COMMERCE – The No. 2 seed in next week's Southland Conference Tournament is up for grabs at Cowgirl Field when the Texas A&M University-Commerce soccer team faces the McNeese Cowgirls on Friday night.  
 
WHO: A&M-Commerce at McNeese
WHERE: Lake Charles, La. | Cowgirl Field
WHEN: Friday, October 27 | 6 p.m.
RECORDS: Both teams are 8-6-3 on the season, with the Lions being 6-1-2 in conference play, while the Cowgirls are 5-2-2.  
 
LIVE STATS: https://mcneesesports.com/sidearmstats/wsoc/summary  
 
WHAT'S AT STAKE
Only three points separate A&M-Commerce and McNeese entering the final match of the regular season. The Lions can clinch the No. 2 seed in next week's SLC Tournament in Corpus Christi with a win or a tie, while McNeese must secure the win to leapfrog A&M-Commerce in the standings. Both teams are guaranteed to be in the top three in the final SLC standings.
 
A win on Friday also gives the Lions a record of 9-6-3, which secures the first winning season at A&M-Commerce for any sport in the Division I era.
 
WHAT'S NEXT FOR THE LIONS
The first round matches of the SLC Tournament begin next Wednesday in Corpus Christi. The full bracket of the SLC Tournament will be released following the conclusion of all matches on Friday night.
 
A LOOK BACK AT LAST WEEK'S ACTION
The Lions picked up a 3-0 win over Nicholls last Friday at home and played UIW to a 1-1 tie on Sunday at the Lion Soccer Field, having now gone unbeaten in their last three matches.   
 
HISTORIC STREAKS END AGAINST THE ISLANDERS
The 2-1 loss to A&M-Corpus Christi on October 13 ended numerous streaks for the Lions. Coming into that match, the Lions had won six in a row, which was the longest winning streak since 2016.
 
The Lions were 5-0 in conference play, which matched the best start to conference play since 2004 and 1999.  
 
FIRST LOSE AT HOME IN 2023
The Lions lost their first match of the season at home this season when they fell to A&M-Corpus Christi. The five-match unbeaten streak was the longest to start the season since 2017, a season in which the Lions won their first nine home matches.  
 
A&M-Commerce finished with a record of 5-1-2 at home this season.
 
RAMIREZ IS ON FIRE
Kaydence Ramirez (Waxahachie) scored three times last week and extended her scoring streak to seven, earning the SLC Offensive Player of the Week award for the second time this season. She is the conference leader in shots, goals, and points entering the final match of the season.
 
With Ramirez' weekly honor last week, the Lions have increased their season total to six weekly honorees. Sophia Dean (Spring – Grand Oaks) has been named Goalkeeper of the Week twice, Nya Mitchell (Dallas – Mesquite Horn) was named Defensive Player of the Week once, and Ramirez was also named Offensive Player of the Week on August 29.
 
SOUTHLAND CONFERENCE PLAYERS OF THE WEEK

Date	Goalkeeper	Defensive	Offensive
Aug. 22	Makenzie Hall, UIW	Eve Clarkson, UIW	Kelsey Fuller, Southeastern
Aug. 29	Sophia Dean, A&M-Commerce	Ellie-Mae Sanford, UIW	Kaydence Ramirez, A&M-Commerce
Sept. 5	Kennedy Stelling, A&M-Corpus Christi	Lauren Andre, Nicholls	Maggie Murray, A&M-Corpus Christi
Sept. 12	Libe Banuelos, Northwestern State	Rachel Loetzer, A&M-Corpus Christi	Hollie Massey, Lamar
Sept. 19	Nicole Panis, Lamar	Arely Alaniz, Lamar	Cariel Ellis, Lamar
Sept. 26	Jackie Kelly, McNeese	Martine Ellefsen, McNeese	Taylor Spitzer, Northwestern State
Oct. 3	Sophia Dean, A&M-Commerce (2)	Nya Mitchell, A&M-Commerce	Hollie Massey, Lamar (2)
Oct. 10	Nicole Panis, Lamar	Rachel Loetzer, A&M-Corpus Christi	Melissa Storey, A&M-Commerce
Oct. 17	Jackie Kelly, McNeese	Alexi Pitt, McNeese	Hanna Moffatt, Southeastern
Oct. 24	Erica Defferding, UIW	Arely Alaniz, Lamar (2)	Kaydence Ramirez, A&M-Commerce (2)

 
BELL IS ON FIRE
Hannah Bell (Duncanville) scored a goal in her first collegiate match, tallying a goal in the first half against Oral Roberts. She has scored eight goals on the season, which includes match winners against UTEP, Northwestern State, and Southeastern.
 
She is second in the SLC in goals during her freshman season and making a strong push for the Lions to bring home the conference freshman of the year award for the third year in a row.  
 
A HISTORIC WIN OVER GOLDEN HURRICANE
Scoring once in each half and posting a shutout in net against Tulsa gave the Lions a 2-0 win, their first in 2023. It was also A&M-Commerce's first non-conference win in the Division I era.
 
SUELTZ' BRACE POWERS LIONS OVER MINERS
Kristen Sueltz (The Colony) scored the first equalizing goal and then added the match-winner against UTEP for the win. She did not have a goal this season prior to the win over the Miners.
 
A FRESH SLATE
The Lions head into the 2023 season with several newcomers, highlighted by three transfers from fellow NCAA Division I schools and impactful freshmen. The Lions are picked to finish second in the Southland Conference, which is the program's highest predicted finish since 2018.
  
A HISTORIC 2022
The Lions are coming off a historic season last year, which was A&M-Commerce's first in NCAA Division I and the Southland Conference. The Lions went 9-9-2, finishing third in the SLC during the regular season and advancing to the SLC Tournament Championship match.
 
A&M-Commerce retains four all-conference players from last season, highlighted by 2022 Southland Freshman of the Year Mya Mitchell (Dallas – Mesquite Horn) as well as Ashley Campuzano (Dallas – Atlas Prep), Nya Mitchell (Dallas – Mesquite Horn), and Mindy Shoffit (Wichita Falls – Rider).
 
PRESEASON POLLS
In the SLC preseason poll, the Lions were voted to finish second, behind defending SLC champion Lamar. Additionally, Campuzano and Mya Mitchell were named to preseason first team all-conference, while Shoffit, Nya Mitchell, and Hailey Griffin (Byron Nelson) were named to preseason second team all-conference.
 
2023 Southland Preseason Poll

1	Lamar (14)	126
2	A&M-COMMERCE	97
3	Southeastern	84
4	HCU (2)	83
5	Northwestern State (2)	81
6	Texas A&M-Corpus Christi	68
7	McNeese	53
8	UIW	33
9	Nicholls	23

 
MITCHELLS IN RARIFIED COMPANY
Both Mya and Nya Mitchell were named to preseason all-conference teams this year. They are believed to be the only sisters in NCAA Division I women's soccer this year to have both earned preseason all-conference honors.
 
TWICE THE FUN
The Mitchells are also among 17 sets of twins in NCAA Division I women's soccer, represented by 17 programs.
 
THEY ARE ALL BACK
Ashley Gordon, who enters her second season as the Lions' coach, retains her entire staff from a year ago. Omar Morales remains as the assistant coach and Luca Crivellari continues as the program's graduate assistant.
 
SCOUTING THE COMPETITION
The Lions are meeting the Cowgirls for the third time since joining the SLC and fifth time overall. A&M-Commerce won both meetings last season by matching scores of 2-1. The match at home for the Lions against McNeese last season was played in Greenville.  
 
McNeese is coming off a 2-0 win at the Islanders last week and are 2-2-3 at home this season. Kaile Kukaua is the team leader with six goals and 14 points, while Morgan Feidler has five goals. Jackie Kelly has played 15 matches in goal for McNeese, having recorded 78 saves and is top 15 in the country with a 0.881 save percentage.