SAN FRANCISCO, Calif. – Cougar fans will get the chance to watch the Washington State University women's soccer team 10 times at home in 2017 as the Pac-12 Conference has released the upcoming soccer season schedule. In addition to 10 contests, not including an exhibition game, at Lower Soccer Field, the Cougars will make eight appearances on the PAC-12 Network including the Game of the Week against the reigning Pac-12 Champions, Stanford, on Sept. 21.
In total, the Cougars will play six of their eight televised games at home in 2017 with a pair of road contests being featured on the conference's television network.
As well as the Game of the Week coming to the Palouse, the Cougs' 2017 home schedule is highlighted by hosting the reigning national champion Trojans of USC on Oct. 22. For the Cougs, the Pac-12 schedule of games will skew towards the road as WSU will play five of its 11 conference contests at home while traveling away from Pullman for six matches.
While the conference slate of games splits slightly away from WSU, the majority of the Cougs' non-conference games will be contested at home at Lower Soccer Field. For the Cougs and the rest of the competition that comes to Pullman, Lower Soccer Field will have a new look in 2017 as WSU will show off its newly renovated stadium. With a new press box, stadium seating, and more, the Cougs have continued their push and investment to be one of the top collegiate programs in the country.
WSU kicks off the season with a pair of contests in its newly renovated home with the season opener scheduled for Aug. 18 against the Big 10 Champions, Minnesota. Minnesota marks the first of nine of WSU's opponents in 2017 that played their way into the 2016 NCAA Tournament. Additionally, the Cougs' matchup with the Gophers will be their first eight games on the PAC-12 Network.
After a tilt with Saint Mary's at home on Aug. 25, the Cougs hit the road for the first time in 2017 with a trip to California to take on Santa Clara on Aug. 27. The matchup with the Broncos, a 2016 NCAA Quarterfinalist, marks a rematch of an epic clash between the two teams from last season that saw the Cougs prevail over the No. 13 ranked Broncos, 1-0, in Pullman.
WSU will begin September with three home games including hosting its first of what will be the annual Cougar Classic Sept. 1-3. The Classic will feature four teams with the Cougs taking on Nebraska (Sept. 1) and Georgia Southern (Sept. 3). Also joining the fray will be Montana as the Griz will take on Georgia Southern (Sept. 1) and Nebraska (Sept. 3) prior to WSU's matches.
After completing their first home tournament, the Cougs remain at Lower Soccer Field to take on Cal State Northridge (Sept. 8) before closing out non-conference play on the road. The Cougs travel to Utah Valley (Sept. 14) and return to Montana (Sept. 17) to put the final tune-up together before diving head first into conference play. In Missoula, WSU returns the favor of the Griz taking part in the Cougar Classic while also looking to make it eight-straight wins against Montana including three-consecutive for the 2017 Cougs' senior class.
Immediately following non-conference play, the Cougs face three-straight NCAA participants from 2016 in home contests to begin Pac-12 play. The race for the conference title begins on Sept. 21 against Stanford in the PAC-12 Networks Game of the Week. After taking on the Cardinal, the Cougs will take their crack at Colorado (Sept. 28) and Utah (Oct. 1) to close out their first home-stand of conference play. In all three cases, WSU will look to avenge one-goal losses from a season ago.
Hitting the road for three games, WSU will head to Oregon (Oct. 5) and Oregon State (Oct. 8) before traveling back to the Golden State to take on Cal (Oct. 13). The Cougs' seniors will look to remain unbeaten against the Oregon contingent having not lost to the Ducks or the Beavers in the last three seasons. The contest at Oregon will also be one of two away games for the Cougs to be featured on the PAC-12 Network.
The Cougars will look to get back on track against the conference's teams from California beginning with their game at Cal as WSU dropped a close 1-0 contest to the Golden Bears in 2016. The matchup also marks the first of three for WSU against teams from the state as the Cougs return home from Berkeley to take on UCLA (Oct. 19) and USC (Oct. 22). In addition to getting their shot at taking out the reigning champs from USC, the Cougs' contest on Oct. 22 marks the final home game for WSU when the team will honor its seniors playing for the final time at Lower Soccer Field.
With the home schedule completed, WSU ships off for three final road games, the first two taking place in Arizona against Arizona State (Oct. 26) and finishing in Tucson against Arizona (Oct. 29). Last season the Cougs split their games against the two desert schools, falling to the Wildcats before taking down the Sun Devils in double-overtime.
To finish the season, the Cougs head west to take on the rival Huskies in Seattle on Nov. 3. The contest will be featured on the PAC-12 Network as WSU looks to extend its unbeaten streak against Washington to 15 seasons.