DALLAS (SMU) – The SMU women's soccer program continues non-conference play by hosting Southern on Thursday inside Washburne Stadium.

The game will kick off at 7 pm CT. Fans can enjoy free admission to all SMU women's soccer regular season matches. Thursday's game will air on ACCNX, and fans can also follow along via live stats found here.

SMU remains unbeaten at home this season after defeating UIW 5-1 last time out. The Mustangs have outscored their opponents 7-1 at home this season.

Brooke Bunton leads SMU in goals with three after recording her first career brace against UIW. She also leads SMU in total points with six. Bunton ranks tied for sixth in the ACC in goals scored and tied for 12^th in total points.

The freshman duo of Kamiya Beck and Julianne Richter lead SMU in total assists with three apiece. Each has recorded a multi-assist game this season and are tied for first in the ACC in total assists. SMU is one of only two schools in the ACC with two players with three assists this season (Duke).

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 24-11-5 at home under Nelson.

// SETTING THE SCENE

• Thursday's match will be the second time SMU and Southern have faced each other. Last season, SMU won 2-0 at home as Zoe Parkhurst scored her first goal as a Mustang in the game.
• Head Coach Nicole Nelson will also look to claim her 100^th career victory; she is currently at 99 career wins, 37 of those have occurred as head coach of the Mustangs.
• SMU has scored 10 goals this season and is coming off a five-goal performance against UIW. It was the most goals scored in a game since SMU beat Texas Southern 6-0 in 2024.
• The Mustangs rank eighth in the ACC in goals (10), third in saves (14), fourth in assists (11), and sixth in shot accuracy (0.449). SMU has had seven players score a goal this season, while Kaylee Noble leads SMU in total shots with 11.

// LAST TIME OUT

• SMU showcased its scoring ability, highlighted by Brooke Bunton's first-half brace, defeating Incarnate Word 5-1 inside Washburne Stadium on Sunday.
• The Mustangs took over the game and scored five unanswered goals to remain unbeaten at home this season.  SMU outshot UIW 17-10 as Bunton (2), Londynn Hagan, Zoe Parkhurst and Julianna Millin all scored goals for the Mustangs. Kamiya Beck led SMU in assists with two.
• UIW jumped out to a quick lead in the third minute, but SMU would respond with back-to-back goals in the 16th and 27th minutes from Bunton. It was her first career brace and her second and third goals of the season.

// IN THE RANKINGS

• SMU received votes in the Week 1 IWSOC / United Soccer Coaches Poll. It was the first time the Mustangs had been ranked or received votes in the poll since 2022. (No. 24, Sept. 29, 2022).
• In the latest IWSOC / United Soccer Coaches Poll, the ACC had eight teams ranked or receiving votes. Stanford led the way, ranked No. 1 in the nation, followed by Duke (No. 2), Wake Forest (No. 5), North Carolina (No. 9), Virginia (No. 13), Florida State (No. 16), and Notre Dame (No. 25). Clemson received votes.
• The Mustangs were picked to finish 14th overall in the ACC preseason poll. SMU finished last season ranked 12th in the conference. 
• SMU will face six teams that were ranked in the IWSOC / 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.