LOUISVILLE, Ky. – The Samford University soccer team will begin play in the highly-competitive Courtyard by Marriott Louisville Airport Cardinal Classic on Friday at 4 p.m. (CDT) as the Bulldogs meet the Toledo Rockets in the opening match of the two-day tournament being hosted by the University of Louisville.
Samford (1-3) heads into this weekend's 2012 Cardinal Classic with a full head of steam after earning a decisive 3-1 triumph over cross-town rival UAB on Sunday. With the key victory, the Bulldogs extended their home winning streak to six-consecutive matches and their home undefeated streak to eight straight contests.
Against UAB, Samford received goals from sophomore
Brittany Hoffman, junior
Trine Taule and true freshman McKenzie Thomas. The Bulldogs' goal-scoring output was its highest of the 2012 campaign.
Samford opened the season with three straight losses, but has arguably faced one of the toughest non-conference schedules in the nation. The Bulldogs opened the year with a 4-0 defeat at Tennessee, but then looked much better in a slight 2-1 loss at Alabama on Aug. 24. Last week, Samford traveled to Auburn, Ala., and played Auburn to a hard-fought 2-0 decision at the Auburn Soccer Complex.
So far this season, Samford owns a 1-0 record at home and an 0-3 record on the road. This weekend's matches will mark the Bulldogs' first neutral contests of the 2012 campaign.
Thomas heads into this weekend's tournament as Samford's leading goal-scorer with two. The Bulldogs' native of Knoxville, Tenn., tallied a key goal against Alabama earlier this year and recently notched a critical score versus UAB on Sunday. Samford's Taule and Hoffman have also registered goals this season.
Toledo (2-3) will look to continue its momentum Friday after earning an impressive 3-0 home victory against Loyola (IL) last week. The Rockets received goals from junior Rachel MacLeod, sophomore Sarah Seig and junior Emily Tustin to register their most productive offensive effort this year. Toledo also took advantage of an excellent performance from freshman Sam Tiongson between the posts in her first collegiate start to post their second shutout of the season.
The Rockets opened their 2012 campaign with back-to-back losses against Purdue, 2-0, and Belmont, 2-1, but quickly rebounded with a 1-0 victory over Indiana University-Purdue University Fort Wayne (IPFW). On Aug. 26, Toledo traveled to Austin, Texas, and suffered a 3-0 defeat at the hands of the Texas Longhorns.
Friday's match will mark the first meeting on the pitch between Samford and Toledo. Both teams qualified for the NCAA Tournament a year ago by winning their respective conference tournaments. The Bulldogs cruised to a 9-0-2 record in the Southern Conference, while the Rockets turned in a 9-1-1 mark in the Mid-American Conference en route to winning the league's tournament title.
Following Friday's tournament-opening contest against Toledo, the Samford University soccer team will next be in action Sunday at 11 a.m. (CDT) as the Bulldogs square off against the Kentucky Wildcats in another key non-conference matchup. Kentucky will mark Samford's fourth Southeastern Conference opponent this season after also facing Tennessee, Alabama and Auburn.
