KANSAS CITY, Mo.—The Barry University Buccaneers are off to a fabulous start to the 2015 women's soccer season. After opening with four straight wins away from home, the Bucs come into Wednesday's home opener against the Florida Tech Panthers as the number one ranked team in the country.
NSCAA Women's Soccer Poll - Sept 15, 2015"Even though it's still very early, we are honored to be recognized as the #1 team in the country at this stage in the season," head coach Denise Brolly said. "Now that we're up there, we want to hold on to that #1 for as long as we can. It's very exciting for the players and everyone associated with the program."
For the Bucs, it's their first trip to the top of the polls since 2002, when they went 18-1-0, falling in the NCAA Regional against eventual national champions, Christian Brothers.
Lavinia Nkomo, the reigning SSC Player of the Year, leads Barry with five goals, but four different players have scored game-winners this year. Amanda Traynor, who has two goals, leads the team with five assists. Shanice Robe and Christy Grimshaw each have two goals and two assists.
The Bucs have out-scored the opposition 11-1 to start the season. Junior keeper Paula Forero has posted shutouts in three of the first four games. She leads the conference with a 0.25 goals against average and a .909 save percentage.
The Bucs (4-0-0) begin defense of their Sunshine State Conference title on Wednesday against the Panthers. Florida Tech is the only team to tarnish the Bucs' record over the last two years, recording 0-0 ties in both 2013 and 2014.
The Bucs have not fared particularly well against the Panthers since they joined the conference in 2003. Florida Tech holds a 6-4-5 edge in the series, the only conference team to have a winning record against the Bucs. In Miami Shores, the edge stands 3-2-3 for the Panthers. The last Buccaneer win in the series was a 1-0 victory in Melbourne, Fla., in 2012 as Kayla Hodge knocked in the game-winner. The last win in Miami Shores came 3-1 in 2005, as Emelie Karlsson had a hat-trick.
The game will be streamed live through the Buccaneer Broadcasting Network, powered by Stretch Internet. Danny Rabinowitz will have the call. The stream can be accessed at the links below:
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