Week 10

RUSTON ââ'¬" The Louisiana Tech women's soccer team closes out the road portion of its schedule this week with two conference matches, the first one coming on Thursday night at Middle Tennessee with kickoff set for 7 p.m. at the Dean A. Hayes Soccer Stadium.

The second game takes place on Sunday afternoon at UAB with a 1 p.m. kickoff at BBVA Compass Field.

LA Tech (10-2-5, 3-1-3 C-USA) is coming off a home weekend where they registered four points, three of which were earned in the team's first ever victory over Charlotte by a score of 2-1.

The Lady Techsters picked up one point two days later in a 1-1 draw with Old Dominion, giving them a total of 12 which is tied for sixth in the league standings with three matches to go.

The four points was crucial for LA Tech who is attempting to qualify for the Conference USA Tournament for a fourth straight year (top eight advance).

Sophomore striker Jenna Dages is doing a lot to make that happen. She scored twice in the win over the 49ers, bringing her season goal total to eight (five of which have come during league play).

Another standout player from the weekend was senior defender Haley Laque who played all 200 minutes while also netting her fifth career penalty kick which set a new program record.

The Lafayette, Louisiana native is also on pace to set the program record for most games played in a career. She will tie the record as long as she plays in the remaining three regular season games and could break it if the team sees postseason play.

As a team, the Lady Techsters currently rank fourth in the conference in points per game (5.18) and goals allowed per game (0.83).

Middle Tennessee (7-7, 4-3 C-USA) has league victories so far over Florida Atlantic, FIU, WKU and most recently UTEP. The Blue Raiders went out to El Paso and defeated the Miners, 3-1.

They are led offensively by Peyton DePriest who has 10 goals, second most in C-USA. In net is Sydney Chalcraft who has a 1.61 goals against average and three shutouts.

LA Tech leads the all-time series with Middle Tennessee, 2-1-. This will mark the fifth straight year the two teams face off on the pitch. The Lady Techsters are undefeated in Murfreesboro with a win in 2013 and a scoreless draw in 2015. They were a 2-1 winner in Ruston last season.

Coming off a four-win season last year, UAB (10-2-3, 4-1-1 C-USA) has had a remarkable turnaround with already reaching double-digit victories which included a nine-match unbeaten streak. That streak was broken with a 1-0 loss to North Texas, but the Blazers got back on track this past Sunday with a 3-1 win at UTSA.

They have three players who have netted at least seven goals, led by Amy Brewer with nine. In net is Kelsey Daugherty who has a 0.81 GAA and five shutouts.

LA Tech has never lost to UAB, having won all three meetings. Each victory was a 2-1 decision, including last year's which came in double overtime.

Thursday's game can be seen through beIN Connect when you sign in with your cable subscriber. Sunday's match will be streamed through CUSA.tv (subscription-based).

Fans can also follow @LATechSOC on Twitter for live in-game updates.