BOILING SPRINGS, N.C. — The Longwood women's soccer team closes the regular season Saturday at Gardner-Webb in a 6 p.m., kickoff on ESPN+.

LAST TIME OUT

• Longwood fell 1-0 to Presbyterian on Oct. 17, surrendering a second-half penalty kick at Martin Stadium.
• Julija Poplašen converted from the penalty spot in the 70th minute, scoring to give the Blue Hose the decisive goal and hand the Lancers their second consecutive conference defeat.
• Longwood finished with nine shots, including three on goal, while Presbyterian recorded eight shots and put six on target.
• Longwood sophomore goalkeeper Lexie Miller made her first collegiate start on her birthday and came up with five saves to keep Longwood within striking distance.

SERIES HISTORY AGAINST GARDNER-WEBB

• Longwood leads the all-time series with the Runnin' Bulldogs, 10-4-4, since 1994 and is undefeated in the last three against the Gardner-Webb, outscoring GWU, 8-1, in that span.
• The Lancers are 3-2-2 in Boiling Springs and 8-3-4 in Big South matches.

• Gardner-Webb enters the match at 5-9-2 overall and 2-4-1 in the Big South in the final tournament spot, two points behind the Lancers.
• Gardner-Webb is coming off of a 4-0 home loss on Wednesday to USC Upstate. 
• Julia McBridge leads Gardner-Webb with seven goals and 14 points in 16 matches, while Mackenzie Farr has a team-best three assists.
• Abril Montiel has started 14 matches in the Gardner-Webb goal and has compiled a 1.89 goals-against average and .748 save percentage with two clean sheets.

NOTING THE WIN AT WINTHROP

• The Lancers' 5-0 victory at Winthrop Sept. 30 marked their most goals since a 5-3 win over VMI on Aug. 20, 2025.
• It also tied Longwood's largest margin of victory in its Big South era, while being the biggest win in a Big South match on the road.
• Longwood also topped USC Upstate, 5-0, at home on Oct. 16, 2021 and Gardner-Webb, 5-0, on Sept. 24, 2016, also in Farmville.

CLAGETT SNAGS SECOND WEEKLY HONOR

• Freshman goalkeeper Brynn Clagett was named Big South Defensive Player of the Week on Oct. 5 and earned Freshman of the Week honors on Monday.
• Clagett posted a pair of clean sheets – her third and fourth of the season – as the Lancers topped Winthrop, 5-0, on the road Sept. 30 and Charleston Southern, 1-0, at home Oct. 3.
• She then stopped a second-half penalty kick as part of a six-save performance as the Lancers knocked off league-leading UNC Asheville, 1-0, Friday on the road.
• In nine matches this season — all starts — Clagett is 5-3-0 with a 0.80 goals-against average, .793 save percentage, 23 saves and five shutouts.

FITZPATRICK EARNS CO-OFFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK

• Graduate student forward Madison Fitzpatrick was named Big South Co-Offensive Player of the Week on Monday.
• Fitzpatrick finished a play started by Peyton Curney and Sam Fischer in the 53rd minute for her team-leading third goal of the season as the Lancers went on to knock off league-leading UNC Asheville, 1-0.

BAGELS

• With seven clean sheets in 16 matches so far this season, Longwood is tops in the Big South and 74th in the nation in shutout percentage at .438.
• Freshman Brynn Clagett blanked American, 3-0, and VMI, 1-0, in consecutive matches on the road on Aug. 23 and 27.
• Junior Madie Wessel followed with a six-save 0-0 shutout at Richmond on Sept. 3 in her first collegiate start and just second-ever appearance.
• Wessel then helped the Lancers to a 1-0 win over Hampton on Sept. 6.
• Clagett picked up her third shutout of the season in the Lancers' 5-0 win at Winthrop on Sept. 30, making two saves. She then added another with two more saves in a 1-0 home win over Charleston Southern on Oct. 3.
• Clagett made six saves to hand UNC Asheville a 1-0 loss Oct. 9 in her fifth shutout.

• Junior goalkeeper Madie Wessel was named Big South Conference Defensive Player of the Week on Sept. 8.
• Wessel made the first two starts of her career in net for Longwood, keeping clean sheets in both last week for the Lancers. 
• She turned aside six shots in a scoreless draw at Richmond on Sept. 3, five of which came after halftime, and followed it with a second shutout as Longwood beat Hampton, 1-0, at home on Sept. 6.
• In eight matches this season — her first action as a collegian — Wessel is 1-4-2 with a 1.39 goals-against average, .763 save percentage and 29 saves.

BERNICE!

• Junior Berni Wayland was named Big South Conference Defensive Player of the Week on Aug. 24.
• The West Linn, Ore., native, anchored a backline that limited American to just two shots, including one on goal, as Longwood blanked the Eagles, 3-0, on Aug. 23. 
• Wayland played all 90 minutes in the Lancers' first win of the season and also did so in the season opener against Campbell on Aug. 13.
• The weekly honor is the third of Wayland's career. She earned Big South Freshman of the Week plaudits in consecutive weeks on Oct. 14 and 21, 2024.

A LOOK BACK

• Longwood went 9-7-3 overall and 5-3-0 in the Big South, posting its best record since going 13-5-3 overall and 6-1-2 in the league in 2017.
• The Lancers advanced to at least the Big South semifinals a season ago for the fifth time in program history.
• Forward Sam Fischer was named Big South Freshman of the Year and first team all-league. She was joined on the all-conference team by first-team defender Sydney Robertson, second-team midfielder Meghan Piazza and second-team goalkeeper Sara Curtis.

FRESH FACES

• Longwood has added eight newcomers to its 2026 roster, including four transfers and four freshmen.
• Among the transfers are junior Maddy Howells (Texas A&M Corpus Christi) and sophomores Bailey Altizer (Eastern Kentucky), Brooke Owens (VCU) and Farmville native McKenna Vogel, who spent her freshman season at Campbell.
• Vogel, coached by Stuart Carilli at Prince Edward County High School, appeared in 10 matches, making two starts, for the Camels in 2025.

LANCERS PICKED THIRD IN BIG SOUTH POLL

• Longwood was selected to finish third in the Big South preseason coaches poll, announced on Aug. 6.
• The Lancers earned 63 points in the poll to finish ahead of USC Upstate in fourth with 58 points and the remaining first-place nod. Charleston Southern (43 points) was fifth, followed by Winthrop (32) in sixth, UNC Asheville (29) in seventh and Gardner-Webb (22) in eighth. Presbyterian rounded out the voting in ninth place with 13 points.
• High Point (76 points, seven first-pace votes and 76 points) is the preseason favorite in the league. Radford was chosen second with 69 points and one first-place nod.
• It marks just the third time in history the Lancers were picked in that position. Longwood was also third in 2019 and 2014, respectively.

FISCHER BIG SOUTH PRESEASON FORWARD OF THE YEAR

• Sophomore Sam Fischer was named Big South Preseason Forward of the Year in the Big South.
• Fischer is just the second Longwood player to earn a major preseason award since the Lancers joined the conference for the 2012 season. Sydney Wallace was Big South Preseason Defensive Player of the Year in 2018.
• Fischer, the Big South Freshman of the Year and a first-team all-league pick last season, led the Lancers in goals (seven) and points (16). She was named Freshman of the Week two times and Player of the Week once while playing in all 19 matches with seven starts.
• Fischer opened her Longwood career with nine points in her first three matches on four goals and one assist. 
• Fischer saw her first action of 2026 in the ETSU match Aug. 30, coming back from injury to provide a spark off the bench in 32 minutes.
• She scored her first goal of the season in the Lancers' 5-0 win at Winthrop on Sept. 30.

PLAYERS TO WATCH

• Five Longwood players were named to the Big South Top Returners Watch List, the league announced on Aug. 5.
• On the watch list — which includes selections from each of the league's head coaches and returning all-conference honorees — were forwards Peyton Curney and Sam Fischer, midfielders Meghan Piazza and Coryn Silberstein and defender Berni Wayland.
• Four Lancers — Madison Fitzpatrick, Fischer, Silberstein and Wayland — were part of the Big South's Midseason Watch List, announced on Sept. 17.

O CAPTAINS, MY CAPTAINS

• Head coach Todd Dyer named Peyton Curney, Coryn Silberstein, Meghan Piazza and Madison Fitzpatrick captains for the 2026 season.

ONE AND ONLY

• Now in his 33rd season with the Longwood women's soccer team, head coach Todd Dyer is the only the coach to lead the program since its inception in 1994. 
• Dyer, a 1993 Longwood graduate, has a 306-232-64 (.561) overall record, including a 146-59-30 (.685) mark in conference.
• Dyer also coached the Longwood men's soccer team for seven seasons from 1996-02, going 75-53-7 (.581) overall.