As another season begins for Samford athletics, the women’s soccer team kicks off the year with encouraging statistics that point to a continuation of their SoCon dominance from last year.
With a current record of 2-1-3, the Bulldogs will continue to finish games and use a brutal nonconference schedule to prepare for the SoCon. The year started off with two exhibition victories over South Alabama and Mississippi State, followed by a scoreless draw at Auburn. The only loss of the season so far came from DePaul in Birmingham; the game ended in a 2-1 final score that saw Whitaker Buchanan net the lone goal. Since then, the Bulldogs have had two wins, Jacksonville State and Oklahoma beaten with a combined score of 10-0, and two scoreless ties, Ole Miss and Alabama.
Despite the standard of competition, Samford outshot Ole Miss 12-6 and Alabama 20-15. Zoe Clevely has proven to be an excellent goalkeeper, with only two goals scored against Samford in six games played so far. Despite preventing Alabama from scoring any goals, Coach Todd Yelton believes there is room for improvement.
“The beauty of this is we played the fifth-ranked team in the country and most people would be excited, but we’re going to be disappointed about it because we felt like we could have won it,” Yelton said.
This is an excellent way to start the season for Samford: competitive against some of the best in the country, with outstanding goalkeeping and a fearsome attack. Samford will play Troy on the road next Thursday to continue the nonconference slate.
Sports Editor
