Live Video
Live Stats

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. -- The winner of Sunday's Southern Conference showdown between the Samford Bulldogs and Mercer Bears will be regular-season champions. The marquee SoCon battle of the 2014 campaign is scheduled to begin at 2 p.m. (CDT) at the Samford Track and Soccer Stadium.
 
"We're going to have to put together a full 90 minutes to have a chance against Mercer," said Samford head coach Todd Yelton. "They are at the top of the table right now and if we want to be there at the end of the day tomorrow then we're going to have to play a lot better than we did in the first half against The Citadel on Friday."
 
Samford (11-7, 6-2 SoCon) enters Sunday's matchup boasting 18 points in conference play. The Bulldogs are currently tied for second place with ETSU, but can vault past first-place Mercer (11-4-2, 6-0-2 SoCon) with a victory over the Bears.
 
Mercer heads into Sunday with a league-leading 20 points. The Bears are in the midst of a nine-match undefeated streak and have been victorious in their last four outings. Mercer has not been defeated since Sept. 19 when it came up short at Georgia State, 1-0.
 
The Bears' current winning streak includes SoCon triumphs against ETSU, 2-1, Western Carolina, 1-0, The Citadel, 3-0, and Chattanooga, 8-1.
 
On Friday, Samford came out in the second half of play and surged for three quick goals en route to a key 3-1 home victory over The Citadel Bulldogs in a critical league match held at the Samford Track and Soccer Stadium.
 
Samford's senior class was honored prior to the game and with a win Sunday against Mercer, the Bulldogs' Amanda Abbott, Katie Danehy, Brittany Hoffman and Melissa Montgomery will be able to close out their careers as conference champions.
 
Samford fell behind midway through the first half as The Citadel's Lea Raedle notched her fifth goal of the season with a tally in the 23^rd minute. Raedle's score was set up by a perfectly-placed crossing pass from Montana Hinson. The assist was Hinson's second of the season.
 
The Citadel took a 1-0 lead into halftime despite being outshot by the Bulldogs, 8-3, in the opening 45 minutes of action.
 
Samford, behind some motivational words from Yelton at halftime, came out full speed in the second period and flipped into attack mode on the offensive side of the field.
 
The Bulldogs rattled off 14 shot attempts in the final period alone and quickly scored in the 54^th minute to even the match at 1-1. Samford's equalizing goal came off the foot of sophomore Jermaine Seoposenwe as she rifled home a shot into the top shelf from 20 yards out. The score proved to be Seoposenwe's seventh of the season.
 
Seoposenwe, the Bulldogs' dominant attacking forward from Cape Town, South Africa, played a crucial role in all three of Samford's goals Friday. She scored the team's first goal at 53:45 and then assisted on the Bulldogs' final two scores. Seoposenwe leads Samford with 22 points this season (seven goals and eight assists).
 
Junior Ariane Lukens gathered a corner kick from Seoposenwe and knocked home the game-winning goal of the match in the 63^rd minute.
 
Lukens' score was her third of the season and her first game-winner of the 2014 campaign. The Bulldogs' talented native of Arvada, Colo., gave Samford its decisive 2-1 advantage at exactly 62:31.
 
It's always fitting for a senior to score a goal on Senior Night, and the Bulldogs' Abbott came through in the clutch Friday with a key insurance score in the 69th minute of play. Abbott currently leads the team with eight goals this season and is ranked among the top five goal-scorers in Samford history.
 
The Bulldogs' Yelton enters Sunday's contest with 199 career victories as a head coach. Yelton, who is already the all-time winningest coach in Samford history, owns 159 victories during his time as a Bulldog. With a win Sunday, Yelton would reach the prestigious 200-win plateau in his career.
 
Mercer cruised to an 8-1 victory at Chattanooga on Friday.
 
As a team, the Bears outshot the Mocs, 26-10, including 15-2 in the first half. Mercer also controlled the corner kick count, 6-3. Both Maggie Cropp and Cristina Mursuli saw time between the pipes, with Cropp playing the first half and Mursuli on the field in the second. Mursuli made both of Mercer's saves.
 
"Mercer certainly had it a bit easier than we did Friday night, so I'm certain they'll be well rested for Sunday's match," said Yelton. "When you're playing for a chance to win the league, then I'm certain that fatigue shouldn't be a factor."
 
Samford owns a 6-1-2 all-time record against Mercer. In the last meeting between the teams, which was held Aug. 27, 2010, the Bulldogs and Bears played to a hard-fought 2-2 draw at Bulldog Field. Sunday's matchup between the teams will be the first held at the Samford Track and Soccer Stadium, as well as the first as SoCon rivals.
 
This season marks Mercer's first as a member of the SoCon. In previous years, the Bears competed as a part of the Atlantic Sun Conference.
 
"Having a chance to win the SoCon title is a huge motivational factor for our team, but it is for Mercer as well," Yelton said. "This is their first year in the league and we haven't played them in a number of years, but I've seen them on film and they are an excellent side. Their frontrunner is a handful and extremely dangerous. Their team is very blue-collar and very hard working and they are extremely well-coached."
 
For quick score updates, breaking news and links to all of your favorite articles featuring the Bulldogs, please follow @Samford_Sports on Twitter.

Live Video
Live Stats