GREENSBORO, N.C. – The UNC Greensboro (UNCG) women's soccer team returns home to host the Mercer Bears on Sunday, Oct. 13 at 2:00 p.m. at the UNCG Soccer Stadium.
 
The Spartans enter the contest 3-1-2 in the last six games, while the Bears are on a three-game win streak. Mercer and UNCG are tied for third in The Southern Conference (SoCon) standings with 10 points. Samford has 13 points and is in first place, while Western Carolina is in second with 12 points.
 

 
SERIES HISTORY
UNCG leads the all-time series, 7-2-4. The two teams have played to 1-1 ties the last three meetings.
 
LAST TIME OUT FOR THE SPARTANS
UNCG and Furman kept it a tight contest, where the Paladins came away with a 1-0 victory on Thursday in Greenville, South Carolina. Furman scored in the 29^th minute. The Spartans outshot the Paladins, 14-9, as both teams recorded four saves each. Furman held the advantage in corner kicks, 8-6.  
 
ABOUT THE SPARTANS

• Ava Kiss paces the team with eight points scoring three goals and two assists this season.
• Merle Greulich is second on the team with three goals and one assist for seven points. She has tallied at least one point in three of the last four games.
• Taylor Mentzer and Morgan Brubaker each have scored two goals.
• Mel Herrera, Rachel Poplin and Azumi Oka have each chipped in one goal.
• Along with Kiss, Mairead Gayer and Ryen Ortiz each have two helpers.
• The Spartans have the edge over their opponents in shots, 146-123, while foes have the advantage in corner kicks, 62-55.
• UNCG had 25 shots against the Keydets and it was the first game since Sept. 7, 2023, when the Spartans had 20 or more shots. The Spartans had 20 shots against Coastal Carolina that day and won 3-0.
• UNCG has lost six games by one goal this season, which included when then-ranked No. 22 Colorado defeated the Spartans, 1-0, in August.
• Among the SoCon, UNCG is third in goal differential (1), goals against average (.923) and shutout percentage (.308). The Spartans are also fourth in save percentage (.782)
• Malone was named the SoCon Defensive Player of the Week on Oct. 1 for a 1-0 clean sheet against Chattanooga. This was her second career weekly award.
• She earned her first honor on Sept. 3. This was the Spartans' first SoCon Player of the Week since Oct. 28, 2022, when Nadia Wilson earned the award and first SoCon Defensive Player of the Week since Sept. 27, 2022, when Abby Buchholz earned the recognition.
• Head Coach Stefani Workman is in her first year at the helm of the Spartans and eighth year overall with the Blue & Gold.
• The Spartans were voted to finish seventh in the 2024 SoCon Preseason Coaches' Poll.
• The Spartans added six freshmen and one graduate transfer to the 2024 roster.

 
SCOUTING MERCER

• Mercer was voted to finish fourth in the 2024 SoCon Preseason Coaches Poll. Jada Moorman and Larkin Thomason were voted to the Preseason All-Conference Team.
• Mercer is coming off three-straight shutouts, including wins over ETSU (2-0), Chattanooga (2-0) and VMI (1-0).
• The Bears are outshooting opponents in total shots, 256-158, shots on goal, 123-58, and corner kicks, 90-58. Opponents have the upper hand in saves, 90-47.
• Thomason is leading the SoCon with 27 points (12 goals, 3 assists). She is fourth in the nation in total goals and points.
• Moorman is the only other Bear that has double-figure points, chipping in five goals and two assists for 12 points.
• Six from Mercer have scored two goals each, while four have recorded one goal each.
• In net, Lindsay Bell has played in all 14 games for the Bears, while averaging 0.79 goals against, 11 goals against and 47 saves.
• Mercer is ranked in the top-50 nationally in 10 categories, including 13^th in total goals (33), 15^th in shots on goal per game (8.79), 16^th in goal differential (22), 18^th in scoring offense (2.36), 19^th in shots per game (18.29), 22^nd in total points (96), 23^rd in points per game (6.86), 24^th in total assists (30), 31^st in assists per game (2.14) and 35^th in corner kicks per game (6.43).

 
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UP NEXT
The Spartans will travel to Charleston, South Carolina, to play The Citadel on Thursday, Oct. 17 with a 3:00 p.m. start time.

UNCG will then return home to host Western Carolina on Sunday, Oct. 20 at 1:00 p.m. for its final regular season home game. This will be the Spartans' Pink Game and the first 100 UNCG students will receive FREE socks!