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BIRMINGHAM, Ala. -- The Samford University soccer team will begin its longest homestand of the 2016 season Friday at 7 p.m. (CDT) as the Bulldogs welcome the Baylor Bears to the Samford Track and Soccer Stadium for a highly-anticipated, non-conference showdown.
 
Following Friday's marquee matchup with Baylor (5-1), Samford (1-2-2) will remain at home to challenge Alabama on Tuesday (7 p.m.) and Kennesaw State on Sept. 16, at 7 p.m. The Bulldogs are currently 1-1 at home this season after a 2-0 victory against Troy on Aug. 21, but also a disappointing 4-3 loss to No. 24-ranked Auburn on Aug. 28.
 
Samford heads into its match with Baylor boasting nine goals scored this season. In their last two outings, the Bulldogs tallied four goals versus Auburn and then added three more in a 3-3 draw on the road at Rice on Friday.
 

THE LAST TIME OUT - - SAMFORD PLAYS TO 3-3 DRAW AT RICE
The Bulldogs received goals from All-Southern Conference performers Malcanisha Kelley, Jermaine Seoposenwe and Taylor Borman on Friday, but the homestanding Rice Owls tallied two scores in the final 31 minutes of action to prompt a 3-3 draw held at Rice's Holloway Field.
 
Rice opened the scoring in the 18^th minute as defender Jasmine Isokpunwu headed home a corner kick off the foot of Annie Walker. Following the Owls' early score, Samford answered with three goals of its own within a six-minute span to garner a 3-1 advantage.
 
Senior striker Kelley scored with less than two minutes remaining in the first half to even the match at 1-1, while Seoposenwe and Borman notched goals in the 46^th and 50^th minutes, respectively, to take a 3-1 lead. Kelley's goal proved to be her third of the season and increased her Samford record to 31 in her career.
 
Seoposenwe, the Bulldogs' 2016 Olympian for her home country of South Africa, helped account for all three of Samford's goals. A senior forward, Seoposenwe assisted on both Kelley and Borman's goals, while her score was the third of the season. Sophomore forward Ella Baggett assisted on Seoposenwe's goal at exactly 39 seconds into the second half.
 
With momentum on their side and a significant 3-1 advantage on the scoreboard, the Bulldogs seemed poised to cruise to a nice road victory at Rice, but the Owls had different thoughts.
 
In the 60th minute of action, Rice's Lianne Mananquil scored her first goal of the season to cut Samford's lead to 3-2 heading into the final third of regulation. Then, less than 12 minutes later, the Owls' Nia Stallings also registered her first goal of the season as she turned in the equalizer at 71:06 in the match.
 

SAMFORD'S SEOPOSENWE NAMED SOCON PLAYER OF THE WEEK
The Bulldogs' Seoposenwe was named the SoCon Player of the Week for all competition held Aug. 29 through Sept. 4 on Tuesday, after she scored a goal and added a pair of assists in the Bulldogs' 3-3 road draw at Rice last week.
 
Seoposenwe proved to be the third straight Samford player to secure the league's top weekly honor. Two weeks ago, junior goalkeeper Katie Peters received the SoCon's initial accolade of the season, while Borman earned the award last week.
 
Seoposenwe, a Cape Town, South Africa, native who recently competed for her home nation in the Rio Olympics, scored a goal and assisted on two others as the Bulldogs played to a 3-3 draw at Rice on Friday. The senior striker did all of her damage in less than a six-minute span bridging the halves.
 
With the Bulldogs trailing 1-0, Seoposenwe assisted on Kelley's equalizer at the 43:19 mark. Seoposenwe then bagged her third goal of the season exactly 2 minutes and 20 seconds of game play later, 39 seconds into the second half, and she assisted on Samford's third strike in the flurry at 49:06.
 
Now boasting nine points on three goals and three assists, Seoposenwe shares the league leads in both points and assists.
 
SEOPOSENWE SETS SAMFORD'S ALL-TIME ASSIST RECORD 
With her two assists Friday, Seoposenwe became Samford's career leader in the category with 27, surpassing Rebecca Bohler, who set the previous mark of 26 in 2007. Seoposenwe, in her third season at Samford, accomplished the feat in only 45 matches. She is also the SoCon's active career leader in assists and needs just five more to enter the top 10 in league history.
 
SCOUTING THE COMPETITION
Baylor heads into Friday's game boasting a four-match winning streak. Following a tough 1-0 loss on the road at Michigan State on Aug. 21, the Bears have rattled off consecutive victories against Purdue, 5-1, Incarnate Word, 3-0, Northern Illinois, 1-0, and Illinois-Chicago, 1-0. Baylor is outscoring its opponents by a total of 12-2 this season and has only allowed a single goal in its last four outings.
 
The Bears have already played four matches on the road this year and have compiled a 3-1 record. Friday's contest will mark their third-consecutive road game.
 
THE LAST TIME OUT - - BAYLOR DEFEATS FLAMES ON THE ROAD, 1-0
The Bears used a late goal from Lauren Piercy to top the Illinois-Chicago Flames, 1-0, on Sunday. Much like Friday's match at Northern Illinois, Baylor dominated the game but didn't get a goal until the waning minutes.
 
In the 84th minute, and instead of getting an assist for Friday's game-winner, Piercy dribbled into the box and her shot from 10 yards out hit the back of the net. The goal was enough to stand as the Bears closed out the last six minutes with solid defense and ball control.
 
Baylor owns at least a 5-1 record or better to start a season for the fifth time in the last seven seasons. The Bears have won four straight matches for the first time since winning seven straight last season from Sept. 6-Oct. 2, 2015. Additionally, Baylor's three-match shutout streak is its first since Sept. 20 through Oct. 2, 2015.
 
SAMFORD vs. BAYLOR - - THE ALL-TIME SERIES
Friday's match will mark just the second regular-season meeting in history between the Bulldogs and Bears. The first game between the teams occurred Sept. 17, 2006, as Samford dropped a hard-fought 1-0 decision on the road in Waco, Texas. Additionally, last year, the Bulldogs played at Baylor in an exhibition contest held at Betty Lou Mays Field and the Bears held on for a similar 1-0 decision.
 
LAST YEAR'S MEETING - - SAMFORD vs. BAYLOR
Just over 10 minutes into last year's preseason exhibition contest held at Betty Lou Mays Field, Baylor's Julie James registered the decisive play of the match as she tallied the game-winning goal in a tightly-contested 1-0 home victory against Samford.
 
James scored the game's lone goal at exactly 10:13 into the match. The Bears' Emory Carson started the play with a free kick to James in the box who headed the ball in for the score. Carson earned the assist on Baylor's decisive score.
 
Despite falling behind early, Samford's talented young squad fought into rhythm and outshot the Bears, 6-3, in the final two periods of the match.
 

Samford's offensive attack was paced by Borman, who accounted for four of the team's six shot attempts, including all three shots on goal. The Bulldogs' Kelley and Sara Smeltzer also added shots.
 
Late in the contest, Borman nearly equalized the score of the match with a trio of tough shots at Baylor goalkeeper Jody Lee. Lee finished the contest with three saves in 90 minutes.
 
Samford's goalkeeping duties were split between Anna Maddox and Peters. Maddox started the game and played a team-high 47 minutes, but did allow Baylor's early goal.
 
Peters came on in the second period and split duties in the third frame. She totaled 43 minutes and didn't face a single shot on goal. Maddox finished with four saves.
 
WHAT'S COMING UP NEXT?
Following Friday's home showdown with Baylor, the Samford University soccer team will next be in action Tuesday at 7 p.m. (CDT) as the Bulldogs play host to the Alabama Crimson Tide in a highly-anticipated showdown to be held at the Samford Track and Soccer Stadium.
 
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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