Lady Jackets Host Carroll on Sunday for Senior Day (Oct. 28, 2004)

BILLINGS, MT – The MSU Billings Yellowjackets wrap up their best women’s soccer season in school history on Sunday then the Jackets host Carroll College at 1:00 p.m.  MSU Billings (11-4-3) will be trying to hold off the Saints (12-5-0) for the second time in eight days.  The Yellowjackets won 2-1 in double overtime last Sunday in Helena.

Sunday will also be the final game for the five Yellowjacket seniors.  Coaches, teammates and fans will honor Megan Beckstead (Salt Lake City), Candy Cherry (Missoula, MT), Margot Merrill-Johnson (Salt Lake City) and Laura Trinkle (Westminster, CO) as they play their final game in a Yellowjacket uniform.  Also being honored Sunday will be senior Stephanie Clark (Tualatin, OR) who has missed the second half of the season with an injury.

The 2004 season has been a recording breaking one for the Jackets.  Along with winning a school-record 11 games and posting the first winning record in the program’s history, a host of individual and team records have fallen. 

As a team, the 2004 Jackets have already eclipsed school records for goals, assists and points.  They have found the net 42 times with 34 of those goals being assisted.  That adds up to 118 total points, 14 better than the previous record in 1999.  With 42 goals in 18 games (2.33 gpg), MSU Billings also has a chance at breaking the school record for scoring average (2.23 gpg).

While the offense has shined, the defense deserves just as much credit for the Yellowjackets’ success.  The Jacket “D” is on pace to set a new school record for goals against average and fewest goals allowed in a season.  They are currently allowing 1.13 goals per game—the school record is 1.45—and their 22 goals allowed are five fewer than the current school record.

The second most important record for coach Don Trentham’s squad, next to the overall wins, is the number of wins at home.  The Yellowjackets currently have an eight-game winning streak and nine-game unbeaten streak on their home field.  On Sunday they will be attempting to become the first MSU Billings team to finish a season unbeaten at home.  Ironically, MSU Billings ended Carroll’s 13-game home winning streak last Sunday.

Merrill-Johnson’s final season in blue and yellow has been record breaking.  Her 28 points and 11 goals have broken and tied school records respectively.  She enters Sunday tied with Abby Farmer for the most career points in school history (67) and second behind Farmer for career goals scored (Merrill-Johnson has 28, Farmer had 30).  Merrill-Johnson will also finish her career tied for No. 1 for games played and games started at 70.

Cherry, who scored the game-winner last weekend in the second overtime at Carroll, is tied atop the career games played and games started lists with Merrill-Johnson.  The duo has started every game since 2001.  After spending much of her first three seasons as a defender, Cherry has had the best offensive season of her career with three goals and two assists for eight points.  Two of her three goals have been game winners.

Beckstead has played for the Yellowjackets for two years after transferring from Santa Rosa JC.  In her two seasons, MSU Billings has a 17-14-4 record.  She has been a key cog in the Yellowjackets’ record-setting defense this season and has also scored two goals and an assist.  Beckstead will finish her two seasons with 36 games played and 33 games started.

Trinkle has played in 44 games over her four seasons, including 13 this season.  She has scored three career goals with one of them coming in the Jackets’ regional win over Central Washington.

Clark had also started every game of her career before her injury in the eighth game this year.  She will finish her career sixth on the all-time list for games played with 56.  Her goal and two assists this season also moved her up to No. 8 on the all-time scoring list with 14 points.