Aug. 26, 2005

Box Score

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. - The Samford University soccer team kicked off its 2005 regular-season schedule with a resounding 3-0 victory over the Wofford Terriers on Friday as the Bulldogs improved to 1-0 in front of 572 fans at home at Bulldog Field.

"This was a good way for us to start the season," said Samford head coach Todd Yelton. "I was glad that we were able to come out and score some early goals and I think that we played extremely well to end the first half. We were very active around the ball and we did a lot of good things tonight."

Samford freshman Marchele Olds opened the scoring with a goal at the 17:41 mark in the contest, while sophomore Heather Birdsell and senior Marian Wagner added the final two scores. Rebecca Bohler, who led the team in assists last season, earned a pair of assists on Friday.

The Bulldogs' goalkeepers Emily Morris and Cayley Winters combined for the shutout victory.

"I thought that we looked a little sloppy in the first 10 minutes of the match, but then I think we turned it on a little bit and did a much better job of possessing the ball," Yelton said. "I have to give Wofford some credit. They made it hard on us and they did a lot of good things."

Olds, the Bulldogs' highly-touted defender from Dallas, Texas, scored the first goal of her collegiate career on Friday as she hammered home a delivery from Bohler on a corner kick. Bohler's centering pass entered the box 10 yards from the goal, bounced off of a couple of defenders and was gathered in by Olds for the point-blank score.

Samford's second goal of the contest came at 41:55 and was also assisted on by Bohler.

This time, she took possession of the ball at midfield, juked a pair of Wofford (0-1) defenders and fed Birdsell with a picture-perfect pass directly in front of the goalkeeper. Birdsell, who finished tied for first on the team with four goals last season, collected the ball and beat the Terriers' Austin Somers for the score.

"I think that we did a much better job of finishing on our chances tonight," said Yelton. "We did a good job of scoring some goals and we actually had some good opportunities to score a couple more. We had a lot of fun and I think that we really played well on the offensive side of the ball."

The Bulldogs' final score of the match came at 67:34.

Wagner, a senior and team captain, scored the goal off of an entry pass from Shay Helmbock and moved into a tie for second place on Samford's all-time goals-scored list with 23. A native of Spring, Texas, Wagner is currently three goals shy of becoming the Bulldogs' all-time leading scorer.

Former player Lindsay Shanks holds the record with 25.

The Samford University soccer team will next be in action on Sunday as the Bulldogs travel to Starkville, Miss., for a non-conference matchup against the Mississippi State Bulldogs beginning at 1 p.m.

There will be an internet audio broadcast of the match available for free at www.SamfordSports.com.

Samford (1-0) def. Wofford (0-1), 3-0

WOF 0 0 - 0
SAM 2 1 - 3

Scoring: SAM, Marchele Olds (1) 17:41 (assist Rebecca Bohler), Heather Birdsell (1) 41:55 (assist Bohler), Marian Wagner (1) 67:34 (assist Shay Helmbock). Saves: SAM, Emily Morris 1; WOF, Austin Somers 4. Yellow Cards: SAM, Jessika Mejia (1) 45:24; WOF, Natalie Ferrara (1) 72:20.