Battle of the Bulldogs

Women's soccer hosts The Citadel at Bulldog Stadium Sunday morning

SMITHFIELD, R.I. – The Bryant University women's soccer team will welcome The Citadel Bulldogs to Smithfield on Sunday morning. Game time is set for 11 a.m. at Bulldog Stadium.

Bryant (1-1) will look to look to notch its first victory in Smithfield after dropping its home opener, 3-2, to UMass last Wednesday. The Citadel will head north for the weekend with a game in Orono, Maine on Friday afternoon against the Black Bears before coming to Bryant on Sunday.

In Wednesday's game at Bulldog Stadium the Black and Gold found themselves down early after a Minutewomen goal by Jen Coppola in the 24th minute gave UMass a 1-0 lead. The final minutes of the first half provided a barrage of scoring attacks which began in the 42nd minute when UMass sophomore Moa Mattsson netted her first goal of the game on a bullet into the back of the net from 25 yards out. Just over a minute later, Bryant senior captain Alex Bengston (Andover, Mass.) tallied her first score of the young season on a direct kick that ricocheted off the near post and across the goal line to bring the Bulldogs within one. However, Mattsson wasted no time extending the UMass lead to, 3-1, scoring her second goal of the game right before the half expired.

The Bulldogs were able to cut the UMass lead to one goal for a second time in the 56th minute off an Ari Goldberg (East Bridgewater, Mass.) penalty kick, but the equalizer evaded them, as they were unable to capitalize on multiple second half scoring chances.

Last season, Citadel finished with an overall record of 5-11-3, going 3-6-2 in the Southern Conference. The South Carolina Bulldogs are primed for a strong 2012 with the return of their two leading scorers from last season. Juniors Vanessa Aponte and Mariana Garcia led their team in all major statistical categories in 2011 including goals, assists, points and shots. Aponte finished the season with 19 points on eight goals and three assists while Garcia concluded her sophomore campaign with 18 points on seven goals and four assists.  

The unfamiliarity between the two teams will is sure to provide some exciting play come Sunday as this will be the first ever meeting between the two programs.

For links to streaming video and live stats of Sunday's game and for all the latest information on Bryant University women's soccer, visit BryantBulldogs.com.