Women's Soccer comes in fifth in SCAC Coaches' Poll

LAWRENCEVILLE, GA. -- Texas Lutheran University Women's Soccer has been picked to finish fifth in this year's Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference Championship race.

After a season where the COVID-19 global pandemic pushed all women's soccer competition from the fall to the spring semester for the first time in conference history, the league is planning for a return to some type of normalcy this fall.

The Bulldogs are coming off their first appearance in the SCAC Tournament semifinals since 2017 and return four All-SCAC honorees, including SCAC Newcomer-of-the-Year, Kelly Wolfe (San Antonio/Churchill). A sophomore midfielder, Wolfe made an immediate impact last season, starting all 11 games for the Bulldogs. She finished with two goals (tied for 10th in the SCAC; tied for second on team), four points (tied for 18th in the SCAC; tied for second on team) and one game-winning goal which was tied for eighth in the SCAC and tied for the Bulldog lead. Wolfe also earned a nod on the All-SCAC Freshman Team.

Senior forward Samantha Martinez (Schertz/Clemens) returns for her senior season after being named Second Team All-SCAC and leading the Bulldogs in points and goals - including a game winner vs. St. Thomas - last season.

TLU also welcomes back senior midfielder Monique Sierra (San Antonio/Taft), an All-SCAC Honorable Mention honoree and sophomore Saibree Marchand-Simons (Pflugerville/Hendrickson), a member of last year's SCAC All-Freshman team.

The Bulldogs will be coached by reigining SCAC Women's Soccer Coach of the Year head coach Larry Schaffer, who enters his tenth season as the Bulldogs' head coach, and will be looking to build upon the Bulldogs second round exit in last spring's SCAC Championship Tournament.

In exclusive voting by the league's head coaches, Trinity University is the unanimous choice to repeat as Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference women's soccer champions. Following its ninth SCAC Tournament Title in the last 10 years in the abbreviated 2020-21 campaign, the Tigers received all eight first-place votes to earn 64 points in the preseason balloting.

The SCAC women's soccer season begins on Wednesday, September 1, with several teams competing in early season tournament play over Labor Day weekend. The first conference matches of the season are scheduled for Friday, October 1. The 2021 SCAC Women's Soccer Tournament will be held in November on the campus of the University of Dallas as semifinal matches will be contested on Friday the 5th and the championship match being played on Sunday the 7th.