DALLAS (SMU) – The SMU women's soccer program begins a two-game home stand by hosting Houston Christian on Thursday inside Washburne Stadium.

The match will kick off at 7 p.m. CT and will be aired on ACCNX.  Fans can enjoy free admission to all regular-season SMU women's soccer home games.

Thursday's match is Commons Night, which will feature a SMU bucket hat giveaway as well as an autograph signing session with the team after the game.

SMU is undefeated at home this season (2-0-0) and has yet to concede a goal at home, outscoring opponents 4-0. The last time SMU won three consecutive games was during the 2022 season.

Through five games, SMU has recorded 76 shots and scored eight goals this season. The Mustangs rank 13^th in the nation in corner kicks per game at 7.8 and have totaled 39, the fifth most in the ACC this season.

Lindsay Nicholson and Nicole Stryker lead SMU in goals scored this season with two each. Sammy Nieves leads the team in assists with three. Nicholson leads SMU in total shots with 12, while Nyah Rose has taken 11 shots with a team high of seven on goal.  

Nieves is currently tied for sixth in the ACC in total assists. Aubrey Brown ranks 11th in the conference in total saves with 11.

The Mustangs added nine newcomers to their 2025 roster, five freshmen and four transfers. Head coach Nicole Nelson also brought in two new assistant coaches in Daniel O'Hare and Callie McKinney.

In the latest United Soccer Coaches Poll, eight ACC teams landed in the top 25, the most of any conference. ACC teams claimed three of the top five spots with Stanford (No.1), Duke (No.3) and Notre Dame (No. 5) leading the way.  Florida State (No. 7), Virginia (No. 8) rounded out the schools in the top 10, followed by Wake Forest (No.17), Virginia Tech (No.20) and North Carolina (No.23). 

In the ACC Preseason Coaches Poll, the Mustangs were picked to finish 12th overall. The top-10 teams in the poll all were ranked or received votes in the United Soccer Coaches Poll.

This season will mark the 40th year of women's soccer on the Hilltop and the fourth under head coach Nicole Nelson. The Mustangs 18-8-3 at home under Nelson.

// THE MATCH UP

• Thursday's match-up will be the sixth time SMU and HCU have faced each other, and  it will be the first time since 2018 that the two have played.
• SMU has never lost to Houston Christian and leads the series 5-0-0 and is 4-0-0 when the game is played in Washburne.
• Last time the two teams met SMU won 2-1 on a goal scored in the 82^nd minute.  

// SCOUTING THE OPPONENT

• HCU is led by head coach Nick Whiting, who is in his second season at the helm of the Huskies and boasts a record of 7-12-5.  Whiting holds a career record of 36-35-9 across five seasons at HCU and Lees-McRae.
• Texas Tech is 2-3-0 this season and is 1-2-0 on the road. The Huskies have not scored a goal in their previous two games. The team's match last Sunday against Southern was postponed due to weather.

// A NEW YEAR A NEW CHALLENGE

• Entering their second season in the ACC, the Mustangs' 18-game schedule will feature eight non-conference games and 10 conference games. SMU will face six teams that made the NCAA Tournament last season, including three teams that made the College Cup.
• SMU is scheduled to face seven teams this season that were ranked or received votes in the 2025 United Soccer Coaches Preseason Poll.
• SMU began the 2025 season on the road for the first time since 2019.

// LOCK DOWN DEFENSE

• The Mustangs have allowed one or fewer goals in 41 of 59 games played under Head Coach Nicole Nelson. SMU achieved the feat in nine of its 17 match's last season.
• Since 2022, SMU has shut out 19 opponents. The Mustangs shut out both Northwestern State and Southern 2-0 in the team's first two home games of the season.
• SMU has yet to allow a shot on goal at home and is outshouting teams 54-8.

// WINNING AT WASHBURNE

• SMU holds an impressive 26-9-4 record at home since the 2021 season and is 18-8-3 under Nicole Nelson. The Mustangs were 6-5-1 inside Washburne Stadium last season.
• Seventeen of SMU's home wins in that stretch have been shutouts.
• In the team's first two home games, SMU rattled off 27 shots in each and won both games 2-0.

// RECORD BOOK ROSE

• Prior to the start of the season, Nyah Rose was ranked 48^th in TopDrawerSoccer's top-100 players list.
• Rose scored her first goal of the season and the game winning goal against UNT.
• Rose is coming off another standout season for the Mustangs. Rose was a 2024 Hermann Trophy Watch List honoree and was named Third Team All-ACC for her play last season.
• Rose was second on the team with five goals in only 11 games played last season. Rose scored the team's only goal in a 1-1 draw versus the 2024 ACC tournament champions, Florida State.  Three of her five goals occurred during ACC play.
• As a freshman, she was named First-Team All-South Region, All-AAC First Team, Co-Rookie of the Year and was named to the AAC All-Rookie Team and AAC Championship All-Tournament Team. She led AAC in goals scored with 11. 
• Rose has now scored 17 goals in her SMU career. She currently ranks 11th all-time in goals per game in program history (0.52). 

// FRESHMAN STANDOUT

• Freshman Lindasy Nicholson leads the team in goals scored with two and in total shots with 12.
• She scored in back-to-back games against NSU and UNT, becoming the first freshman to achieve this feat since Nyah Rose did so multiple times in 2023.