JOHNSON CITY, Tenn. (Sept. 23, 2023) –?With a first-ever road point at Furman in hand, ETSU looks to add three more to its SoCon slate and cap a productive weekend with a win at home against VMI on Sunday. Kickoff is set for 2 p.m. at Summers-Taylor Stadium. Admission is free, and live coverage is available through ESPN Plus. 

THE MATCHUP  

ETSU (4-1-4, 0-0-1) vs. VMI (1-9-0, 0-1-0) 

Sunday, September 23 | 2 p.m. | Summers-Taylor Stadium | ESPN+ | Live Stats  

ABOUT THE BUCS  

• ETSU returns home after a 0-0 draw with Furman on Thursday. The single point marks the first the Bucs have earned at Furman in the history of the series, snapping a 10-game losing streak at Stone Stadium.
• Goalkeeper Ashton Blair (Knoxville, Tenn.) posted her fourth solo shutout of the year and seventh of her career. Four shutouts in a season ties Blair for the fifth-most in ETSU history, and seven career shutouts put her fifth in school history. Blair leads the SoCon in goals against average (0.588) and is second in shutouts (4) and save percentage (0.833).
• The Furman shutout was ETSU's fourth straight, the first time they have blanked four consecutive opponents since August 29-September 12, 2003, and just the second time in program history.
• ETSU has not conceded a goal in its first 360 minutes at home this season. It is the longest home shutout streak for the Bucs since 2016, when they held home opponents scoreless for a school record 499 consecutive minutes between September 16 and October 29, and the third-longest home shutout streak ever for ETSU. The current home shutout streak is the longest such streak to start a season in program history.
• Freshman forward Ava Matherne (Gulf Breeze, Fla.) led the Bucs in shots with three against Furman and leads the team with 19 shots this season. Her seven shots on goal are the most by a Buccaneer yet to score, and Matherne looks to become the fifth player to score her first collegiate goal this season for ETSU. Sophomore Natalie Capannelli (Ontario, Canada) and freshmen Molly Cason (Ringgold, Ga.), Reagan Fitzgerald (Oviedo, Fla.), and Ella Parker (Jefferson, Ga.) have all opened their collegiate accounts in 2023. 

ABOUT VMI 

• The Keydets opened SoCon play with a 2-0 loss at home to Wofford on Thursday. The Terriers scored in the 11th and 41st minutes and outshot VMI 21-9. Including conference tournament play, they have now lost 47 of their last 52 games against SoCon opponents (1-47-4).
• VMI's lone win of the season came at Delaware State on August 24, a 1-0 victory. Redshirt sophomore Sedona Dancu scored in the 88th minute to push the Keydets over the finish line.
• After leading the Keydets in scoring in 2022, Dancu is again atop VMI's scoring chart with two goals this season. She is the active leading goal scorer for the Keydets with seven career tallies.
• The Keydets are tied for 307th out of 336 ranked Division I teams in goals per game (0.60) 

SERIES HISTORY 

• This is the 11th meeting between ETSU and VMI. The Buccaneers are 7-1-2 against the Keydets and have won the last two meetings by a combined 4-0 score.
• The Bucs are 5-0-1 against VMI at Summers-Taylor Stadium.
• ETSU won the last meeting with VMI 3-0 on October 7, 2022, at Summers-Taylor Stadium. Then-freshman Grace Eatz (Roswell, Ga.) got the Bucs on the board in the 52nd minute, and Emma Arnold (Bristol, Tenn.) and Taylor Limprevil (Spring Hill, Tenn.) followed with goals in the 66th and 71st minutes to seal the win. 

UP NEXT  

ETSU welcomes arch-rival Chattanooga in a major midweek clash Thursday night at 6 p.m.  

For more information on Buccaneer women's soccer, visit ETSUBucs.com and click on the women's soccer tab.