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JOHNSON CITY, Tenn. -- The first-place Samford University soccer team will begin play in its final regular-season road trip of the 2015 campaign Friday at 6 p.m. (CDT) as the Bulldogs square off against the fourth-place ETSU Buccaneers in a highly-anticipated contest to be held at Summers-Taylor Stadium.
 
With a win Friday, Samford (12-4, 7-0 SoCon) would clinch its second straight SoCon regular-season championship. The Bulldogs are undefeated in conference play this season and boast 21 points. Second-place Furman holds a 5-1-1 record on the year and owns 16 points heading into the final weekend of the SoCon schedule.
 
If Samford plays to a draw Friday, the Bulldogs would secure at least a share of the 2015 regular-season SoCon title. Samford will close out league play Sunday with a match at seventh-place Western Carolina.
 
THE BULLDOGS LOOK TO EXTEND WINNING STREAK
Samford is in the midst of an eight-match winning streak and has not been defeated since losing a hard-fought 1-0 home test against Georgia on Sept. 13. Since then, the Bulldogs have rattled off consecutive victories over Kennesaw State, 5-2, Furman, 2-0, Wofford, 1-0, The Citadel, 5-0, Mercer, 1-0, VMI, 7-0, UNCG, 1-0, and Chattanooga, 3-0.
 
Samford's current winning streak marks its longest since 2011 when the Bulldogs rattled off 10-straight victories encompassing 32-consecutive days.
 
SAMFORD NEARS SHUTOUT RECORD
The Bulldogs have not allowed a single goal in SoCon play this season and have outscored the opposition by a total of 20-0. Samford's shutout streak has reached 673-consecutive minutes is the second longest in school history. It dates all the way back to the second half of the Bulldogs' 5-2 road triumph at Kennesaw State on Sept. 20.
 
Samford's school record in the category of 730 minutes was set in 2009 when current Assistant Coach Alyssa Whitehead was starring in goal.
 
The Bulldogs' goalkeepers this season, Anna Maddox and Katie Peters, have been rotating starts and have combined to record eight shutouts, while only allowing 13 goals in 16 matches. On the season, Samford has outscored its opponents by a total of 39-13.
 
SCOUTING THE COMPETITION
ETSU (9-6-1, 4-2-1 SoCon) heads into Friday's showdown with aspirations of rebounding from back-to-back road losses last week. After pummeling The Citadel at home on Oct. 11, 8-0, the Buccaneers suffered defeats at Furman, 3-0, and Wofford, 1-0, on Friday and Sunday, respectively. ETSU owns a 4-3-1 record at home this season and has not been beaten in SoCon action in Johnson City.
 
The Buccaneers' leading goal-scorers in 2015 are Sarah Zadrazil and Simona Koren. They both enter the weekend with seven goals scored this season, while Molly Collinson has handed out a team-high eight assists.
 
THE ALL-TIME SERIES
ETSU, which is in the midst of its second season as a member of the SoCon, is one of only two teams in the conference to boast a .500 record against Samford. The Buccaneers are 1-1 all-time against the Bulldogs, while UNCG is 4-4-1. All eight of the remaining SoCon teams have losing records versus Samford.
 
Last season, the Bulldogs and ETSU squared off on the pitch for the first time in history and split a pair of matches. The Buccaneers tallied a 3-1 triumph in the regular-season contest held in Birmingham, Alabama, before Samford bounced back to tally a 2-1 victory in the semifinal round of the 2014 SoCon Tournament.
 
IN THE LAST MEETING
Samford scored two goals in 23 minutes last season to defeat the ETSU Buccaneers in the semifinal round of the SoCon Tournament being held at the Catamount Athletic Complex. The late rally propelled the Bulldogs to the SoCon Tournament championship. Both of Samford's goals were scored by seniors and assisted by Jermaine Seoposenwe.
 
After trailing 1-0 at the half, Samford's Amanda Abbott quickly shifted the momentum of the match with a brilliant equalizing goal in the 62^nd minute. Abbott's score occurred at exactly 61:32 and evened the match at 1-1. Her goal was set up by Seoposenwe to the left side of the box where she rifled a shot home from 10 yards out.
 
The Bulldogs' game-winning goal occurred in thrilling fashion as senior Katie Danehy skied through the air with just under six minutes remaining in the match to head home a corner kick from Seoposenwe. Danehy's game-winning goal sent the Samford squad into a frenzy as the Bulldogs garnered their first lead of the match with exactly 5:59 left to play.
 
SAMFORD'S FIRST OLYMPIAN
On Sunday, Samford's Seoposenwe was competing in international play with her home country of South Africa and scored the team's game-winning goal in a 1-0 victory against Equatorial Guinea. With the must-win victory, South Africa secured a spot in the 2016 Olympic Games, which will be held in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
 
Seoposenwe, the Bulldogs' talented native of Cape Town, South Africa, leads the SoCon with 10 assists this season and is ranked fourth in the nation in the category.
 
SENIOR LEADERSHIP IS KEY
Samford's senior class comprised of Hallie Georgi, Alissa Hansen and Kinsey Sessions has already compiled a remarkable 50-25-4 overall record, a 27-6-4 mark in SoCon play, as well as high-profile victories against Wake Forest, Tennessee, Vanderbilt, Kentucky, Memphis and Auburn (twice). With a win Friday, the Bulldogs would secure their second SoCon regular-season championship in two years.
 
RECORDS WATCH
Samford's Malcanisha Kelley is just one goal shy of tying the school's all-time career record of 26, as well as the Bulldogs' single-season, goals-scored record of 11. Former Samford-great Marian Wagner currently holds both of the aforementioned milestones and set the single-season record of 11 goals scored as a freshman in 2002.
 
SAMFORD'S PLAYER OF THE WEEK
Junior forward Taylor Borman proved to be the catalyst in two of the Bulldogs' three goals Friday in a 3-0 home triumph over Chattanooga. Borman's assists set up Samford first two scores of the contest as she improved her career-high total on the season to nine. She also rattled off a pair of shot attempts versus the Mocs, with both forcing top-flight saves from goalkeeper Katie Emig.
 
WHAT'S COMING UP NEXT?
Following Friday's tough road test ETSU, the Samford University soccer team will next be in action Sunday at 1 p.m. (CDT) as the Bulldogs continue their two-match, regular-season ending road trip against the Western Carolina Catamounts to be held at the Catamount Athletic Complex in Cullowhee, North Carolina.
 
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