ETSU’s women’s soccer team has kicked off its season, playing two exhibition games and two official games outside of their conference.
The first game of the season was played on Thursday, Aug. 18 against Gardner-Webb University, where the Bulldogs took the lead, scoring two goals in the first half. The energy was high, and the Bucs brought it back in the second half resulting in a 2-2 tied game.
“Going into the second half, after talking about what we needed to fix, I think we started to play better as a team and connect passes,” said sophomore Sydney Somogyi (Germantown, Tennessee).
Not only was the first game at home, but Summers-Taylor Stadium saw 2,022 fans come out to support the team.
“It’s a huge thank you to the ticket office, admissions office and dining services to come out on a hot day, get it all set up and create an unbelievable environment and I’m so thankful to them,” said head coach Jay Yelton. “It created an environment that I’ve never experienced since I’ve been here. Our girls were able to give us the energy to come from behind a two-goal deficit.”
On Sunday, Aug. 21, the team traveled to Lynchburg, Virginia to compete against Liberty University. The Bucs lost 4-0 to the Lady Flames who were able to score the second two goals at the end of the second half within a matter of six minutes.
Two defenders, Somogyi and senior Taylor Limprevil (Spring Hill, Tennessee), stayed on the field for the entire 90 minutes of the game.
“Right now, we are figuring out how to play as a team and work on the small details,” said Somogyi.
The Buccaneers will be playing four more away games before returning home to play against UNC- Asheville on Sunday, Sept. 11.
