COMMERCE – The Texas A&M University-Commerce soccer team has won three matches in a row and heads on the road for the first full two-match weekend in conference play at Southeastern and Nicholls.
 
LIONS' WEEKEND SCHEDULE

Date	Time	Opponent	Coverage
Friday, Sept. 29	7 p.m.	at Southeastern	ESPN+ | Live Stats
Sunday, Oct. 1	1 p.m.	at Nicholls	Live Stats

 
WHAT'S NEXT FOR THE LIONS
The Lions host Houston Christian on October 6 and A&M-Corpus Christi as part of the Hispanic Heritage Month Block Party on October 13.
 
A LOOK BACK AT LAST WEEK'S ACTION
Playing with 10 players for majority of the game, the Lions beat Northwestern State, 2-1 last Sunday. Both teams played the final 65 minutes of the match with 10 players each.
 
THREE WINS IN A ROW
Coming into this weekend, the Lions have won three in a row, having beaten UTEP and Northwestern State at home and A&M-Corpus Christi on the road. The three-match winning streak is the longest streak for the Lions since the five-match winning streak to close out the regular season and start the SLC tournament last year.
 
UNBEATEN AT HOME
By winning over the Lady Demons last Sunday, A&M-Commerce moved to 3-0-1 at the Lion Soccer Field this season. The four-match unbeaten streak is the longest to start the season since 2017. The next home match is on October 6 against Houston Christian.
 
BELL IS ON FIRE
Hannah Bell scored a goal in her first collegiate match, tallying a goal in the first half against Oral Roberts. She has scored five goals on the season, which include match winners against UTEP and Northwestern State. She is tied for the SLC lead 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.
 
DEAN, RAMIREZ EARN SLC RECOGNITION
Sophia Dean (Spring – Grand Oaks) and Kaydence Ramirez (Waxahachie) received Southland Conference Players of the Week honors following the win over Tulsa. Dean played all 180 minutes and collected a shutout over Tulsa, while Ramirez scored the match-winner against the Golden Hurricane.
 
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

 
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
Southeastern is 3-6 on the season and 1-1 in conference play. The Lady Lions picked up a conference win over UIW in a match that was completed on Monday morning due to inclement weather. SLU's other two wins came at UTRGV and at home against Jackson State. A&M-Commerce and Southeastern played to a scoreless tie in Commerce last season.
 
Mya Guillory is the team leader with five points, while Kelsey Fuller has two goals. Olivia Griffin has played nine matches, starting eight. She has allowed 1.48 goals per match and recorded 31 saves.
 
Nicholls comes into this weekend with a record of 1-10 overall and 0-2 against SLC teams. The Colonels beat Texas Southern at home, and they host SLC-preseason favorite Lamar on Friday night. The Lions picked up a 2-0 win in Thibodaux last season.
 
The Colonels have scored just six goals this season, while allowing 47. Lauren Andre has scored three goals, while Brooke Cox has one goal and one assist. Both Megan Cook and Elizabeth Zepeda have shared time in net with Zepeda recording 33 saves and Cook recording 24.