DALLAS (SMU) – The SMU women's soccer program is back inside Washburne Stadium on Sunday, hosting Sam Houston State.

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.

Sunday's match is Greek Night, which will feature SMU posters, schedule cards, and prize wheel items as giveaways, as well as a post-game autograph session with the team.

SMU is undefeated at home this season (3-0-0) and has yet to concede a goal at home, outscoring opponents 7-0 in three shutout victories. 

The last time SMU won four consecutive home games was at the start of the 2021 season. During that stretch, SMU did not allow a goal, earning four shutout wins (2-0 W vs NSU, 1-0 W vs Oklahoma State, 1-0 W vs San Francisco, 1-0 W vs Oklahoma).

Through six games, SMU has recorded 103 shots and scored 11 goals this season, which ranks 10^th in the ACC.

The Mustangs rank fourth in the nation in corner kicks per game at 8.33 and have totaled 50, the second most in the ACC this season.

Nyah Rose, Lindasy Nicholson and Nicole Stryker lead SMU in goals scored this season with two each. Sammy Nieves leads the team in assists with five. Liz Eddy leads SMU in total shots with 22, while Nyah Rose has taken 13 shots with a team high of eight on goal.  

Nieves is currently tied for sixth in the NCAA and second in the ACC in total assists.

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 19-8-3 at home under Nelson.

// THE MATCH UP

• Thursday's matchup will be the eighth time SMU and Sam Houston have faced each other, and it will be the first time since 2017 that the two teams have played.
• SMU has never lost to Sam Houston and leads the series 7-0-0 and is 5-0-0 when the game is played in Washburne.
• Last time the two programs met, the Mustangs claimed a decisive 4-1 victory in Washburne.

 
// SCOUTING THE OPPONENT

• Sam Houston is led by head coach Kendall Ayers, who is in her first season at the helm of the Huskies and boasts a record of 2-2-1.  Ayers holds a career record of 11-11-2 across two seasons at Sam Houston and Texas Southern.
• SHSU is 2-2-1 this season and is 2-2-0 on the road. Last time out, Sam Houston defeated Grand Canyon 1-0 in Phoenix.

// LAST TIME OUT

• SMU earned its third shutout victory of the season, defeating HCU 3-0 at home.
• The win marked SMU's first time since 2022 that the team has won three straight home games.
• Nyah Rose scored her second goal of the season to give SMU the lead as the Mustangs never looked back.
• Claire Jones and Liz Eddy each scored their first goals of the season.
• Nieves had two assists and recorded her second multi-assist game of the season, bringing her team-high total up to five.
• SMU outshot HCU 27-3, marking the third time this season the team has taken that many in a game
• The victory was SMU's 20th shutout win under Head Coach Nicole Nelson.

// LOCK DOWN DEFENSE

• The Mustangs have allowed one or fewer goals in 42 of 60 games played under Head Coach Nicole Nelson. SMU achieved the feat in three of its six games this season.
• Since 2022, SMU has shut out 20 opponents under Nelson. This season SMU has recorded three shutouts and has yet to allow a goal at home.  
• SMU has yet to allow a shot on goal at home and is outshooting teams 81-11.

// WINNING AT WASHBURNE

• SMU holds an impressive 27-9-4 record at home since the 2021 season and is 19-8-3 under  Nelson. The Mustangs are 3-0-0 in Washburne this season.
• Seventeen of SMU's home wins in that stretch have been shutouts.
• In the team's first three home games, SMU rattled off 27 shots in each and has outscored opponents 7-0.

// RECORD BOOK ROSE

• Nyah Rose has been SMU's top goal scorer over the last couple of seasons. This season she is tied for the team lead with two.
• 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 found the back of the net once again in the team's 3-0 victory over HCU.
• 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 18 goals in her SMU career. She currently ranks 10th all-time in goals per game in program history (0.53). 

// A PREMIERE PLAYMAKER

• Sammy Nieves has been SMU's player maker this season, leading the team with five assists. She currently ranks sixth in the NCAA in total assists and seventh in assists per game with 0.83.
• Nieves had three assists against North Texas and is the first Mustang to record three assists in a game since Hannah Fleet had three against Abilene Christian on Sept. 11, 2016.
• She recorded her second multi-assist game of the season with two against HCU.
• The senior has recorded 15 assists in her career.  

// FRESHMAN STANDOUT

• Freshman Lindasy Nicholson is tied for the team in goals scored with two and is second in total shots with 14.
• 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.