The South Alabama women’s soccer team rides a 3-0-1 record in its last four games heading into the 2006 Conference Tournament. USA will face Middle Tennessee on Wednesday at 4 p.m. in Lafayette, La. USA enters the tournament as the No. 7 seed, while Middle Tennessee is the No. 2 seed.
SCOUTING SOUTH ALABAMA: The University of South Alabama women’s soccer team completed the regular season with a 3-0-1 record in its last four games, including a 3-0 blanking of Troy on Senior Night this past Friday. The Jags used two goals by freshman Tiara Smith for the win and sophomore Kelsie Langford stopped a penalty kick in goal to preserve the shutout.
Freshman Sam Stocker leads the team with nine goals, two assists and 20 points. Senior Jenn Edgar and Smith are tied for second on the team with four goals each. Edgar is tied for second on the squad with three assists. Stocker leads the team with 31 shots and 20 on goal.
Langford has played and started all 19 games in goal for the Jags. She has logged 1606:16 minutes and has a 1.79 goals against average. Langford has stopped 83 shots and has four shutouts. Freshmen Katie Berry and Jessica Ori have seen action in a combined eight games this season.
SCOUTING MIDDLE TENNESSEE: The Blue Raiders enter the conferene tournament with a 16-3 record and finished the conference season 10-1. Kala Morgan leds the team with 20 goals and eight assists for 48 points. Holly Grogan is second on the team with 15 goals and 12 assists for 42 points. Mary Zapapas has 10 goals and Rebecca Rodriguez has eight assists to lead the Blue Raider attack. Morgan and Zapapas are tied for the team lead with four game winners each.
The Blue Raiders have used two goalkeepers this season as Erin Murray leads the way playing in 17 games and starting 13. Murray has a 1.20 GAA and 50 saves along with three shutouts. Courtney Fortner has played in 10 games and started five. She has a 0.85 GAA, 15 saves and a perfect 5-0 record.
Head Coach Aston Rhoden is in his fifth year at the helm of the Blue Raider program. He has a 62-31-7 record and is 27-4-6 in conference play in the last four years.
LAST TIME THEY MET: The Jaguars lead the all-time series 5-3-1, but dropped an 8-0 decision at Middle Tennessee earlier this year. This will be the second consecutive year that USA and Middle Tennessee have played in the conference tournament. USA eliminated MT 1-0 from last year’s SBC Tournament in Mobile.
THE REST OF THE FIELD: Denver won the 2006 Regular Season Championship with a perfect 11-0 record in conference play. The Pioneers are 15-2-1 and are the top seed. MT is the number two seed, followed by North Texas (13-4-2, 9-2 SBC), Florida Atlantic, Western Kentucky, host Louisiana-Lafayette, South Alabama and UALR. Denver battles UALR to open the tournament at 10 a.m. Wednesday.
RECAPPING LAST WEEK: The Jaguars completed an up-and-down 2006 season on a high note Friday with a 3-0 win over Troy on Senior Night. USA used two goals from freshman Tiara Smith to put away the Trojans. Langford stopped a penalty kick in goal for the Jags in the second half to preserve the shutout. USA is 3-0-1 in its past four games to end the regular season.
