Women's Soccer Opens Season Against North Alabama

 
NASHVILLE, Tenn. - - Belmont University women's soccer begins their 2023 campaign on Thursday night vs. North Alabama.

The game will be the first coached by first-year head coach Kelsey Cameron.
 
The Lions defeated the Bruins 2-1 last season. It was the first time North Alabama defeated Belmont.
 
Belmont faces a tough non-conference including road matchups against Southeastern Conference members Vanderbilt and Kentucky. The Bruins match against North Alabama is only one-of-two home non-conference matches.
 
"The team has been working hard and we are looking forward to the lineup of opponents we have in these next few weeks that will help prepare us for Missouri Valley Conference play," said head coach Kelsey Cameron.
 
Graduate student Sarah Doyle returns in goal for the Bruins with a conference-best .856 save percentage and 4.52 saves-per-game. The Third-Team All-MVC earned MVC Goalkeeper of the Week three times last season.
 
All three of the Bruins' leading scorers return to the pitch this season: Leah Firsdon, Maci Pekmezian, and Anna Sweeney.
 
What's Bruin
 

• The Bruins finished the 2022 season 5-6-6 and 3-4-3 in their first season in the Missouri Valley conference.
• Belmont went 2-3-3 in matches at home and 3-2-3 on the road last season.
• Kelsey Cameron enters her first season at Belmont after six years at NCAA Division II Trevecca Nazarene University.
• The Bruins added six freshmen and two transfers to their roster. Sophomore Gabrielle Letto joins the team after one season at the University of Cincinnati. Graduate transfer Abbigail Legg joins her former coach at Trevecca Nazarene University in Kelsey Cameron.
• Senior forward Maci Pekmezian earned a preseason honorable mention nod in the Missouri Valley Conference Preseason Poll.
• Sarah Doyle recorded a conference-best .856 save percentage and averaged 4.53 saves-per-game last season. She earned MVC Goalkeeper of the week three times last season.
• Two Third-Team All-MVC honorees return for the Bruins: Maci Pekmezian and Sarah Doyle.
• Anna Sweeney and Avery Nowak earned MVC Scholar Athlete and CSC Academic All-District honors.
• Loren House and Avery Nowak racked up 1,493 and 1,491 minutes respectively last season.

 
Scouting Report

• The Lions finished 5-8-5 and 2-6-2 in ASUN conference play last season.
• North Alabama ranks 12^th in the ASUN Conference Preseason Coaches Poll
• Senior Allice Bussey was named to the ASUN Preseason All-Conference team. She earned Third-Team All-ASUN last season.
• North Alabama returns seven starters from last season. Olivia Anderson, Malin Andersson, Alice Bussey, Izzi Gurney-Harper, Hannah Guthrie, Hope Lens­ing and Alana Watts. These seven account for 90 starts and 38 of the Lions' 57 points scored last season.

 
This marks the fourth meeting between North Alabama and Belmont. North Alabama defeated Belmont 2-1 last season in Florence, Alabama. Belmont won the previous two meetings, 8-0 Oct. 31, 1998, and 1-0, Sept. 17, 1997.
 
The match is slated for 6:30 p.m. CT from E.S. Rose Park. The game will be broadcasted on ESPN+. Live stats are available at belmontsbruins.com. In-game updates will be available via Twitter @BelmontWSoccer.
 

We're ???????????????????? back on Thursday??#ItsBruinTime pic.twitter.com/IfKf8b84yI

— Belmont Women's Soccer (@BelmontWSoccer) August 15, 2023

 
Follow Belmont women's soccer on social media - @BelmontWSoccer on Twitter, @belmontwsoccer on Instagram and @belmontWsoccer on Facebook - for complete coverage of the Bruins. Stay up to date with all of Belmont's athletic programs via the official app of the Belmont Bruins, available both in the Apple App Store and on Google Play.