FAYETTEVILLE — No. 9 Arkansas soccer returns home to face Northwestern State at 1 p.m. Sunday at Razorback Field.
Arkansas is coming off a 2-2 draw at No. 8 Michigan State on Thursday after opening the season with a 7-1 win over John Brown. The Demons enter Sunday’s contest on the third leg of a four-match season-opening road trip.
The Razorbacks held on for the 2-2 result against the Spartans despite Avery Wren’s red card and playing with 10 players for about 20 minutes. Wren will be unavailable Sunday because of the sending off.
Northwestern State is 0-2, having lost 3-0 to SMU and 4-0 to Mississippi State. The Demons travel to face Louisiana-Lafayette before opening their home schedule against Abilene Christian on Sept. 1.
Ava Tankersley and Zoe Susi are tied with two goals each to lead Arkansas in scoring this season, with Tankersley scoring twice against JBU and Susi getting one against the Golden Eagles and Spartans. Against John Brown, the Razorbacks had six different goal scorers.
The variety in scoring outputs has been a theme for Arkansas throughout the preseason and early matches. The Razorbacks outscored their exhibition opponents 20-2 — including Kansas and Kansas State 11-2 — before opening with the win over John Brown. There were eight different scorers in the 9-0 win over Seminole State junior college, five in the 6-1 win over the Wildcats and four in the 5-1 win over the Jayhawks.
The Razorbacks entered the season with a goalkeeping battle, with Keegan Smith, Peyton Whipple and Emma Parker splitting time in the three exhibitions and the season opener. Smith started and played the full 90 minutes against Michigan State, making seven saves in a standout performance against a dynamic Spartans attack.
When asked if Smith had earned the starting role or if it was still in question, Arkansas coach Colby Hale said, “We’re probably going to roll with Keegan for a bit.”
Goalkeeper Libe Banuelos started both games for Northwestern State, making 18 saves across two matches.
The Demons were out-shot 29-1 against Mississippi State and 31-5 against SMU. Northwestern State will be expected to line up in a defensive low block against Arkansas in order to keep defenders back and limit space for the Razorbacks’ runs while looking to break out and attack on the counter.
Junior forward Taylor Spitzer led the Demons with four goals last season on a team with a well-balanced attacking effort but did not feature in either of the opening two matches.
SCHEDULED GAME TIME
Sunday, 1 p.m. at Razorback Field (1,500) in Fayetteville.
TV
The game will be streamed on SEC Network+ and ESPN+, which can be accessed on WatchESPN.com and via the ESPN app (subscriber login required). Brett Dolan (play-by-play) and Kelly Hellbusch (analyst) will be on the call.
WEATHER
According to the National Weather Service, Sunday’s weather will be sunny with a high of 93 degrees and a 5- to 10-MPH wind.
STREAKS
Arkansas is coming off a 2-2 draw at Michigan State and a 7-1 win over John Brown; Northwestern State has lost consecutive matches to SMU (3-0) and Mississippi State (4-0).
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