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BIRMINGHAM, Ala. -- The Samford University soccer team will resume play in its 2015 season-opening, four-match homestand Friday at 7 p.m. (CDT) as the Bulldogs welcome the Memphis Tigers to the Samford Track and Soccer Stadium for a key non-conference showdown.
 
Friday will also be Samford Soccer Youth Night presented by Alabama Power. Kids will be able to hang out with Spike, get their faces painted and get autographs from the team. The face painting will begin at 6:30 p.m., and end at 7:30 p.m. Team autographs will take place at the end of the match. Admission is FREE!
 
Samford (1-1) heads into the contest with aspirations of bouncing back from Sunday's heartbreaking 3-2 home loss against South Alabama. The Bulldogs led the matchup, 2-1, with approximately 20 minutes remaining in the match before the Jaguars rallied to score two late goals en route to a 3-2 come-from-behind victory.
 
Both of South Alabama's late goals were scored by sophomore forward Charde' Hannah. The equalizer occurred at 70:34, while the game-winner was tallied in the 79^th minute.
 
With the loss, Samford suffered its first all-time defeat against South Alabama and moved to 1-1-1 in the overall series.
 
The Jaguars, who opened the 2015 campaign with a 1-0 victory at Mississippi State last week, extended their regular-season winning streak to 20-consecutive matches. South Alabama has won back-to-back Sun Belt Conference titles and returned all 11 starters from last year's team that tallied a 19-3-1 overall record.
 
STARTING THE 2015 SEASON
Samford opened its 2015 campaign on Aug. 21 with a dominant 2-0 home triumph against Boise State. The Bulldogs' Malcanisha Kelley and Ella Baggett both scored goals in their victory over the Broncos.
 
Kelley, Samford's dynamic junior forward from Childersburg, Ala., also tallied a pair of scores against South Alabama and already boasts three goals this season. Junior forward Jermaine Seoposenwe has registered three assists this year as well.
 
SCOUTING THE OPPOSITION
Memphis (1-0) also opened its season on Aug. 21 and earned a 1-0 home victory over Alabama. The Tigers' Elizabeth Woerner scored the game-winning goal at 21:47.
 
The game's lone goal came from a cross by Necee Jennings from the left wing that Woerner, playing in her first collegiate game, headed back across the goal and into the corner after out-jumping the Crimson Tide defenders.
 
Neither team grabbed control of the game through the opening minutes but the goal helped to change the game. Memphis was the more dominant team for the final 23 minutes of the first half.
 
The second half started slowly but as the game wore on Alabama was forced to push forward.
 
Despite Alabama pressing for a goal late in the second half, Memphis' junior goalkeeper Maryse Bard-Martel was rarely called on to make a save. She made just three saves in the match and faced only eight total shots.
 
THE ALL-TIME SERIES
The Bulldogs and Tigers will be meeting on the pitch for a seventh time in series history tonight. The overall record between the teams is deadlocked at 3-3 with Memphis winning each of the last three meetings in 2010, 2011 and 2013. Samford opened its rivalry with the Tigers with three-consecutive victories occurring in 2005, 2006 and 2007.
 
In the six all-time meetings between the teams, Memphis has outscored the Bulldogs, 8-4.
 
UPDATING THE RECORD BOOK
Samford's Seoposenwe tallied three assists last week and moved into a tie for seventh place on the school's all-time assist list with 16. Additionally, the Bulldogs' Kelley scored three goals against Boise State and South Alabama, and moved into a tie for ninth place on Samford's all-time goals scored list with 18.
 
WHAT'S COMING UP NEXT?
Following Friday's home contest against Memphis, the Samford University soccer team will next be in action Sunday at 2 p.m. (CDT) as the Bulldogs square off against Wake Forest in a high-profile matchup to be held at the Samford Track and Soccer Stadium. Wake Forest recently opened its 2015 season with a lopsided 4-0 victory against Georgia.
 
For quick score updates, breaking news and links to all of your favorite articles featuring the Bulldogs, please follow @SamfordSoccer and @Samford_Sports on Twitter.

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