies do have a few wins in the all-time series, with UWM holding a 4-3-0 advantage overall. The Panthers won the first two contests, both 2-1 overtime wins in 1999 and 2000, before OU claimed three straight from 2001-03.
 
In fact, all except for one lopsided match in 2001, this has been an incredibly even matchup over the years with all but one game decided by a single goal.
 
Bunches & Bunches Of Goals
The Panther offense has been a little streaky so far this season, but when they find the back of the net, the goals come in bunches. Against College of Charleston, Milwaukee pounded out four goals, twice scoring two goals in less than four minutes of game time. Against No. 25 DePaul, Morgan LaPlant scored two goals all by herself in less than six minutes. In the 2-1 win at Loyola, the Panthers scored both goals in just under seven minutes. In fact, in its five-goal barrage against Marquette, the Panthers had their largest time gap between goals all season at 31:51.
 
Leading the League
Kelly Lewers was named the Horizon League Offensive Player of the Week last week after netting a pair of goals for Milwaukee. She opened up the scoring in a 2-1 win over Illinois State Oct. 1 before finding the equalizer in a 1-1 draw with Cleveland State on Oct. 4. For her efforts, she was also named the league player of the week by College Sports Madness this past week. That capped a five-game point streak for the senior forward, with three goals and three assists in that span.
 
Heart Stoppers
Milwaukee's 5-4 win over Marquette sure was one for the ages. The Panthers raced out to a 4-0 lead before a surprising MU comeback knotted the game up at 4-4 with just over four minutes remaining. But, it was Sydney Senn in the role of hero, scoring the game winner with just 1:32 left on the clock to give UWM the wild win.
 
Recently, Panther fans have seen quite a few heart-stopping wins by their team. Last year, Milwaukee erased deficits of 1-0, 2-1 and 3-2 before scoring the winner with 23 seconds left in regulation in the Horizon League Tournament Championship to clinch a berth to the NCAA Tournament. Also last season, Morgan LaPlant and Kelsey Holbert both scored in the closing minutes of a 3-2 win over Youngstown State at home late in the season, while Kelly Lewers gave UWM a 4-3 win at Miami (Ohio) with a goal at 88:46 earlier in the year.
 
Black & Blue
It's no secret that Milwaukee has had a rash of injuries so far this season. The Panthers were forced to use five different starting lineups in their first five matches of the season. Three true freshmen have already made their first collegiate starts and 26 of the 29 members of this year's squad have already seen the field.
 
Tough Sledding
Milwaukee has traditionally played a very difficult non-conference schedule every season, and this year is no different. Marquette, South Carolina and Boston College were all ranked in the preseason top-25, with SC checking in as high as No. 9 in the nation right after narrowly defeating UWM. Also, DePaul and Auburn both jumped into the national poll just before playing Milwaukee, with DePaul now soaring to the 12th-ranked team in the country.
 
Fabulous Freshmen
There are nine true freshmen on this year's Panther squad and many have already been called upon to contribute right away. So far, those newcomers have already come up with some big moment. Freshman Cassidy Blanchard has started every game at center back and has done well at limiting the opposing attack and scoring her first collegiate goal against UIC. Two of Sydney Senn's goals have been game winners including the final goal in the dramatic win over Marquette.  And, Anna Smalley has been in the starting lineup since week two and has one assist, thus far.
 
 
Back In Black (& Gold)
The Panthers return eight of their starters from last year's roster and appear to be ready for another successful year on the field. Eight seniors headline the squad this season, including last year's Horizon League Player of the Year, Offensive Player of the Year and Tournament MVP Kelly Lewers. All-league first-teamers Krissy Dorre and Kelsey Holbert join Lewers on the attack, while second-teamer Amy Kauffung and all-freshman honorees Paige Lincicum and Kelly Manski also return for the Black and Gold this season.
 
Engelmann Elite
Milwaukee has always had a rich tradition of large home crowds and last season was certainly no different. Despite only having nine home games on their schedule last year, that didn't stopped the fans from coming out and packing Engelmann Stadium. 4,794 fans went through the turnstiles for Panther home games last year for an average of 533 per game, the second-highest average in program history. Last year also marked the fourth-highest fan turnout in a single season, with two of the highest attended games in program history, as well (Aug. 30 vs. Indiana, second-highest; Sept. 23 vs. Marquette, fifth-highest).
 
So Far, So Great
In just his third year at the helm of the program, head coach Greg Henschel has already twice guided the Panthers to the NCAA Tournament. He now is the only coach in the department's Division I history to guide its team to the NCAA Tournament in both of his first two seasons. Previously, he was one of three coaches to achieve that feat in just his first year, joining former women's soccer coach Michael Moynihan (1997) and current men's basketball coach Rob Jeter (2006) before Henschel again reached the NCAAs again last season.
 
What They're Saying
A look around the college soccer preseason polls shows there are plenty of expectations on this year's Panther squad. "College Sports Madness" announced its Preseason All-Horizon League teams with Milwaukee topping every group. Kelly Lewers, Krissy Dorre, Kelsey Holbert and Amy Kauffung were also first-team selections. Head coach Greg Henschel was tabbed as coach of the year, while newcomer Aubrey Krahn was selected as freshman of the year and Lewers was picked to repeat her offensive player of the year status.
 
All White Kit also selected UWM as its Horizon League favorite, saying it should be business as usual for the Panthers this season and adding "the Panthers should still walk away with more silverware in 2014."
 
Panthers Picked First In Preseason Poll
For the 14th time in the last 15 years, Milwaukee checked into the preseason coaches' poll at the top of the table. The Panthers received six of the nine first-place votes and collected 62 points overall. Oakland gathered two first-place votes and was picked second (51 points), while Wright State garnered one first-place nod and was picked third (50 points). Last year marked the first time in recent history that Milwaukee came in anywhere other than the top of the preseason poll, being picked third. That season, UWM went on to win its 14th-straight regular-season league title and sixth-straight league tournament crown.
 
Catch All The Action And More
All the Panther home games will again be webcast live and free on the Horizon League Network. In fact, beginning with the team's home opener against Boston College, every game from Engelmann Stadium will be featured on HLN.
 
In addition to live events, features, highlights and interviews are available at the Black & Gold Network - the department's official YouTube channel. Be sure to check in with BGN for the latest news and action surrounding Milwaukee women's soccer.
 
Up Next
UWM heads to Valparaiso, Ind. next Wednesday with a matchup against the conference leaders so far. The Panthers and Crusaders will kick off at 7:30 p.m. from Eastgate Field. The game can be seen live on the Horizon League Network.