July 10, 2008

documents/2008/7/10/08LUWSScedule.pdf

FARMVILLE, Va. -- Longwood University 15th-year women's soccer head coach Todd Dyer '93 has announced his upcoming 2008 Schedule, featuring eight home matches at the Athletics Complex in Farmville in addition to hosting this year's United Soccer Conference (USC) Tournament November 1-3.  The Lancers finished 10-9-1 overall during 2007, including 5-0-0 in the USC, the program's first year of NCAA?Division I competition with full certification and eligibility.  Longwood will open 2008 at home on Friday night, August 22, at 7 p.m. while welcoming nearby rival Liberty University.
   
“With back-to-back winning seasons (11-5-3 in 2006), our goal now in scheduling is to maintain or exceed that type of success while raising the level of competition that we will face,” explained Dyer.  “I'm confident that we've achieved that when you look at the schedule that Coach (Steve) Brdarski (fifth-year assistant) worked so hard on for us this past year.”
   
The schedule is highlighted by home matches against in-state opponents Richmond (August 31, 7 p.m.), George Mason (September 20, 4 p.m.), Liberty (August 22, 7 p.m.), and VMI (September 2, 7 p.m.).  Highlighted in-state opponents on the road include Virginia Tech (October 15, 7 p.m.) and Radford (October 2, 7 p.m.), while Longwood will also participate in tournaments hosted by Appalachian State (September 12-14)?and Coastal Carolina (September 5-7).  The Lancers will face UNC Wilmington (September 14, 12 p.m.) and the host Mountaineers (September 12, 3 p.m.) at ASU in Boone, North Carolina, and will play the host Chanticleers (September 7, 3 p.m.) at CCU in Conway, South Carolina along with Charleston Southern (September 5, 5:30 p.m.).
   
“While Virginia Tech (ACC) and Richmond (A-10) headline opponents that we are facing again, the addition of George Mason and UNC Wilmington (CAA) will provide us with another great challenge and chance to measure our program,” added Dyer.  “We also face a healthy portion of Big South competition, including Radford, Liberty, and VMI in the state of Virginia.  We've always matched up very well with schools in that league, so we're eager to renew some friendly rivalries that we've established over the past few years.”
   
This year's USC competition will include home contests against Howard (September 28, 4:30 p.m.) and South Carolina State (October 17, 7 p.m.), along with league road matches at NJIT (October 11, 1 p.m.), Delaware State (October 19, 3 p.m.), and Utah Valley (October 26, 5 p.m.).  Also on the slate prior to the season-ending USC Tournament are non-conference matches at home against Saint Francis (Pa.) (September 26, 7 p.m.) and Francis Marion (October 23, 7 p.m.)?as well as a road game at Campbell (August 26, 7 p.m.).  The USC?Tournament will feature semifinal matches on November 1 at 4 p.m. and 7 p.m., and the USC?Tournament Championship will be played November 3 at 5:30 p.m..
   
“Last but not least, we're very excited about hosting our conference tournament this fall,” said Dyer.  “We were undefeated in the regular season last year, but couldn't quite close things out at Utah Valley last year when they hosted the tournament and beat us in the final.  We're eager to see if we can get a better result on our home field come tournament time.”
   
Longwood returns eight starters among 17 letterwinners from a year ago, and has added 10 incoming freshmen recruits to the roster for 2008.  The Lancers finished last season strong, going 9-5-1 over their final 15 contests after a 1-4 start.