HIGHLAND HEIGHTS, Ky. – The Northern Kentucky University women's soccer team continues its three-game homestand on Sunday as the Norse welcome Robert Morris to the NKU Soccer Stadium for the first time.
 
NKU enters Sunday's contest looking to avenge last season's 1-0 loss to Robert Morris in both teams' season opener.  Action is slated to begin at noon.  Links to live stats and the ASun.TV broadcast will be available at NKUNorse.com.  For live updates during the game, be sure to follow @NKUNorseGameDay on Twitter as well.
 
The Norse began their current homestand on Tuesday evening, playing Xavier to a 1-1 draw to move to 2-1-2 on the year.  Xavier's Tori Doss opened the scoring in the 15th minute, but NKU responded three minutes later with Kelsey Laumann's second goal of the season off a pass from Sami Rutowski.  Both teams had chances to take the win late in the game, but NKU and Xavier's defense stood strong.
 
ABOUT ROBERT MORRIS:  The Colonials hold a 1-4-1 overall record after playing St. Bonaventure to a scoreless draw on Sunday afternoon in Moon Township, Pennsylvania.  Both teams created several opportunities but neither could get the ball behind the defense.  For her performance in goal over the weekend, goalkeeper Becky Schoenecker earned Northeast Conference Defensive Player of the Week honors.
 
Schoenecker has seen action in five games for Robert Morris and earned three starts.  She leads the team with a 1.19 goals against average and 27 saves, including five against St. Bonaventure.  Schoenecker has shared time in goal this season with Chelsea de Jager, who has made 10 saves while recording a 3.00 GAA.
 
Kristie Hamilton paces the Robert Morris offense, leading the team with six points on two goals and two assists.  Antonia Grese and Madison Kozlowski have each added two goals and one assist for the Colonials, while Erin Ritzer rounds out the Robert Morris offensive production with one goal and one assist.
 
LAST TIME AGAINST ROBERT MORRIS:  Katie Austin's goal in the 58th minute lifted Robert Morris a 1-0 victory over NKU on Aug. 23, 2013 at the Charles L. Sewall Center in the only meeting between the two teams.  Her goal marked the only shot on goal the Colonials registered against the Norse.
 
NKU had an opportunity to take the lead in the 25th minute when Elle Nguyen's corner kick was knocked off the bar by goalkeeper Becky Schoenecker. The ball came down in front of the goal line, but defender Jenny Eriksson Palmgren beat the Norse to the ball and cleared it, taking away any scoring chance.

Robert Morris collected seven saves on the day, including two as a team.  Schoenecker saved one shot in the first half, while Chelsea de Jager, who received the starting nod in the second, gathered four saves.
 
NKU took six corner kicks, but the Norse were only able to produce three shot attempts off the opportunities.
 
RISING TO THE CHALLENGE:  NKU goalkeeper Brooke Schocker earned her first start of the season Tuesday night against Xavier and rose to the occasion, helping the Norse preserve the 1-1 tie.  She made a career-high 11 saves, including two in the final two minutes.  In addition to her saves total, Schocker also came out and met the Musketeers offense to make a couple important blocks to keep the Norse in the game.
 
The redshirt sophomore from Schaumburg, Illinois, now holds a 0.70 GAA with 12 stops this season.  Schocker holds a 1-0-1 career record, having picked up her first collegiate victory against East Tennessee State in the final game of the 2013 season, which was also her first start.  She boasts an overall GAA of 1.09 with 15 total saves.
 
RUTOWSKI-LAUMANN CONNECTION:  Sami Rutowski and Kelsey Laumann connected on the lone NKU goal in Tuesday's 1-1 draw against Xavier.  In the 18th minute, Rutowski passed the ball forward to Laumann, who beat her defender and sent her shot into the lower right corner of the net.
 
Midway through the second overtime, Laumann and Rutowski hooked up once more to create an offensive opportunity.  Laumann advanced the ball to Rutowski, who was just outside the six-yard box in front of the goal.  Rutowski's golden goal opportunity ended up just wide of the Xavier goal.
 
Laumann, a redshirt junior from Cincinnati, Ohio, tops the team with three assists and shares the lead in points with seven.  Her first-half goal against Xavier was her second of the season.  Rutowski, a sophomore from Mason, Ohio, has collected three points this season on one goal and one assist.
 
SUNDAY'S PROMOTIONS:  #SundayFunday Soccer Bingo will be played during the Robert Morris contest.  Fans are encouraged to pick up a bingo card on their way into the NKU Soccer Stadium and play along for the chance to win prizes.  It will also be Shoot Around Sunday, where kids have the opportunity to play on the field after the game and receive player autographs.
 
UP NEXT:  NKU concludes its three-game homestand on Wednesday night against Butler at 7 p.m.  Last season, the Bulldogs scored two-first half goals to secure a 3-0 victory over the Norse in the only meeting between the two programs. Wednesday night's contest will be Greek Night.