LOUISVILLE, Ky. — The Bellarmine University women's soccer team will begin the latter portion of its nonconference slate by hosting Indiana State at 7 p.m. (ET) Thursday in Owsley B. Frazier Stadium.

The contest marks Bellarmine's final nonconference home match of 2024. The Knights (1-3) will have two more nonleague games remaining (at Northern Kentucky and Southern Indiana) before the opening of Atlantic Sun Conference play.

ABOUT INDIANA STATE
Indiana State has raced out to a 4-1 start. The Sycamores debuted with a 10-0 romp over lower-division Saint-Mary-of-the-Woods and also notched 2-0 and 4-0 home wins over Miami (Ohio) and Robert Morris, respectively, and a 3-0 road victory at Southeast Missouri State. The one blemish was a 2-1 loss at UT Martin. Twelve different Sycamores have scored goals, with Mackenzie Kent leading the way with four. In goal, Maddie Alexander boasts a 0.44 GAA and .931 save percentage. The Sycamores were picked eighth in the Missouri Valley Conference preseason coaches' poll.

LAST TIME OUT
Bellarmine fell 6-2 Sunday at Middle Tennessee. The Knights dug themselves a hole by allowing two goals inside the first 13 minutes. They answered to cut their deficit to 2-1 and did again after another Blue Raiders score to slice the margin to 3-2. However, MTSU found the net once more before halftime and sank a penalty kick roughly six minutes into the second half to pull away for good. Junior forward Lucy von Stefenelli and sophomore forward Rachel Skyberg accounted for the goals against Middle Tennessee. It was von Stefenelli's second and Skyberg's third of the season.

UNBEATEN AGAINST MVC
While Bellarmine and Indiana State have squared off in preseason exhibitions the last two seasons, this marks the first-ever official meeting between the two programs. The Knights are 2-0-1 against opponents from the MVC in the D1 era. In 2021, BU tied Evansville 1-1 and defeated Southern Illinois 2-0, and the Knights beat the Purple Aces 2-0 in 2023.

ATOP THE ASUN
Buoyed by her four-goal, one-assist performance against Asbury, Emma Nicholson leads the ASUN in goals (four) and points (10). The senior forward recorded an assist against Middle Tennessee. As a team, Bellarmine leads the conference in goals scored (10), but the Knights will look for more balance after also allowing the most (14) to this point.

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