Soccer Set to Open Southeastern Conference Play
9/23/2010 12:00:00 AM | Soccer
Sept. 23, 2010
TUSCALOOSA, Ala. - The Alabama soccer team (5-2) will remain at home to open Southeastern Conference play as it will host Mississippi (4-4-1) on Friday, Sept. 24, at 7 p.m. The Crimson Tide capped off its non-conference slate with back-to-back wins while the Rebels also enter SEC play on the heels of two straight victories.
LAST TIME OUT
Alabama capped off its non-conference slate with a big win over Texas Tech. The Red Raiders entered the weekend receiving votes in the polls but the Crimson Tide earned a hard fought 1-0 victory. Freshman Ariel Armijo scored her second career goal and junior goalkeeper Justine Bernier returned from Team Canada training camp to earn the clean sheet. Armijo tallied the lone goal with just over a minute remaining in the first half off passes by freshman Kendall Khanna and sophomore Tia King. Bernier tallied two saves en route to her second shutout of the year.
WHO TO WATCH
Alabama freshman Ariel Armijo has come on as of late and scored some big goals for the Crimson Tide in some big games. The freshman tallied her first career goal against No. 20 Memphis on the road and then tallied the game winner against Texas Tech last week. The rookie ranks third on the team with four points and her two goals rank third as well. She leads all Tide freshmen in scoring, as fellow newcomers Molly Atherton and Kendall Khanna have registered two points apiece.
SCOUTING MISSISSIPPI
The Rebels enter Tuscaloosa with a 4-4-1 overall record and are coming off a 1-0 over TCU in their last time out. Mississippi has won three of its last four as it also earned a convincing 3-0 win over Southern Miss. As a team, the Rebels have out-scored their opponents, 13-11 and out-shot the opposition, 145-108. Leading the way individually is Dylan Jordan and her 13 points. Jordan has scored six goals and handed out one assist. Her six goals ranked tied for first in the league and she is coming off of SEC Offensive Player of the Week honors. Mandy McCalla follows with seven points on the strength of a team-leading three assists. In goal, Sarah Story has earned most of the minutes as she sports an 1.09 goals against average and has tallied 15 saves in 495 minutes. She was also an award winner this last week as she was named the SEC Freshman of the Week for her back-to-back shutout performance. The Rebels are coming off a 13-6-2 2009 campaign that saw them reach the first round of the NCAA tournament. Mississippi does welcome a new coach though as Matthew Mott takes over the managerial duties, coming to Oxford from the University of Texas, where he was an assistant coach.
SERIES HISTORY
The match on Friday will mark the 17th time the two programs have faced off. Mississippi enters Tuscaloosa with a 16-10 all-time advantage and has won the last five matches. The two teams will be playing each other for the eighth time in Tuscaloosa, as Alabama holds a slight 4-3 advantage. The last time the Tide defeated the Rebels was in 2004, where UA earned a 1-0 overtime victory at the Alabama Soccer Stadium.
SEC SEASON OPENERS
Alabama sports an 8-5-2 all-time record in Southeastern Conference openers. Crimson Tide head coach Todd Bramble is a perfect 2-0 in league openers while at the helm. Last season Alabama blanked Mississippi State, 1-0 on the road and in his inaugural year on the bench, Bramble and his Tide downed Vanderbilt, 2-0. This will mark the first SEC opener at home since 2007, when the Tide played the Commodores to a 1-1 draw.
BRAMBLE EARNS WIN No. 100
Alabama head coach Todd Bramble earned his 100th career victory. The win came against Texas Tech last Friday. Bramble took over the Crimson Tide program with 80 career victories, leading the Clemson Tigers to seven straight NCAA tournament appearances. After the win against the Red Raiders, the Tide manager was presented with a jersey from his players and fellow coaches with the number 100 on the back.
BERNIER RETURNS FROM TEAM CANADA TRAINING CAMP
Alabama junior goalkeeper Justine Bernier participated in the Canadian women's national team training camp, which was held in Roma, Italy. Bernier was one of 24 players invited to the camp as the team prepares for the 2011 World Cup, being held in Germany. Bernier played in two matches before her departure, sporting a 2-0 record with a 0.50 goals against average and 12 saves while adding a shutout. The Canadian international returned and was in fine form as she recorded her second shutout of the season to improve to a perfect 3-0 on the year. Bernier enters the start of league play with a 191 minute scoreless streak.
ATHERTON NAMED AMONG NATION'S ELITE
Alabama freshman Molly Atherton was named one of the top 100 freshmen by Top Drawer. The website ranked the Gulfport, Miss., native No. 66 on the list. Atherton scored over 100 goals in her prep career at Gulfport High School and was twice named the Sun Herald Player of the Year. On the season, the rookie leads the team with two assists.
SCHEDULE NOTE
The Alabama soccer team quietly played a tough non-conference schedule in 2010. Of the seven matches played before Southeastern Conference play, five of those teams won 10 or more contests in 2009. Samford only lost one match last season while Memphis earned 16 wins. UAB, Furman, and Middle Tennessee each had over 10 wins a year ago. Memphis was ranked No. 20 in the country when the two teams faced off while Texas Tech was receiving votes.
PROMOTIONS
There will be fireworks after the match and all fans will receive 3-D glasses to watch the fireworks with. The Alabama soccer team will also be signing autographs after the match.
NEXT TIME OUT
Alabama will continue its Southeastern Conference homestand when it hosts Mississippi State on Sunday, Sept. 26. The two teams will square off in a Sunday matinee, with kickoff slated for 1 p.m., at the Alabama Soccer Stadium.
