Northwest Notes Aug. 11, 2023

Vandals announce 2023-24 nonconference men's basketball schedule

MOSCOW — Ahead of its first season under the direction of new head coach Alex Pribble, the Idaho men's basketball program has announced its 2023-24 non-conference schedule.

The Vandals will square off against 13 opponents outside of conference play, highlighted by seven home games and contests against Washington State and Stanford.

Right out of the gate, the Vandals will make the short 9-mile trek to Pullman to face Washington State on Nov. 6. The meeting will be the 278th all-time meeting in the two program's history and will restart the previously longest standing rivalry series in college basketball before not meeting last season.

"It was important for us to get Washington State back on the schedule," Pribble said. "We know what this game means to everyone out on the Palouse. We believe that both of the Pac-12 games will be great opportunities for our student-athletes, and I know they won't back away from the challenge."

The Vandals open their home slate with a visit from Cal-State Northridge on Nov. 9 for Pribble's first career home game in the ICCU Arena. The CSUN matchup is the first of three consecutive home games for Idaho, as the Vandals will host Evergreen State (Nov. 14) and Pacific Lutheran (Nov. 17).

Next for Idaho is an in-season tournament in Seattle. The Vandals open with a matchup against Seattle U (Nov. 22) — a 20-win team from a season ago and Pribble's previous stop as an assistant coach before taking over Idaho's program. A neutral site contest against UC San Diego on Nov. 24 will finish out play in Seattle.

Idaho will host Denver on Nov. 29, Cal Poly on Dec. 2 and Pacific on Dec. 5.

The Vandals then play three straight road games — against Utah Tech on Dec. 9 in the second game of a home-and-home, followed by games at Stanford on Dec. 17 and at UC Riverside on Dec. 21.

The non-conference schedule concludes with a Summit League Challenge matchup against St. Thomas at home to start the new year on Jan. 3.

"We need the ICCU to be the best home court advantage in the Big Sky this year," Pribble said. "We have six opportunities in non-conference play to build some momentum. Our young men are incredibly excited to take the court with the energy of the Vandal family behind them."

The Vandals will go up against two non-conference opponents that rank in the RPI top 100 and seven in the top 200.

Idaho women's soccer team tabbed No. 2 in Big Sky preseason poll

FARMINGTON, Utah — Idaho women's soccer soccer enters the 2023 season ranked No. 2 according to the Big Sky Conference preseason coaches' poll.

Coming off a second-place finish at the Big Sky Tournament last season, the Vandals are aiming to return to the championship match for the second year in a row. The Vandals finished the 2022 season 12-3-3 overall and 6-2 in the conference. Idaho received three first-place votes in the coaches' poll out of the nine available.

Much of the squad remains the same as the team lost only two seniors and along with the addition of eight freshmen, Idaho looks to return at the same strength as last season. The defensive line will be led by Kira Witte, who held the NCAA record with 13 shutouts last season and was named Big Sky Goalkeeper of the Year and Newcomer of the Year. All-conference selections Cassidy Elicker, Alyssa Peters, and Rebekah Reyes return to solidify the back line. All-conference selections Maddy Lasher (Lake City High), Margo Schoesler and Jayd Sprague will aim to ignite the Vandal offense from the midfield.

2023 Big Sky Soccer Preseason Coaches' Poll

(First-place votes in parentheses)

1, Northern Arizona (4), 54 points. 2, Idaho (3), 49. 3, Weber State (1), 45. 4, Montana 40. 5, Eastern Washington 35. 6, Sacramento State 34. 7, Portland State (1), 28. 8, Northern Colorado 28. 9, Idaho State 11.