No. 17 WSU begins a 3-game home streak, opening against the University of Idaho on Thursday. This will be the first time in three years the Palouse rivals meet. This season, the Cougs remain undefeated with a 4-0 record, while the neighboring Vandals are 2-3.

“They’re [Idaho] a hard, physical team, they got a different coach now and a different style,” WSU Head Coach Shulenberger said, “They’ll be prepared, but the Cougs will definitely be prepared too, so we’re looking forward to it.”

Previously, WSU took on Nebraska on the road, and narrowly edged out the hosts in a 2-1 comeback victory. The Cougs fell behind early to a penalty kick, however, two second half goals were enough for the visiting Washington State. Additionally, the Cougs returned home with a new ranking, their highest since 2015.

Sophomore forward Elyse Bennett and redshirt junior midfielder Alysha Overland were the goal scorers against Nebraska, as Overland became the sixth WSU player to score so far this season.

Overland’s goal was also a special goal for her, as she scored for the first time since 2016, having been sidelined for the entire 2017 season due to injury.

On the defensive end, redshirt senior goalkeeper Ella Dederick reached 20 career shutouts in the Cougs’ 2-0 victory at Minnesota on August 26. If Washington State holds a clean sheet against Idaho, Dederick will tie Katie Hultin (2002-2005) for 2nd all time in WSU history for career shutouts.

Senior defender Maddy Haro currently ranks 5th in the nation in assists, averaging 1.33 assists per game. Haro is just 2 assists away from tying for 10th all time in WSU history.

Meanwhile, Idaho previously took on North Dakota and Vermont in the Missoula Invitational, losing the former 0-1 but pulled out a 1-0 victory in the latter. The Vandals turned around after their initial defeat by UND to find their first shutout of the season against Vermont.

The local rivalry between WSU and Idaho last resulted in a 3-1 victory for the Cougs on August 24, 2015 in Moscow. The series sits in the Cougs’ favor, as WSU has won 11 straight after losing the series opener in 1999.

Washington State has not face Idaho while ranked since 2009, when the Cougs hosted took them down 3-0.

The 13th meeting between the Palouse schools will kick off at 7 p.m. on Thursday, September 6 in Pullman at Lower Soccer Field. The match will be broadcast via a WSU livestream.