Following a historic campaign a year ago, the SUU women’s soccer team is about to kick off its 2023 schedule.
Before the team takes the field, it’s time to catch up on all things T-birds soccer in the 2023 season preview.
A brief recap of 2022
The 2022 season was record-breaking in a number of ways for the SUU women’s soccer team.
The T-birds kicked off the year with five straight victories, setting the bar with the best start in team history, while also recording its longest-ever winning run.
The record start included a 10-0 victory over Mississippi Valley State, the largest-ever single-match victory in the program’s existence.
SUU also set a number of other club records, including goals scored (31), shutouts (8), and highest scoring average (1.76 goals per game).
Southern Utah ended the campaign with a 9-6-2 overall record, the most victories ever in a single season. It was also the first time the program ever recorded a winning record against a schedule of all Division I opponents.
Whitney Gardner (Wangsgard) also took home All-WAC Freshman Team honors for the T-birds, while freshman Sammie Sofonia led the team with seven goals – highlighted by consecutive hat tricks against Alcorn State and Mississippi Valley State.
Rewarding success
When he arrived in Cedar City, SUU head coach Kai Edwards had quite the task in front of him.
Inheriting a one-win team, Edwards has already left his mark on the program in just three short seasons.
The T-birds recorded a winning season during the Covid-rescheduled spring 2021 campaign and just two years later, SUU set the program high for single-season wins (9) while breaking a number of other school records.
The success that Edwards has authored has never been seen in the history of the program, which is why he was rewarded with a five-year extension in April.
Now entering his fourth season in 2023, Edwards will look to build off the momentum from a highlight-filled 2022 campaign.
Preseason expectations
Following an eighth-place finish in its debut season in the WAC, SUU will look to move even further up the standings in 2023.
Finishing 4-5-2 in conference action, the T-birds weren’t eliminated from a potential conference tournament berth until the final matchday of the season.
The conference coaches see Southern Utah finishing in a similar spot as last season, as the team was picked to finish seventh in the recently released WAC Preseason Coaches’ Poll. SUU totaled 36 points in the vote, finishing 12 points ahead of eighth place Tarleton State and just five points back of sixth place Stephen F. Austin.
Returning talent
While the T-birds lost a trio of seniors from the record-setting 2022 team, the squad returns some important pieces from last year as well.
Sophomore Sammie Sofonia is a top returner on the offensive side of the ball after leading the team in goals (7) as a freshman last season, the second-most in SUU’s single-season record book.
Redshirt Sophomore Whitney Gardner (Wangsgard) also leads the line for Southern Utah’s attack after notching six goals and four assists in 2022. An All-WAC Freshman Team honoree, Gardner’s 16 points were the third-most in the team’s single-season history.
Senior forward Ashley Rivera will also look to have a strong final season in a T-bird jersey after recording two goals and three assists in 17 matches last campaign.
Junior Alison Keller returns to lead the midfield alongside junior midfielder Hailey Hamataka, who registered three goals and four assists (most on the squad) in 2022.
Junior defenders Laney Kimble, Adelayo Oguntade, and Kiki Stewart all return to anchor the SUU back line.
New additions
Despite having just three players graduate and a few players leave the program, a lot of new faces will debut for Southern Utah in 2023.
The T-birds added 11 freshmen, while also bringing in four transfer players.
NJCAA All-American junior midfielder Mayu Yamamoto joins SUU via Snow College, and junior midfielder Chiaki Takase brings her talents from Peninsula College (WA), giving the T-birds a pair of international talents from Japan.
Junior Angie Kneis adds to an already talented midfield group for Southern Utah after transferring from Western Illinois, while sophomore goalkeeper Julia Ortega joins the program from Arizona State.
2023 schedule
One thing is for sure after coming off a record-setting season, the T-birds’ schedule did not get any easier in 2023.
SUU opens the campaign with a three-match road trip, first facing the defending Summit League champion and NCAA Tournament qualifier Nebraska Omaha on Thursday, August 17. Matches at South Dakota on Saturday, August 19, and at Northern Iowa on Tuesday, August 22 will follow.
Southern Utah will then host Nevada in its home opener on Friday, August 25, before traveling to battle Cal State Fullerton on Thursday, August 31.
The T-birds then host the reigning Big Sky champion Northern Arizona on Sunday, September 3 before traveling back to California to take on Pacific on Friday, September 8.
After a road matchup with last season’s Mountain West champion San Jose State on Sunday, September 10, SUU returns home to face former Big Sky conference foe Idaho State on Thursday, September 14.
The Western Athletic Conference schedule then kicks off for Southern Utah, as they travel south to St. George to face Utah Tech on Friday, September 22 before returning to Cedar City to take on Grand Canyon on Thursday, September 28.
Following a home matchup with Cal Baptist on Sunday, October 1, the T-birds head to Texas for a pair of games. First, they will take on Texas-Rio Grande Valley on Thursday, October 5 before facing Stephen F. Austin on Sunday, October 8.
SUU then returns to Thunderbird Field to play its final home two home matches of the season. The T-birds will match up with Abilene Christian on Thursday, October 12 before battling Tarleton State in the home finale on Sunday, October 15.
The regular season comes to an end with another two-match road trip for SUU, where they’ll first trek to Washington to face Seattle on Thursday, October 19. The T-birds then battle last season’s WAC regular-season champion and NCAA Tournament participant Utah Valley on Monday, October 23.
