HICKORY, N.C. - The 34th season of Lenoir-Rhyne Women's Soccer kicks off Thursday afternoon when the Bears host the Lee Flames at the Moretz Sports Athletic Campus. The Bears are coming off a 12-4-3 season which saw LR capture their eighth SAC regular season title. In the NCAA Tournament, the Bears defeated Limestone, 1-0, in the first round of the NCAA Tournament before falling to host and top seed Columbus State, 1-0.

Head Coach Dean Ward enters his second season on the sidelines for the Bears. LR brings back 91% of their offensive output from last year led by 2022 SAC Freshman and Offensive Player of the Year in Elin Hansson; the forward scored a team-high 10 goals in her first year in Hickory. The Bears also return key defenders in Kate Casey and Louise Berg along with S.A. Phillips in goal. The trio were a key part in the Bears back line that only allowed 15 goals all of last season. 

The Bears will open the 2023 season with three games in a seven-day span. Following Thursday's contest, the Bears will travel to face Mount Olive this Saturday before returning home to face Lees-McRae on Wednesday, Sept. 6. SAC play gets underway for LR when Tusculum comes to Hickory on Saturday, Sept. 9. The Bears have two three-game road trips this season including a trip to Melbourne, Fla. to face Florida Tech in a 2021 Elite Eight rematch; a contest that was won by the Bears in a shootout. The regular season will end with the No. 1 and No. 2 ranked Preseason All-SAC teams facing off in Salisbury, N.C, where LR and Catawba will clash on Wednesday, Nov. 1. In total, the Bears will have eight home matches at the Moretz Sports Athletic Campus.

This meeting will be the first of its kind between the two programs. Both schools participated in the 2022 NCAA Tournament as the Bears were the No. 4 seed in the Southeast Region while the Flames were the No. 6 seed in the South Region. This contest could be the recipe of a defensive-minded battle as both teams allowed less then a goal per game last year. The Bears are no strangers to close games as 13 of the their 19 games last season either ended in a tie or were separated by a one goal difference; LR had four losses by one goal last season.

In addition of looking to repeat as SAC Champions, the Bears are looking for their fourth-straight trip to the NCAA Tournament. Their journey will set sail with a 4:00 p.m. kickoff on Thursday.