Bucs begin their first weekend homestand in conference action

JOHNSON CITY, Tenn. (Oct. 3, 2019) – With the non-conference portion of the schedule complete, the ETSU women’s soccer team look to make an early impression in the Southern Conference as they host Samford and Chattanooga over the weekend.

Last Time Out
After suffering a heartbreaking 2-1 double overtime defeat in the conference opener to Western Carolina, the Bucs responded in an emphatic manner at the expense of South Carolina State, earning a 5-0 road win on Monday evening. Only five minutes in, the Bucs were 3-0 up thanks to a Sarah Connolly (Ballygowan, Northern Ireland) brace and a Sydney Cavender (Scott Depot, W. Va.) career first. Connolly grabbed her hat trick just 17 minutes in as the Bucs grabbed a fifth goal through an own goal as the Bucs cruised to a comfortable win. Cavender ended the night with four points, recording two assists to go along with her goal. Connolly played a role in Cavender’s effort, grabbing her first assist of the season.

Media Central
Sunday’s contest will be streamed on ESPN+. Play-by-play announcer Mike Gallagher will call the action. Both matchups will be provided with live stats to follow the match.

Friday Live Stats: etsubucs.com/livestats
Sunday Live Stats: etsubucs.com/livestats
Sunday Live Video: ESPN+
Twitter: @etsuwsoccer

About ETSU
Head coach Adam Sayers has had the luxury of a solid center back partnership to rely on as Marina Bradic (Medvedja, Serbia) and Elena Pisani have started together in all 11 matches to start the season. Kourtney Gaylord (Mooresville, N.C.) has held down the right back position in 10 of the 11 matches, earning a rest in the 5-2 win over Delaware State. The flexibility and reliability of Rafaella Giuliano (Caserta, Italy) has been on display over the course of the season, as Sayers has been able to deploy her in the midfield as well as at left back.

Tess Mrozek (Johnson City, Tenn.) has looked comfortable in the net for her hometown side, starting in all 11 matches while playing all but just over 100 minutes of action over the season. Mrozek was the first Buc to receive SoCon Player of the Week honors, earning it on the defensive side of the ball after her 12 save performance against Gardner-Webb. Deputizing the Buccaneer net in four appearances has been Courtney Green (Lake Worth, Fla.), the freshman gaining experience while allowing Mrozek time off.

Kendall King (Charlotte, N.C.) has went from a super sub early in the season to locking down a place in the starting XI, the redshirt-sophomore collecting both of her assists off set pieces. The arrival of newcomers Pamela Penaloza (Bogota, Columbia; transfer from Austin Peay) and freshman Anjela Kricak (Krusevac, Serbia) have provided the Bucs with even more scoring from the midfield position, combining with Beatrice Abati (Milan, Italy) for six goals and three assists between the three.

In the attack, the leading goal scorer returning from last season’s squad Sarah Connolly has come alive in recent weeks. After a five game slump without a goal to start the season, the junior scored six in her last six games, including a four goal weekend against Western Carolina and SC State. An assist in the last match was the first on the year for Maegan Sours (Erie, Colo.), adding to her goal in the season opener. The winger is joined by freshmen Momoko Horiuchi (Paris, Tennn.) and Jocelyn Nehls (New Richmond, Ohio) in providing width for Adam Sayer’s side. The former adding two goals and an assist in her debut season, while Nehls has also joined in the attack, assisting on two scores on the year

About Samford
Involved in six double overtime games already this season, Samford comes into the match logging a 4-2-5 record, including a 1-0-1 mark in conference play. The Samford non-conference schedule has been anything but easy, earning draws against the likes of UAB, LSU, Auburn and DePaul. After a draw against Furman to start their conference campaign, the Bulldogs defeated Wofford in a 1-0 contest in their home ground.

Despite an offense that parades nine different goal scorers on the season, the Samford offense runs through a true freshman. Taylor Yount has come straight into the college game and made an early mark with seven goals and an assist. Junior Alyssa Frazier and freshman Kyla Reynolds have also provided two goals in the 2019 campaign.

Morgan McAslan has staked her claim in the net for the majority of the season, playing in all but 52 minutes in goal. McAslan is second in the conference in saves, recording 60 on a .811 save percentage. The Bulldog defense has shut out five opponents on the season and are one of the more physical sides, leading the conference in fouls per game at over 14 a contest.

About Chattanooga
Chattanooga enters the weekend on a 6-3-2 mark, including a 1-1 record in SoCon action. The Mocs hold non-conference losses to Georgia State and Vanderbilt, earning a draw to Alabama. Chattanooga started conference action with an emphatic 3-0 win over Wofford, before suffering a narrow 1-0 loss to Furman on Sunday.

Outscoring opponents 18-9 on the year, 10 different Mocs have scored a goal on the year. Led by Faith Gober, the freshman has tallied three goals on the season. Sophomore midfielder Hollie Massey has been a creative force on the season, scoring two goals while creating five assists on the year, earning joint-second marks in assists in the Southern Conference.

The Mocs have split duties in the net in the opening 11 games between Abbey Saddler and Ashton Shields. Sadler has allowed just three goals in 475 minutes of play, making 16 saves while allowing just .57 goals per game. Shields holds a .99 goals per game average, making 22 saves in six starts.

Series History
The Bucs look to turn their fortunes around against Samford, the Bulldogs holding a dominant 7-1 advantage over ETSU. The two sides battled in last year’s matchup to 2-1 Bulldog win in overtime.

Chattanooga also holds an advantage over ETSU in the series history, a narrower 7-5-2 mark over the Bucs. The home side has won the last two contests, ETSU winning 3-0 two years ago at Summers-Taylor while the Mocs took the spoils in last year’s contest in a 1-0 win.

For More Information
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