After defeating their last three Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference opponents, the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater women's soccer team is poised to start the first round of the WIAC Championship when they travel to UW-Platteville, the fourth seed, tomorrow for a match at 6 p.m.
 
The fifth seeded Warhawks are 9-9-1 as they head into the postseason, and have gained some confidence by beating their last three WIAC opponents by a combined score of 13-1.
 
A 1-0 win at UW-Platteville on October 17 started the three-game streak, and the Warhawks will make the trip back with the expectation of the same result.
 
In their last meeting, UW-W jumped out to their 1-0 lead just 31 seconds into the match behind an unassisted goal by Anna Boyd (De Pere, Wis./De Pere) and never looked back.
 
The Warhawks went on to outshoot Platteville 8-6, but the Pioneers notched four shots on goal to UW-W's three, making Tuesday night's match-up very intriguing.
 
Offensively, the Warhawks got off to a slow start this season. Through their first nine games, they scored just eight goals, but recently the offense has livened up, scoring 19 goals in UW-W's last ten matches.
 
Anna Boyd (De Pere, Wis./De Pere) and Savannah Curtis (Lodi, Wis./Lodi) are a large reason for the Warhawks' offensive surge.
 
Boyd, a sophomore forward, leads the team with eight goals, but seven of those have come in the second half of the season. Curtis, a freshman, has also done her damage in the back half of the schedule, registering all four of her goals in the last ten games.
 
On the defensive end of the field, the Warhawks will look to their seasoned back line to provide stability and confidence. Four-year starters Payton DeLuga (Algonquin, Ill./Dundee Crown), Lauren Otto (Richmond, Ill./Richmond Burton Community) and Mackenzie Serbousek (Cedar Rapids, Iowa/Cedar Rapids Prairie) will use their postseason experience to help sophomore Katy Kusswurm (South Elgin, Ill./St. Charles North) and freshman Carley Albrecht (Milton, Wis./Milton) provide UW-W with a strong defense.
 
Junior goalkeeper Nina Yonan (Skokie, Ill./Niles North) will play behind the defense and use her athleticism and experience to keep opponents out of the net. Yonan has racked up 87 saves so far this season, ranking her tenth in the Warhawk record books for saves in a season. In her career, Yonan has totaled 130 saves, fifth most in school history, and 11 shutouts, fourth most.
 
The winner of tomorrow's match will head to either UW-La Crosse, the tournament's top seed, or UW-Stevens Point, the two seed, on Thursday for a semifinal match. The semifinal winners will advance to the championship match on Saturday, November 3 at a site and time to be determined by the outcome of the semifinal matches.
 
The winner of the league tournament receives the conference's automatic NCAA bid.