SFA Opens 2015 Season Friday at Arkansas
8/20/2015 12:00:00 AM | Women's Soccer
Stephen F. Austin (0-0) at Arkansas (0-0)
Friday, August 21 • 7:00 p.m.
Fayetteville, Ark. • Razorback Field
Watch Live • Live Stats
NACOGDOCHES, Texas – The 2015 soccer season is here at last, and the Stephen F. Austin women are set to kick off the year on Friday evening at 7:00 p.m. against the Arkansas Razorbacks. The game will be played at Razorback Field in Fayetteville.
“There’s no doubt that our coaching staff and players are excited to get the season started,” said head coach Wally Crittenden. “Arkansas is going to be very similar to the TCU team we saw during the preseason in that they’ll be somewhat direct, physical and athletic. As we head into Friday’s game, we have a really good understanding of our depth chart and our different units. We also have a great feel as to which shape suits us best against different defensive schemes.”
The Ladyjacks enter the 2015 season with goals of winning a fifth consecutive Southland Conference regular season title and making it to the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2012. Crittenden and his team know that a strong non-conference showing will help come tournament selection time and SFA’s upcoming slate reflects as much, with three games scheduled against teams that won at least one NCAA Tournament contest last year (Arkansas, Arizona, Arizona State).
“We are going to Arkansas preparing to give ourselves a chance to win the game,” Crittenden said. “We understand the implications related to a good non-conference resume as we get into October and November and know that every game is important. Our players are ready to get after it and we’re looking forward to turning them loose and playing on Friday night.”
Friday evening’s game will be broadcast live on the SEC Network+, which is an online platform accessible through ESPN3 and the Watch ESPN app. For live in-game updates as well as behind-the-scenes content before and after the game, follow SFA Soccer on Twitter (@SFA_Soccer).
NOTES
SFA vs. Arkansas: The Ladyjacks are 1-3 in the all-time series history against the Razorbacks entering Friday night’s matchup. Last year, No. 25 Arkansas took a 4-2 decision over SFA on neutral soil at the University of Texas. Chelsea Raymond and Amanda Doyle notched goals for the ‘Jacks in the game played on August 31. SFA’s lone win in the series came in the form of a 2-1 victory at home on August 27, 2010.
Scouting Arkansas: The Razorbacks are coming off a 9-7-6 season that was capped by a trip to the second round of the 2014 NCAA Tournament. After taking care of Oklahoma 3-2 in the first round, Arkansas was ousted 1-0 by Stanford – the top seed in the region. A member of the Southeastern Conference (SEC), Arkansas finished ninth in the league with a 4-4-3 record last season. The Razorbacks return eight of 11 starters from their 2014 squad, including their top three point earners in senior Ashleigh Ellenwood (5 goals, 14 assists), junior Claire Kelley (6 goals, 7 assists) and junior Alexandra Fischer (6 goals, 3 assists). This preseason, Arkansas earned a 1-0 victory over Oral Roberts and tied Missouri 1-1 in exhibition action.
Entering the Season: The Ladyjacks enter the 2015 season looking to build on their wealth of success over the last few years. In 2014, SFA won an unprecedented fourth consecutive Southland Conference Championship after posting a perfect 11-0-0 record in league play. The team was one of only five schools in the country that went undefeated in conference action during the year while the Ladyjacks also finished with an unblemished 8-0-0 mark at home and a 16-3-1 record overall. SFA held the nation’s longest active overall win streak heading into the SLC Tournament Championship, winning 14 straight games from Sept. 12 to Nov. 7 – the longest winning streak in school history. The Ladyjacks ended the memorable 2014 campaign ranked sixth in the nation in shutout percentage (.650), seventh in save percentage (.876), 10th in win percentage (.825), 11th in goals against average (.588) and 19th in scoring offense (2.25 goals per game). The year concluded with a 2-0 loss to Houston Baptist in the SLC Tournament Championship game.
Key Returners: Despite losing a talented senior class, the Ladyjacks return a strong core of players to the roster this year. Among the seven starters back on the SFA sideline are 2014 First Team All-Conference defender Brooke Dunnigan, Second Team midfielder Amanda Doyle and SLC Freshman of the Year Hanna Barker. Barker, who is the Ladyjacks’ leading returning goal scorer, netted seven goals and four assists during her first collegiate season. Seniors Rachel Owens and Chantal Curry joined Barker on the Honorable Mention All-SLC Team last year after playing integral roles during SFA’s championship season.
Newcomers: There are seven new faces on the SFA women’s soccer team this year, including six freshmen and one transfer. Defensively, head coach Wally Crittenden and his staff added Tyler Johnson (Frisco Wakeland HS), Julianna Echavarry (Cinco Ranch HS) and Bailey Bosley (Klein Oak HS). Crystal Calvit (Santa Fe HS) was the lone addition to the midfield while Breanna Moore (Kingwood HS) was added up top and Allyson Smith (Klein HS) was brought on as a goalkeeper. The Ladyjacks’ single transfer Madison Hall (Byron Nelson HS) comes from Arkansas and is eligible to play right away as a sophomore.
Familiar Territory: Sophomore transfer Madison Hall will play her first career game as a Ladyjack against the school from which she transferred at the end of the 2014 fall semester. The 5-8 midfielder spent the 2014 season at the University of Arkansas as a member of the Razorback soccer program, where she appeared in 11 games and scored one goal. She brings NCAA Tournament experience with her after seeing action at Oklahoma in the first round of the NCAA Tournament on Nov. 14.
Road Warriors: SFA has excelled on the road over the first two years with Crittenden at the helm, posting an impressive 17-3-4 record away from home over the 2013 and 2014 seasons. The Ladyjacks went 6-1-1 in true road games last year while going 8-0-2 as the visitors in 2013.
Off to a Good Start: In his first two years as head coach, Wally Crittenden has led his squad to the best two-year period in the history of SFA women’s soccer. He boasts an overall career record of 32-6-4 at SFA for a staggering .810 winning percentage. His Ladyjacks are 21-1-1 (.935) in SLC play. Crittenden has won a conference title and been named the SLC Coach of the Year in each of his first two seasons in charge.
SFA in Season Openers: The Ladyjacks are 11-8-1 all-time in season openers, winning their first game of the season in each of the last three years. Last season, SFA beat Oregon State 2-0 in the opener played in Nacogdoches. All three of the most recent season-opening wins have been shutouts as the Ladyjacks beat Houston 2-0 in 2012 and Rice 1-0 in 2013.
Last Time Out: The Stephen F. Austin women’s soccer team earned a 0-0 draw against a solid TCU side on Sunday, August 16 at Garvey-Rosenthal Soccer Stadium in what was the Ladyjacks’ only exhibition contest of the 2015 preseason. Redshirt sophomore Lillie Ehlert and freshman Allyson Smith combined for the shutout in goal for the Ladyjacks.
Preseason All-SLC: The Ladyjacks were well represented with the release of the 2015 Preseason All-Southland Conference teams, earning five selections between the first and second squads. Junior defender Brooke Dunnigan and senior defender Chantal Curry were each named to the first team with sophomore forward Hanna Barker, senior midfielder Rachel Owens and junior midfielder Amanda Doyle representing SFA on the second team.
SFA Picked to Win Fifth Straight SLC Title: SFA was picked to win the 2015 Southland Conference regular season championship in polls conducted by the league’s coaches and sports information directors, the conference office announced on Wednesday, August 12. The Ladyjacks claimed 116 points with eight first-place votes in the coaches’ poll and 119 points with nine first-place votes in the SID poll.
Looking Ahead: Following Friday evening’s game at Arkansas, SFA will begin preparing for its trip to Baton Rouge for games against Minnesota and Western Kentucky next weekend. The Ladyjacks will play the Gophers on Friday, August 28 at 5:00 p.m. before taking on the Lady Toppers on Sunday, August 30 at 11:00 a.m.
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