(MATCH NOTES)

OPENING TOUCH: Dixie State (0-2-0/0-0-0 PacWest) opens the home portion of its 2016 schedule this week as the Trailblazers host a pair of CCAA opponents at Legend Solar Stadium. DSU opens the homestand with a date against Humboldt State (1-2-0) on Thursday, Sept. 8 at 7:30 p.m., followed by a match against preseason No. 24-ranked Sonoma State (0-1-1) on Saturday, Sept. 10 at 12:30 p.m.

In addition to the two Trailblazer matches, DSU will host a pair of neutral site games, beginning Thursday with Colorado Mesa taking on Sonoma State at 5 p.m., and a Colorado Mesa vs. Humboldt State tilt Saturday morning at 10 a.m.

DIXIE STATE VS. THIS WEEK'S OPPONENTS: Thursday's match vs. Humboldt State will be the second-ever meeting between the Trailblazers and Lumberjacks on the pitch. Last season HSU claimed a 1-0 overtime home win over DSU in Arcata, Calif. Dixie State and Sonoma State have met just one other time, with that match happening back in 2012 in St. George, when the Seawolves slipped past the Trailblazers by a 2-1 count.

COACHING STAFF: Head Coach Kacey Bingham (Arizona State, 2006) is in her fourth season on the Trailblazers bench as Dixie State enters its second decade of NCAA competition. Bingham has compiled a 28-22-3 overall record at DSU, including a 24-12-1 mark in Pacific West Conference play. Last season Bingham led DSU to an 11-6-0 overall record, the most wins in her brief tenure as head coach, which included a 9-4-0 PacWest mark and a fourth-place league finish.
Bingham is joined on the sideline by fourth-year assistant Rielee Reed, third-year assistant Abby Johnson and former DSU men's soccer player Nyle Ortiz, who is assisting both the DSU men's and women's programs.

TRAILBLAZERS PICKED FIFTH IN PACWEST: Dixie State was picked to finish fifth in the annual Pacific West Conference preseason coaches' poll released on August 18. Azusa Pacific and defending champion Point Loma each collected six first-place votes, but APU edged PLNU by two points, 184-182, to claim the top spot on the poll. Concordia University Irvine was tabbed for third place with 162 points, while California Baptist received one first place vote to finish fourth with 157 points, followed by DSU (141 points) in fifth, Fresno Pacific (125) in sixth and Hawai'i Pacific (108) in seventh to round out the top-half of the poll.

Dixie State did not land a player on the PacWest preseason team or on either of the preseason position player of the year lists.

WEEK IN REVIEW: Dixie State opened the 2016 season on a sour note as the Trailblazers dropped a pair of hard-fought matches last weekend in Portland, Ore. DSU fought the elements and a tough Concordia-Portland side last Thursday but came up on the short end of a 2-0 result. Then on Saturday the Trailblazers faced off with Seattle Pacific in a neutral-site match on CU's pitch. The Falcons struck for the match's lone goal late in the eighth-minute of play to take a 1-0 advantage. DSU had its chances as the Trailblazers fired three shots on frame later in the opening frame, but could not net the equalizer. DSU managed just two total shots in the second half but came up empty as SPU did just enough to claim the victory.

QUICK KICKS: Dixie State was shut out in back-to-back games for just the seventh time in the program's NCAA Division II era - a span of 182 total games, and it was the second time the Trailblazers had been shut out in consecutive matches to open a season ... in 2013, DSU was held scoreless through its first three matches (0-2-1) ... last season Dixie State opened the year with consecutive shut out road wins, including a 2-0 result at Antelope Valley and a 1-0 win at Cal State San Bernardino ... junior forward Darian McCloy (Herriman, Utah/Herriman HS) led the Trailblazer offense with eight total shot attempts last weekend, including five shots on goal ... McCloy had two SOG in the Concordia match and three more vs. SPU ... senior MF Alexis Torres (Tucson, Ariz./Palo Verde HS) also had four shot attempts, with one SOG, in the CU match ... in all Dixie State was outshot 23-18 in the two matches, 14-7 on frame ... senior netminder Angelica Ciucci (Stockholm, Sweden/Thorildsplans Gymnasium) played all 180 minutes in goal last week and made 11 saves, including seven stops in the opener at Concordia Portland.

ABOUT THIS WEEK'S OPPONENTS: Humboldt State enters Thursday's match with a 1-2-0 mark through three matches this season. The Lumberjacks joined DSU in Portland last week and dropped a pair of 1-0 results to SPU and Concordia. HSU then bounced back with a 1-0 win at George Fox University this past Sunday.

Sonoma State, which began the season ranked No. 24 in the NSCAA preseason coaches' poll, opened the year with a scoreless draw at home vs. No. 3 Western Washington, followed by a tough 1-0 home loss to Central Washington last Saturday.

UP NEXT: Dixie State heads back out on the road, but stays in-state, for a pair of matches next week. DSU travels north to Salt Lake City for a non-conference match at Westminster College on Tuesday, Sept. 13, followed by an exhibition match at NCAA Division I foe Southern Utah on Saturday, Sept. 17, in Cedar City.