Eagles Open Regular Season At Home Against Winthrop
8/19/2010 9:02:00 PM | Women's Soccer
STATESBORO, Ga. - The Georgia Southern Women's Soccer Team kicks off the regular season this weekend, hosting Winthrop University Friday at 4 p.m., before traveling to Macon to take on Mercer Sunday at 2 p.m.
The Eagles have faced Winthrop, a program that was started in 2003, just three times. Winthrop won the first two matches, taking a 3-1 victory in 2005 and a 1-0 victory in 2006, before Georgia Southern got its first win against the young program, a 1-0 double-overtime win on Sept. 28, 2007.
Georgia Southern is looking to get off to a fast start this season, but the Eagles are just 8-9 in season openers, posting a 2-3 record when the first game of the season is at home. This is the first time the Eagles have opened the season at home during the tenure of Head Coach Ashley Hart, now in her seventh season. The Eagles haven't opened the season at home since 2000, when they defeated Georgia State 6-0.
Sara Oland, a junior from Evans, Ga., led the Eagles offensively last season, scoring three goals, while Morgan Springer, a sophomore from Mandeville, La., recorded a team-high two assists as a freshman.
Winthrop posted a 5-10-6 record last season, but enters the 2010 campaign under the direction of first-year Head Coach Spencer Smith, who spent the last 16 years as the head coach at Radford University.
Tricia Vensel returns for her senior season after leading Winthrop with three goals last year. Sophomores Kylie Long, Ariel Kunde and Allie VandeWater each scored two goals during their freshmen campaign.
Sunday, Georgia Southern will play its first road game of the year, taking on Mercer. The Eagles lead the in-state rivalry 10-4-1, playing the Bears every season since 1994. Mercer won the first game of the series 4-0 in Macon, but the Eagles won the next nine matches. Three of the last four contests have gone to overtime, with both teams winning one and one game ending in a 1-1 draw. The Eagles are just 1-3-1 in the last five meetings.
The Bears went 8-6-4 last season, behind Olivia Tucker's team-leading eight goals. The junior also had two assists during her sophomore season. Seniors Sara Elliott and Lauren Johnson, and junior Emerald Phillips each scored four goals during the 2009 season.
Georgia Southern's match against Winthrop will be viewable online with a subscription to Eagle Vision, and live stats will be available during both matches at www.georgiasoutherneagles.com. Fans can also follow scores at twitter.com/gsscores.
