COLUMBUS - Fresh off a 2-0 Florida road trip, the second-ranked Columbus State University women's soccer team returns to the Walden Soccer Complex to host Tampa at 7:30 p.m. a part of the annual CSU Collegiate Invitational. Real-time statistics and live video will be available on CSUCougars.com.
The first 100 fans through the gate after 7 p.m. will receive a free t-shirt.
Fans are also encouraged to wear red for Columbus State's annual "Sea of Red Night".
Tickets
Single match tickets will be available for $5 at the Walden Soccer Complex gate. Season passes will also be on sale for $40. The pass will give you access to all regular season matches played at the Walden Soccer Complex.
About the Columbus State Lady Cougars
Columbus State put on an offensive exhibition in the Embry-Riddle Invitational last weekend scoring 12 goals in two victories. CSU defeated Embry-Riddle 4-2 in the season opener before knocking off 20th-ranked Barry 8-2.
Six different Lady Cougars found the back of the net, including Maddy Peterson and Kimmy May who both ended the weekend with three goals. In all, nine CSU players recorded a point.
CSU is one of only six programs at the Division II level to have scored 10 or more goals over the first two matches this season.
About the Tampa Spartans
Tampa dropped two tough matches over the opening weekend each by a 3-2 margin, including falling to 13th-ranked Mississippi State in overtime.
Moeko Morse scored a goal in each match for the Spartans. Morse is the reigning Sunshine State Conference Freshman of the Year after tallying six goals and 13 points for Tampa in 2018.
Goalkeeper Megan Bromwell matched a career-high with 11 saves against Mississippi State. That is also tied for the fifth-most in a match in Tampa history.
Series History
Columbus State and Tampa will renew their rivalry Friday night meeting for the first time since Sept. 11, 2015. CSU owns a 4-3-1 all-time advantage versus the Spartans, including a 3-0-1 record in Columbus. Tampa won the 2015 meeting 2-1 in Tampa.
Team Notes
• This will be the 15th season of play at the Walden Soccer Complex. CSU is 130-16-6 all-time on the pitch for a .875 winning percentage.
• CSU is 11-3-0 in home openers at the Walden Soccer Complex.
• In 2008, the Lady Cougars also opened their home schedule with Tampa defeating the Spartans 2-0.
• In their last 11 matches against Sunshine State Conference opponents, CSU is 7-3-1
• CSU is unbeaten in its last 17 regular season matches.
• The Lady Cougars have scored three or more goals in four out of their last five matches dating back to last season.
• In 2017, the Lady Cougars also started the season by scoring 12 goals in the first two matches.
Moving Up in the Poll
Columbus State moved up two spots in the latest United Soccer Coaches association poll to second. It's the highest ranking for the Lady Cougars since Sept. 13, 2016 when the Lady Cougars were the top-ranked team in the country.
CSU Collegiate Invitational
The CSU Collegiate Invitational has become one of the top destinations for early season showdowns throughout the years. This year's invitational includes four matches on Friday and three on Sunday. Four different conferences will be represented with Christian Brothers, Clayton State, Montevallo, Queens, Saint Leo, Tampa, and West Alabama all making the trip to Columbus.
Homefield Advantage
The Walden Soccer Complex has been very good to Columbus State through the years. Since 2014, CSU is 47-1-1 on its home pitch and currently on a 17-match win streak.
Becoming a Scoring Force
With her three goals, junior Kimmy May is tied atop of the scoring leaderboard in the Peach Belt Conference along with her teammate Maddy Peterson and one other. Since the start of the 2018 NCAA Tournament, May has scored in four out of the last five matches for Columbus State.
Lady Cougars Tabbed as PBC Favorites
Columbus State was voted as the PBC preseason favorites by the league's head coaches. It is the fifth straight season that the Lady Cougars have been tabbed as the team to beat.
Three Lady Cougars Named to Preseason All-PBC Team
Riley Clark, Madeline Goodfellow, and Kimmy May were named to the 11-player preseason All-PBC team.
Clark, a 2018 All-American, finished second in the conference in goals (16) and points (39). Goodfellow is one of the strongest defenders in the league helping the Lady Cougars to 10 shutouts. She was also a Google Cloud Academic All-American. May was a postseason hero for Columbus State scoring two goals in the NCAA Southeast Region championship last season. She finished the year with seven goals and 10 assists.
Entlich Among the Nation's Best
Since starting the program in 2004, Jay Entlich has established CSU women's soccer into a national powerhouse. With an overall record of 261-56-24 at CSU, he is the winningest coach in PBC history. His overall coaching record of 283-72-24 puts him eighth all-time at the NCAA Division II level.
He has coached four PBC Player of the Year award winners and has been named the conference's Coach of the Year in every season since 2014.
