Preview: Soccer welcomes SFA to the Lou, plus midweek pressers
The Bears face off with the Lumberjacks Thursday night for one of their last two non-conference matches. The other is Sunday afternoon against the San Francisco Dons.
Tomorrow’s game will see the 3-2-2 Bears face off against a ‘Jacks team that has really challenged themselves so far this year.
SFA sits at only 2-4-1, but their four losses have come to #5 TCU, plus Arkansas, Rice and UNT who all received votes in the latest United Soccer Coaches poll.
Their lone draw was an intense 8 goal affair against Houston, while their wins came against Texas State and Prairie View A&M.
The 3-0 loss to UNT will put many Baylor fans at ease, but this Lumberjacks squad continues to
test themselves against good competition. They will not back down or give up easily.
SFA was also picked as the preseason favorite to win their division of the Western Athletic Conference. They seem to be testing themselves to make their conference slate less intimidating.
Because of their top-level competition, the ‘Jacks have registered only 1.29 goals per game on 9.4 shots while giving up 3.29 goals per game on 19.4 shots. Also, six of their nine goals have been assisted, compared to 18 of 23 for their opponents.
That could mean that Baylor is under less threat of breakaways and 1-on-1 opportunities tomorrow night.
SFA’s attack is led by midfielder Jayme Baily (#12), plus forwards Lily Hargrove (#13) and Colleen Feagins (#26). Feagins leads the team with two assists, while Bailey and Hargrove are second and third on the team in shots taken with 10 and 8 respectively.
Interestingly, defender Carli Arthurs (#20) leads the team with 11 shots and is tied with Bailey for the team lead in goals with two. Paying close attention to Arthurs from distance and on set pieces should help Baylor’s defense mitigate that threat.
The Lumberjacks’ best player might not be any of those previously mentioned, however. Their only preseason all-WAC selection was defender Jamie Jezierski. The purple and white’s #14 has played in all seven of their games, starting six and racking up 513 minutes on the field.
This is not a team the Bears should or will overlook. They only have two more opportunities to build more momentum heading into Big 12 play.
Coach Paul Jobson touched on SFA and the long homestand during his midweek media availability today.
Fresh off of her seventh Big 12 weekly award of her career, keeper Jennifer Wandt spoke about the award and how the team feels defensively heading into tomorrow’s match.
Sophomore forward Mackenzie Anthony talked about scoring her team-leading third goal of the year against Oregon and how the offense is developing for Baylor this year.