September 3, 2015

Match Notes: Week 1
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PENSACOLA, Fla. – The University of West Florida women's soccer team will kick its season off with two games at the CSU Collegiate Invitational in Columbus, Georgia, this weekend. UWF is coming off a 12-6 season in which it went 9-3 in the Gulf South Conference.
 
The Argos will be playing Tusculum on Friday, September 4, at 2:30 p.m. ET, and Lynn on Sunday, September 6, at 2 p.m. ET. Tusculum finished 2014 with a 10-7-2 record, while Lynn finished the year at 4-11.
 
Helgadottir returns to UWF women's soccer team
 
Sara Helgadottir (Grindav'k, Iceland/Menntask'linn ' K'pavogi) will return to the team following a 2014 campaign in which she was limited to just 11 games due to injury. Despite her absence, Helgadottir tallied 4 goals and led UWF with 5 assists, giving her the second-most points on the team, with 13. Her performance earned her a spot on the Daktronics All-South Region second team and the All-Gulf South Conference second team. In 2013, Helgadottir was named the GSC Freshman of the Year and earned spots on the All-America Honorable Mention, All-South Region first team, and All-GSC first team.
 
Two All-South Region performers return for West Florida
 
Helgadottir and sophomore Daryl Bell (Sarasota, Fla./Southeast HS) return to UWF following strong 2014 campaigns, in which they were each named to the All-South Region and All-Gulf South Conference second teams. Bell kicked off her dynamic freshman season by scoring a goal against Lincoln-Memorial in her first game, and led the team with 24 shots on goal for the year. Both players were also named to this year's preseason All-GSC team.
 
Local standouts on UWF roster
 
Bri Young (Navarre, Fla./Navarre HS) and Katelyn and Taylor Burkhart (Pace, Fla./Pace HS) all return to UWF as sophomores this year. Taylor Burkhart was a member of the West Florida offensive attack that averaged 2.11 goals per game, the most in the GSC. Burkhart scored 4 goals in 9 games as a freshman, after scoring 8 in her high school career at Pace HS.
 
Taylor and her sister Katelyn were part of teams for Pace High School that won two district titles in during their time there, and reached the elite eight in 2014. Katelyn was named the Area Player of the Year by the Pensacola News Journal as a senior, and posted a 0.77 goals against average as a freshman at UWF.
 
Young totaled 504 minutes as a freshman, and was a key part of the Argonaut defense that allowed just 1.06 goals per game. While at Navarre High School, Young was named to the Northwest Florida Daily News All-Area team.
 
Previewing the competition
 
Tusculum returns its top two offensive threats for the 2015 season in Taylor Lewis and Payton DeHart. Lewis has been the leading goal-scorer for the Pioneers in each of the last two seasons, putting six in the net in 2013 and adding nine more as a junior last year. DeHart scored four goals as a freshman last year and led the team with four assists.
 
Lynn University brings back Jordyn Turner, who finished second on the team last year with four goals scored and tied for second with two assists. Goalkeeper Caitlin Shaver returns as well, after a season in which she was credited with all four of the team's wins, posted a .728 save percentage and recorded a 2.66 goals against average.
 
For information on all UWF athletics, visit www.GoArgos.com.