JACKSONVILLE – After opening the 2022 season at home last weekend, the Jacksonville State soccer team will have a pair of road tests this weekend.
JSU's first stop on the road trip will be a visit to Huntsville, Alabama to face Alabama A&M on Friday before continuing across the state line to Jackson, Mississippi for a Sunday contest with Jackson State. Friday's in-state outing with the Bulldogs is set for 4:30 p.m. on Bulldog Field. Jax State's contest with the Tigers will get underway at 1 p.m. Live stats will not be available for the JSU-AAMU match up, but live stats and streaming coverage will be provided via links on JSUGamecockSports.com.
The Gamecocks will be looking for its first win of the early season after falling to a pair of tough sides on the opening weekend of the season as they dropped decisions to Samford and South Alabama. AAMU (1-1) will be on short rest after they posted a 1-0 win over Troy on Monday. The Tigers started the season with a pair of losses in week one and will host Southeastern Louisiana on Friday.
The two oppositions this weekend are very familiar to JSU after claiming wins over the two SWAC programs last season in Jacksonville. The Gamecocks combined for six goals in the two matches with AAMU and JSU. Jax State collected a 2-0 win over the Tigers in the home opener and turned in a 4-1 decision over AAMU. Friday's match with AAMU will be the seventh meeting between the two in-state programs with JSU having won five of the previous six matches. The 'battle of the JSU's' on Sunday will be the ninth duel on the pitch with the Gamecocks holding a 7-0-1 lead in the series.
After the first two matches, five different Gamecocks have tallied shots, led by junior
Kylie Wells and freshman Birta Birgisdóttir. The two have three shots each through the first two matches of the season. Senior
Briana Eads has a pair of shots, while sophomore
Laleh Lonteen and junior
Vanessa Mejia have had an attempt.
Defensively, Jax State has started freshman
Bailey Dean at the goalkeeper spot. Dean combined for nine saves last weekend, including six against Samford in her first collegiate action.
For more information on the JSU soccer team, follow the Gamecocks on Twitter (@JSUGamecocksSOC). For more on all Gamecocks sports teams, follow the official social media accounts of JSU Athletics on Twitter (@JSUGamecocks), Facebook (Facebook.com/JSUGamecocks), Instagram (@JSUGamecocks) and Snapchat (@JSUGamecocks).
