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BIRMINGHAM, Ala. -- The Samford University soccer team will conclude play in its current three-match homestand Sunday at 6 p.m. (CDT) as the Bulldogs welcome the Georgia Bulldogs to the Samford Track and Soccer Stadium for a key nonconference showdown.
               
Samford (4-3-0) enters the contest with aspirations of bouncing back from a heart-wrenching 2-1 double-overtime loss to No. 15-ranked Duke on Friday. In the matchup, senior Bulldog Hallie Georgi opened the scoring with her first goal of the season in the 15th minute of play.
 
Duke, which has proven to be one of the top teams in the nation this season, then equalized the match at 1-1 with a goal in the 30th minute.
 
Samford and the Blue Devils dueled back-and-forth for the remainder of regulation and the first overtime period, but then Duke's Ashton Miller rifled home the game-winning shot in the 104th minute. The game proved to be Samford's first overtime match of 2015.
 
SCOUTING THE OPPOSITION
Georgia (0-5-1), under the direction of first-year Head Coach Billy Lesesne, has faced an extremely tough schedule this season. The Bulldogs are in the hunt for their first win of the year after tying High Point, 0-0, and losing matches to Wake Forest, 4-0, Texas Tech, 2-1, Oklahoma State, 4-0, Clemson, 1-0, as well as a home setback to South Carolina, 3-1, in their Southeastern Conference opener on Friday.
 
FIRST MEETING BETWEEN THE 'DOGS
Samford will be squaring off with Georgia on the pitch for the first time in school history Sunday. Samford owns an 8-25-3 all-time record against SEC opponents, but boasts a 5-2 mark in its last seven meetings with SEC foes. Earlier this season, Samford played on the road at No. 11 Auburn and dropped a 2-0 decision.
 
MID-MAJOR?? NOT REALLY
During Head Coach Todd Yelton's tenure at Samford, the Bulldogs have earned wins against Alabama, Auburn, Kentucky, Memphis, Mississippi State, NC State, Southern Miss, Tennessee, UAB, Vanderbilt and Wake Forest.
 
In 2005, Samford also reached the second round of the NCAA Tournament after advancing past 19^th-ranked Vanderbilt in a penalty-kick shootout held in Nashville, Tennessee. Even though Samford moved past the Commodores into the second round, the result is historically considered a draw.
 
SOME OF THE NATION'S ELITE
The Bulldogs' Jermaine Seoposenwe is ranked No. 1 in the nation in assists with eight, while Malcanisha Kelley is ranked No. 5 in goals (6).
 
RECAPPING FRIDAY'S CONTEST
Lightning delayed the match by an hour and 44 minutes, but it proved to be a late strike from No. 15-ranked Duke's Ashton Miller that ended the wet, rainy contest in the fourth minute of double overtime against Samford, as the Blue Devils escaped the Samford Track and Soccer Stadium with a 2-1 win.
 
"This was a tough loss for us, but Duke is a very good team," said Yelton. "I thought our team played well. I thought they put us in a great position to at least get a point out of it, and maybe three, but I have to give a lot of credit to Duke. They are a very good team. In my mind, they are one of the best defensive units that we've seen all year. It's not the result that we wanted, but hopefully we can go from here and build on this performance."
 
Just minutes into the second overtime period, Duke (5-1-1) held possession on Samford's half of the field and earned a throw-in on the far side of the pitch.
 
The Blue Devils' Kara Wilson collected the inbounds throw and touched a quick pass over to Miller in the middle of the field. Miller then sprinted to her left, stopped on a dime and rifled a shot back to her right from 25 yards out.
 
Katie Peters, Samford's talented sophomore goalkeeper, followed Miller to the near side of the field, but the shot held such good pace that there was no way she could reach the ball placed into the top right corner of the net. Miller's golden goal proved to be her first score of the 2015 campaign. Wilson's assist was her first of the year as well.
 
"Miller just hit it extremely well to the back side and it froze Katie," Yelton said. "There was really nothing that she could have done on that ball after it was struck, but we gave her way too much time to set up and get that shot off. In a game like this, especially once you're in overtime, teams tend to get punished when they make mistakes."
 
With Friday's loss, Samford moved to 4-2 at home this season and dropped to 1-1 against Atlantic Coast Conference opponents. On Aug. 30, the Bulldogs played host to Wake Forest and registered a 2-1 home victory over the Demon Deacons.
 
WHAT'S COMING UP NEXT?
Following Sunday's home showdown with Georgia, the Samford University soccer team will next be in action Sept. 20 at noon (CDT) as the Bulldogs travel to Marietta, Georgia, for a nonconference contest with the Kennesaw State Owls. Next week's matchup will be held at KSU's Marietta Campus.
 
Last season, the Owls invaded the Samford Track and Soccer Stadium and handed Samford a 4-2 loss.
 
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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