TAMPA, Fla. (September 11, 2024) – The University of South Florida women's soccer opens American Athletic Conference play on the road against Charlotte on Thursday. The Bulls (4-1-1) and the 49ers (1-5-2) are scheduled for a 7 p.m. first touch.
 
Earlier this week, Elyse Thornton was named the American Athletic Conference Offensive Player of the Week, and Leire Herraez Gallach was named the AAC Goalkeeper of the Week.  
 
Taking Your Shot
South Florida set a new Corbett Stadium record with 40 shots against Southern on August 21. The Bulls are 16th in the NCAA with 20.50 shots per match. USF is tied for 11th in the country with 10.00 shots on goal per match. In four of the last five matches, the Bulls have tallied 20 or more shots. South Florida posted 20 against UCF, 25 against FGCU, 40 against Southern, and 21 against Jacksonville.
 
High-Octane Offense
The Bulls are tied for 42nd in the NCAA with 16 goals, which are third the conference. The 22 assists are tied for 12th in the nation and are tied for second in the AAC. South Florida is tied for 27th in the country with 54 points.
 
Bulls at a Glance
Anna Sutter paces the squad with four goals, which are tied for 69th in the NCAA and tied for fifth in the conference. Her 10 points are tied for 76th in the NCAA and tied fifth in the AAC. Georgia Brown is second on the team with three goals and eight points. Micahela Hill is third on the team with six points, two goals and two assists. Sadie Sider-Echenberg, Serita Thurton, Peyton Felton, Gentiana Fetaj, Sarah Brunner, Sophia Cabral, and Elyse Thornton each have one goal for the year. Fetaj paces the team with three assists. Sutter, Brown, Hill, Sider-Echenberg, Thurton, and Ava Rightmire are tied for second on the team with two assists. Seven players have dished out one assist on the year.
 
Defensively, Leire Herraez Gallach picked up the decisions in all six matches and is 4-1-1 on the year. She has made 12 saves and surrendered three goals on the season. Logan McGruder has made five saves and has surrendered four goals in three appearances.
 
Series History with Charlotte
South Florida and Charlotte will meet for the 12th time on Thursday. The 49ers hold a 5-4-2 series advantage. The Bulls have won three of the last four meetings. The two sides battled to a 0-0 draw last year in Tampa. South Florida is 2-1-1 on the road against Charlotte.
 
Scouting the 49ers
Macey Bader leads Charlotte with two goals and four points. Payton Patrick is second on the squad with three points, a goal and an assist. Allie Metcalf has the only other goal for the 49ers, while Evie Craven is the only other player with an assist. Emma Wakeman has played all 720 minutes in goal for Charlotte. She has a 1-5-2 record. She has 26 saves and has surrendered 12 goals on the season.
 
How to Follow
Watch: ESPN+
Live Stats: charlotte49ers.com
 
American Standings
1. Memphis – 5-0-0
2. Rice – 6-1-1
3. South Florida 4-1-1
4. East Carolina – 3-0-3
5. UTSA – 5-2-0
6. North Texas – 4-2-1
7. Tulsa – 4-2-2
8. UAB – 3-2-1
9. Charlotte 1-5-2
10. Florida Atlantic – 0-4-2
11. Temple – 1-6-0

About South Florida Women's Soccer
Be sure to follow USF women's soccer on social media (Twitter / Instagram / Facebook) and visit GoUSFBulls.com for the most up-to-date information. 

The 2024 season will be the first with Chris Brown at the helm. He spent the last 17 seasons as the associate head coach. Brown helped lead the Bulls to three AAC regular season titles, three AAC Tournament titles, and eight NCAA Tournament appearances – winning a conference title every year from 2017-21 while making five straight NCAA appearances during that period. Brown helped lead the Bulls to their first-ever NCAA Tournament appearance in 2010, a program-record 16 wins and program-best NCAA Tournament third-round appearance in 2019, both conference regular season and tournament titles in 2020, and a string of 10 straight seasons with 10 or more wins (2012-21). Brown has helped lead the Bulls to every NCAA appearance in program history, including two appearances in the second round, and three AAC Championship Game appearances.
 
As associate head coach, he mentored the program's first All-American and recent USF Athletic Hall of Fame inductee Evelyne Viens, who went on to earn three total All-America honors and an Olympic gold medal with the Canadian National Team at the 2021 Olympics in Tokyo. Goalie Sydney Martinez (2020) and forward Sydny Nasello (2020 and 2021) also earned All-America honors and were among the Bulls that have earned a total of eight AAC Offensive Player of the Year, AAC Midfielder of the Year, AAC Defensive Player of the Year or AAC Goalkeeper of the Year honors. Players he has coached hold every program's individual record and most, if not all, of the top 10 marks in every category.

 
– #GoBulls –