Blazers Travel to Furman, UNC Asheville to Cap Road Trip

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. – The UAB women's soccer team puts the finishing touches on a five-match road trip this weekend when the Blazers travel to Furman Friday at 6 p.m. and UNC Asheville Sunday at 1 p.m.

UAB (3-1-0) is off to its best start since 2009 after splitting road games last weekend against UT Martin and Memphis. The Blazers used goals from Megan Hudgens, Amy Brewer and Caroline Kehrer against UT Martin to secure their second road win of the season.

The Blazers nearly earned a draw at Memphis on Sunday, but a late goal in double overtime lifted the Tigers to the victory. Senior forward Rachel Green scored a goal for UAB and on Monday was selected as the Conference USA Offensive Player of the Week. The Peachtree City, Ga., native also had an assist against UT Martin and is tied for fourth in Conference USA with five points.

Freshman Betsy Ornelas leads the UAB offensive attack with six points on two goals and two assists and is tied for second in points in Conference USA. As a team, the Blazers lead the league in points (29), goals (10), assists (9) and shots (75).

Junior keeper Kelsey Daugherty has logged every minute in net so far this season and ranks fourth in Conference USA with a 0.71 goals against average. The Kennesaw, Ga., native is also tied for first in the league with two shutouts.

Furman will be playing its fifth straight home game when the Paladins welcome UAB to Stone Stadium on Friday. The Paladins opened the year with wins over USC Upstate (6-1) and North Greenville (6-0), but are winless since with a setback to Presbyterian (0-2) and a draw with Maryland (1-1).

Sophomore forward Amanda Baker leads Furman with eight points on four goals, and sophomore Treva Aycock is second on the team with seven points on three goals and one assist. Sophomore keeper Kellsey Weaver has logged the majority in time in net and has surrendered four goals and owns a 1.13 goals against average.

"We are looking forward to our games this weekend against two challenging opponents, first on Friday against Furman and then Sunday at UNC Asheville," UAB head coach Erica Demers said. "This has been a quick week for us, but our players were focused in training and we are prepared for our back-to-back road trip this weekend."

UNC Asheville (3-1-0) turned in a 2-1 overtime win Aug. 27 at Jacksonville in what was its third consecutive game to go into overtime. Senior midfielder Courtney Nabor leads the Bulldogs with eight points on four goals. Goalie Bryson Lee has allowed five goals thus far and owns a 1.19 goals against average.

"Each team plays a different style and we will prepare our team for both opponents," Demers added. "Similar to our match last weekend against Memphis where they did not have a game Friday and were rested, UNC Asheville will provide that same challenge to us. Our bench, however, has provided great depth for us and we will need our entire team to perform and be ready."

UAB is a perfect 1-0-0 against both Furman and UNC Asheville. The Blazers defeated the Bulldogs 4-1 at home last season, but will be meeting Furman for the first time since a 1-0 victory in 2003.

For more information on UAB women's soccer, follow the Blazers on Twitter (@UAB_WSOC), Instagram (@UAB_WSOC) and Snapchat (@UABAthletics).

Blazers Travel to Furman, UNC Asheville to Cap Road Trip

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Players Mentioned

Amy Brewer

Kelsey Daugherty

Rachel Green

Megan Hudgens

Caroline Kehrer

Betsy Ornelas

The University of Alabama at Birmingham Athletics