DAYTON – The University of Dayton women's soccer team heads west for a crucial match for the Atlantic 10 standings on Thursday night, taking on preseason favorite Saint Louis at 8 p.m. ET at Hermann Field.
 
ABOUT DAYTON
Dayton (9-3-2; 6-0-0) heads into its most important match of the season tied with its best start in Atlantic 10 play in the Eric Golz era, who also started 6-0 in 2022. Sophomore Laney Smith leads the team in points (10 - 4 goals, 2 assists) on the season, while Lauryn Contini, Liv Grenda and Kyra Karfonta all have three goals. Keeper Batoul Reda has an NCAA-leading 10 shutouts on the season.
 
SCOUTING SAINT LOUIS
The Billikens (11-2-1; 6-0-0) won last weekend's A-10 matchup with a 2-1 home victory over Duquesne. SLU's lone losses on the season were road setbacks at No. 14 Penn State and No. 10 Iowa. Adee Broesder and Izzy Luebbert lead the team with 11 points each, with Broasder tied with Audrey Smith for the team lead in goals with four. Keeper Emma Parker has allowed 10 goals in 14 games and has six shutouts on the campaign.
 
SERIES STUFF
Dayton trails the all-time series with Saint Louis, but the two have played even in the recent history of the matchup. In 2023 the two sides played to a 1-1 draw in Saint Louis with Diana Benigno scoring the Flyers' lone goal. Last season the two played to a scoreless draw at Baujan Field.
 
LAST TIME OUT
• Sophomore Lauryn Contini led Dayton in an offensive flurry, scoring a pair of goals to lead the Flyers to a 4-1 win over Saint Joseph's on Saturday at Baujan Field.
• Dayton improves to 9-3-2 on the season and 6-0 in the A-10.
• Contini got the Flyers on the board right away, finding the back of the net with her second goal of the season in the third minute of action off an assist from both senior midfielders Riley Kerber and Molly Russell.
• The Hawks pulled even with a 37th-minute tally, snapping the Flyers' shutout streak at 620:35, the longest goalless streak for UD since at least 2004.
• UD's pressure increased in the final 20 minutes, starting with senior Kyra Karfonta converting on a penalty kick in the 74th minute after Karli Ferguson drew a foul in the box.
• Sophomore Liv Grenda tallied her third goal of the season 10 minutes later, flicking a shot over the keeper after Laney Smith and Emery Newlin set her up on the left side of the box.
•Just three minutes later the Hawks committed a hand violation in the box, allowing Contini to cash in her second goal of the day on a PK.
 
WHAT'S AT STAKE?
• Thursday night is a showdown between the top teams in the 2025 Atlantic 10 standings, with both teams registering 18 points through the first six games.
• Both teams are riding impressive winning streaks, as the Flyers have won each of their last six games and the Billikens each of their last seven.
• Only three matches remain after Thursday's game, meaning the team that comes out on top will have the inside track to the Atlantic 10 Championship's No. 1 seed.
• The higher seed hosts in the Atlantic 10 Championship, so while not necessarily clinching homefield advantage throughout, it will put the winner in an adventageous position down the home stretch.
 
BATTLE OF THE A-10'S BEST 
• Dayton and Saint Louis are separated by just three in the most recent national RPI rankings, with the Flyers coming in at 41 and the Billikens at 38.
 
DOUBLE VISION
• Sophomore Lauryn Contini had the first two-goal game of her Flyer career against Saint Joseph's on Saturday, marking the first time the Flyers have had a two-goal scorer in back-to-back games since the 2023 season.
• Against VCU, freshman Ky Hau-Golden not only scored the first goal of her collegiate career, but doubled down with another tally in the 90th minute for her second.
• It was the first time a freshman scored two goals in a game since current sophomore Laney Smith found the back of the net twice against Massachusetts last season.
• The last time the Flyers had back to back games with different multi-goal scorers was when Laney Huber scored a pair against Wright State four days later.
 
CLIMBING THE RANKINGS
• Dayton's defense has been climbing the national rankings since conference play began. Not only do the Flyers rank No. 2 in goals against average in the conference, but they also rank 18th nationally.
• UD's shutout percentage is also among the country's elite, leading the A-10 and ranking third in Division I.
 
UP NEXT
• Dayton returns to the friendly confines of Baujan Field for a home showdown with St. Bonaventure set to kick off at 1 p.m.