FARMVILLE, Va. — The Longwood women's soccer team opens its Big South Conference slate on Saturday, hosting High Point at 2 p.m., on ESPN+.
LAST TIME OUT
- UMBC scored twice in a two-minute span late in the first half and held on to defeat the Longwood women's soccer team 2-0 on Sunday.
- Zoe Brossman converted a penalty kick in the 29th minute to put the Retrievers ahead. Olivia Nardone doubled the lead just 1:49 later, scoring off assists from Kristiana Kolega and Hailey Ahmed on a corner kick.
- Longwood managed five shots in the second half but could not break through against UMBC goalkeeper Amara Codd, who made two saves to record the clean sheet. The Lancers finished with seven shots, including two on goal.
- Madison Fitzpatrick, Reese Coggeshall and Berni Wayland each put a shot on target for Longwood, with Wayland recording the team's other shot on goal.
- Longwood goalkeeper Madie Wessel made five saves in the first half before Lexie Miller took over after halftime and stopped three shots. The Lancers combined for eight saves.
SERIES HISTORY AGAINST HIGH POINT
- High Point holds an 18-5-5 edge in the all-time series against Longwood, dating to 1995, including a 4-3-3 mark in Farmville.
- The Lancers topped the Panthers, 1-0, on Oct. 1, 2025 on a 16th-minute Sam Fischer goal.
- Last season's victory ended an eight-match winless streak against HPU (0-6-2), dating to the 2019 season.
LONGWOOD IN BIG SOUTH OPENERS
- Longwood is 6-4-4 all-time when playing the first match of its Big South Conference schedule since joining the league in 2012.
- The Lancers won their first five Big South openers by a combined 13-0 tally.
- Longwood began the league season with a last season with a 1-0 victory at home over Gardner-Webb on Sept. 20 on a 62nd-minute Berni Wayland goal, assisted by Meghan Piazza.
SCOUTING THE PANTHERS
- High Point, the preseason favorite in the Big South, is off to a 1-6-1 start with its only win coming at home against Marshall on Aug. 20 by a 4-0 count.
- Sabba Haghgoo leads the Panthers in scoring with four goals, three of which came in the victory over the the Thundering Herd.
- Morgan Wilcox (two) in the only other player with multiple goals on the season while High Point has received goals from five different sources on the season.
- Nylah Mirshafiei and Kylee Williams have shared time in the nets with Mirshafiei starting seven of HPU's eight matches and playing 642 minutes. She boasts a 1.82 goals-against average, .729 save percentage and 35 saves.
BAGELS
- With four clean sheets in nine matches so far this season, Longwood is tops in the Big South and 87th in the nation in shutout percentage at .444.
- 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.
WESSEL DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK
- 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 five matches this season — her first action as a collegian — Wessel is 1-1-2 with a 0.75 goals-against average, .833 save percentage and 15 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.
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.
O CAPTAINS, MY CAPTAINS
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 303-228-64 (.563) overall record, including a 143-55-30 (.693) mark in conference.
- Dyer also coached the Longwood men's soccer team for seven seasons from 1996-02, going 75-53-7 (.581) overall.
NEXT UP
- The Lancers next host USC Upstate Saturday, Sept. 26 at 2 p.m., to begin close their season-long five-match homestand.
- Longwood leads the all-time series with the Spartans, 5-4-2, since 2002.
