By: Mark McCollum
LAKELAND, Fla.—The Southeastern University women's soccer team continued their hot start to the 2020 season with two wins a week ago and is aiming to remain unbeaten this week. Two more games are on tap for the Fire this week as they travel to Ave Maria in a make-up game on Wednesday, October 7
th at 5:00 pm and host St. Thomas on Saturday, October 10
th at 2:00 pm.
The Fire offense came alive in the two wins last week, outscoring their opponents 14-1. In the 9-1 victory over Florida National, senior
Aisha Solorzano tallied a career-high in goals with four including a hat trick in the first half. Junior
Mashell Rodriguez pitched in with two goals of her own, while
Gabriela Labrador,
Jennifer Luna, and
Naira Lopez all notched a goal as well.
In their second match of the week, Southeastern saw another four-goal effort from freshman
Anne-Clara Couturier in the 5-0 win over Webber International. All goals came in the second half after the score was tied at 0-0 heading into halftime. Solorzano added another goal to push her season total up to seven which has her ranked eighth in the NAIA.
The Fire defense continued their strong start to the season as they held opponents to just six shots on the week, with four of those on goal.
Southeastern hits the road to take on an Ave Maria team that enters play this week with an overall record of 2-2, going 1-2 in conference play. Senior Emily Dalton leads the team in goals with six and shots on goal with 12. Junior goalkeeper Maddie Samuelson is tied for second in the Sun Conference with 17 saves through three games.
Southeastern is looking to remain unbeaten against Ave Maria as they have won all 15 matchups between the two programs. The Fire triumphed to a 10-0 win last season as
Kristal Pesina scored her only goal of the season and Solorzano added two more assists.
Gabriela Labrador added an assist of her own.
In their second match of the week, Southeastern hosts a St. Thomas team who carries a 4-1 overall record into this week and has gone 3-1 in conference play. The Bobcats have won four straight since their 5-1 loss to Keiser University. As a team the Bobcats have recorded two shutouts and have held opponents to 27 shots on goal, compared to their 43 shots on goal. Individually, senior Karina Medina paces the Bobcat's offense with three goals and nine shots on goal. Additionally, sophomore Leslie Deleon leads her team with two assists.
Southeastern holds the edge in the all-time series with St. Thomas 4-1 and have won four straight. The Fire won their most recent matchup with the Bobcats 2-1 with Solorzano and Labrador each tallying an assist.
For all the latest on the Fire women's soccer team follow @SEUFireWSoccer on Twitter and Instagram!
