ADRIAN, Mich. - Over the next two weeks, the Adrian women's soccer team will face arguably its toughest slate of competition. The next four opponents for the Bulldogs are each ranked inside the top eight of the United Soccer Coaches' Region VIII poll, including the black and gold's first challenge, Trine.

In the USC's most recent poll put out on October 5, the Thunder (11-1-1, 2-1 MIAA) fell in at No. 5. Despite this recognition, the Indiana-based squad may see a shake-up in the standings when the newest polls are released before gametime on Tuesday. After starting the season undefeated in its first twelve matches, Trine met the cold end of the scoreboard this past Saturday, falling to No. 8 Hope, 2-1.

The Thunder sport the MIAA's largest freshman class on their 2021 roster, and the young guns have not disappointed. In fact, each of Trine's four leading scorers are first-years, including Teresa Ashbrook, who ranks third in the conference in both goals scored (11) and total points (23). However, Ashbrook has been absent from the last six games for the Thunder, but that has not stopped the team from receiving contributions from other fresh names.

Bella Mabry is second on the lineup in total scoring with 14 points, including a team-best two goals over three league matches. Behind her are Mia Augustino and Paige Skaff, both with seven points on a combined 24 shots.

Trine has worked with four different goalkeepers so far this season. One of those netminders, Carmen Sweigard, boasts the MIAA's lowest goals-against average at 0.64. The junior's save percentage of 0.897 over 560 minutes played also paces the conference.

Adrian will go into Tuesday's showdown with the Thunder with history on its side, having won six straight in the all-time series, and 15 of the last 17.

Tuesday will also be the Bulldog women's soccer team Senior Day! Four student-athletes will be recognized prior to kick-off, which is scheduled for 7 p.m. at Docking Stadium.

Then, on Saturday, the black and gold begin their final road-trip of the season at Hope.

The Flying Dutchmen (8-3, 2-1 MIAA) avoided back-to-back losses over the weekend, handing the Thunder their first loss of the season.

Sophomore Madison Holloway and senior Sarah Mikesell sit atop the Hope lineup with 16 and 15 total points, respectively. The duo has pummeled opposing goalkeepers with a combined 50 shots on goal on 91 total shots.

Freshman Margaret Owsiany has aided the Dutchmen offense with seven points on three goals and one assist.

In-between the posts, Parker Hutchinson sports a 0.837 save percentage behind 41 saves and a 0.80 goals-against average, which both rank third in the MIAA, respectively.

Hope has controlled the all-time series with Adrian over the last eight years, winning 11 of the last 14 meetings.

The Bulldogs (9-5, 4-0 MIAA) are hoping for a different story when the two sides square-off on Saturday afternoon.

The locals are led by two of the conference's best offensive contributors.

Senior McKenna Mahoney is actively tied for the league-lead with 12 goals scored, having tallied one in each of the last eight matches for Adrian. Her 28 total points are second-most in the MIAA behind Calvin's Sophie Mueller's 30.

While Mahoney paces the goal-scoring for the 'Dogs, junior Eve Davis has produced a team-high nine assists. Not only does that total lead the conference, it also translates to a 0.64 assists per game mark, which ranks as the highest in a single-season in program history.

Additionally, Kaitlyn Dake has emerged as a key provider for the Bulldogs' offense. The junior has chipped in four goals for Adrian over its four conference games, including two at Olivet this past Saturday.

In goal, sophomore Taylor Fischer continues to stand strong for the black and gold, turning in a 0.826 save percentage behind a conference-best 71 saves. Furthermore, her 1.14 goals-against average ranks fifth in the MIAA.

Live stats and video will be available for both of this week's matches.