NASHVILLE, Tenn. (SMU) – The SMU women's soccer program begins its 2026 season on the road facing No. 5 Vanderbilt on Wednesday at 7 p.m. CT inside the Vanderbilt Soccer Complex.

The match will air on SECN+, and fans can also follow along via live stats found here.

SMU begins year three in the ACC by starting the season on the road for the second straight year. The Mustangs ended the 2025 season with a record of 8-8-2 and 2-6-2 in the ACC and finished the season with a record of 6-3-1 inside Washburne Stadium. SMU totaled six shutouts and recorded 26 assists on 25 goals scored with 13 different goal scorers last season.

The Mustangs added 17 newcomers to their 2026 roster, 10 freshmen and seven transfers. Head coach Nicole Nelson also brought in two new assistant coaches, Chassion Griggs and former SMU graduate assistant and men's soccer player Nick Petrucelli.

SMU returned 10 players, including midfielder Brooke Bunton who was called up to the USWYNT U-18 team five times during the offseason and Libby Jannereth, who was picked by TopDrawerSoccer as SMU's ACC Breakout Candidate this season.

This season will mark the 41st year of women's soccer on the Hilltop and the fifth under head coach Nicole Nelson. The Mustangs are 10-14-5 on the road under Nelson.   

// SETTING THE SCENE

• Wednesday's match will be the 10th time SMU and Vandy have faced each other.  The last time the teams squared off was in 2002 at Washburne. SMU leads the overall series 5-3-1 and is 2-2-0 at home versus the Commodores. 
• Vanderbilt will be SMU's first ranked opponent of the season. The last time SMU defeated a ranked opponent was when the team defeated No. 25 Tennessee 2-1 at home in 2023.
• A win over Vandy would be the highest-ranked win since the team defeated No. 4 Texas A&M in the first round of the 1997 NCAA Tournament.
• The last time SMU defeated a ranked team on the road was in 2018 when SMU beat No. 24 UCF 1-0. 

 
// IN THE RANKINGS

• The Mustangs were picked to finish 14th overall in the ACC preseason poll. SMU finished last season ranked 12th in the conference.
• Nine ACC teams were all ranked or received votes in the United Soccer Coaches Preseason Poll, with ACC teams claiming the top four spots.
• SMU will face six teams that were ranked in the United Soccer Coaches Preseason Poll: No. 1 Stanford, No. 3 Duke, No.5 Vanderbilt, No. 8 North Carolina,  No. 11 Virginia, and No. 23 Texas Tech.