SPARTANBURG, S.C. ? The Southern Conference Women's Soccer Championship moves to the Macon, Georgia, on the campus of Mercer University, this weekend for the semifinal and final matches, beginning Friday at 4 p.m. The last four seasons, each of the top four seeds advanced to the championship weekend, but this year, No. 5 Furman joins No. 1 Samford, No. 2 UNCG and No. 3 ETSU in the battle for the tournament title and the league's automatic bid to the NCAA Women's Soccer Championship.
Both of Friday's semifinal matches will air live on the SoCon Digital Network, while Sunday's championship match, slated for 2 p.m, will be broadcast live on ESPN+. Jason Patterson (play-by-play) and Phil Cox (analyst) will have the call for all three games. Admission for this week's games is free.
Top seed Samford (12-5-1, 8-0-1 SoCon) will try for its second title in three years, starting with a semifinal date with Furman at 4 p.m. Friday. The Bulldogs, who last lost a regular-season conference contest in 2016, are under the direction of SoCon Coach of the Year Todd Yelton and downed The Citadel, the No. 9 seed, in the quarterfinals on Oct. 29 behind a goal from Caroline Orman in the 49th minute. In the regular-season meeting with Furman, Samford won 1-0 in Greenville, South Carolina, thanks to a goal by defender Courtney Hendrickson. The appearance in the semifinals is Samford's sixth straight and 10th in its 11 seasons in the league.
Furman (11-6-0, 5-4-0 SoCon) enters the semifinals on a five-match win streak, most recently beating No. 4 Western Carolina 1-0 in the quarterfinal round. Furman will be seeking its seventh SoCon tournament title and first since 2015 and will look for revenge against Samford after falling at home to the Bulldogs on Sept. 28. Furman and Samford will meet for the fourth time in SoCon tournament play. Each of the previous meetings took place in the semifinals, most recently in 2016 when top-seeded Samford beat Furman 2-1. ?
UNCG (13-4-1, 7-2-0 SoCon) downed No. 10 VMI 3-2 in the quarterfinals but has lost two of the last four after starting out conference play 6-0. The Spartans' two losses came at the hands of third-seeded ETSU (2-1) in Johnson City, Tennessee, and to top-seeded Samford (1-0) in the regular-season finale. Led by forward Cienna Rideout, the SoCon Player of the Year, UNCG led the conference in goals (24), goals per game (2.67), assists (26) and assists per game (2.89) in conference play. The 2017 SoCon tournament champions will look for revenge against the Bucs in the second semifinal match, set for 6:30 p.m. Friday. The two teams have squared off three times in the SoCon tournament. UNCG holds a 2-1 advantage, though ETSU, the No. 4 seed, beat No. 5 UNCG 3-2 in overtime of the quarterfinals in the most recent matchup, in 2014.
ETSU (8-11-0, 5-4-0 SoCon), the No. 3 seed, beat Mercer 1-0 in the quarterfinals after suffering two overtime losses in the final weekend of regular-season play. The Bucs make their first appearance in the semifinals since 2016 and third overall. Behind two goals from first-team all-conference forward Eleonora Goldoni, ETSU beat UNCG 2-1 in the lone regular-season meeting. The Bucs, who finished runners-up to Samford in 2016, are seeking their first title.
The four squads in the semifinals have combined to win 16 of the 24 tournaments contested so far, including the last three.
The winner of this year's tournament will receive the SoCon's automatic bid to the NCAA postseason. The NCAA Selection Show will air on NCAA.com on Monday, Nov. 5.
2018 Women's Soccer Championship
Wednesday, Oct. 24
First Round (at higher seeds)
Match 1: No. 9 The Citadel 3, No. 8 Wofford 2
Match 2: No 10 VMI 1, No. 7 Chattanooga 0
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Saturday, Oct. 27? Quarterfinals (at higher seeds)
Match 3: No. 9 The Citadel 0, No. 1 Samford 1 Match 4: No. 5 Furman 1, No. 4 Western Carolina 0 Match 5: No. 10 VMI 2, No. 2 UNCG 3
Sunday, Oct. 28
Match 6: No. 6 Mercer 0, No. 3 ETSU 1
Friday, Nov. 2?Semifinals (Betts Stadium; Macon, Ga.)
Match 7: No. 1 Samford vs. No. 5 Furman, 4 p.m. Match 8: No. 2 UNCG vs. No. 3 ETSU, 6:30 p.m.??
Sunday, Nov. 4?Final (Betts Stadium; Macon, Ga.)
Match 9: Winner Match 7 vs. Winner Match 8, 2 p.m.
*all times Eastern