CLINTON, S.C. – Tomorrow night at 7:00 PM from Martin Stadium, the Presbyterian College women's soccer team will honor their five impactful seniors as they take on Southern Wesleyan in the second home contest of the still-young season.

ESPN+ will have live coverage of the event, as the Blue Hose aim for their third win in four tries with a burgeoning wave of momentum building alongside them. Sophia Thomson, Sarah Dieffenderfer, Gwen Keiser, Madison Hindman, and Kelly Hall will all be honored in a postgame ceremony for their four-year accomplishments.

Head coach Matt Smith's squad has built some considerable buzz thanks to a couple of one-score triumphs over Southern Conference opponents Wofford and Furman (both of which happened on the road, and both of which also utilized a second-half game-winner).

Following Thursday's bout with SWU, Presby will shift focus to another Palmetto roadblock when South Carolina State enters the fray on Sunday. First touch in that clash – also in Clinton – is slated for 6:00 PM.

 
GAMEDAY INFO – THURSDAY, AUGUST 29
Presbyterian (2-1) vs. Southern Wesleyan (0-0) – 7:00 PM
Senior Night festivities begin after the match has ended (approx. 9:00 PM)
WATCH: ESPN+
LIVE STATS: StatBroadcast
 

SCOUTING THE OPPONENT
 
- The Warriors haven't "officially" played a match yet due to their NCAA Division II standing, with their lone appearance to this date being against another Big South rep (Winthrop) in a match that didn't count towards Southern Wesleyan's record.

- Winthrop came away with a 2-0 win in Rock Hill, producing their goals in the 14^th and 37^th minutes. Southern Wesleyan held the Eagles to zero in the second half despite 10 shots that came in their direction, with keeper Katelyn O'Neill landing seven saves.

- SWU managed to tie the Eagles in corner kick chances at four apiece, guiding three of their four shots on-target. Head coach Al Meneses approaches his fourth season with the Warriors, posting a record of 2-12-2 last fall.

 
LAST TIME OUT + SERIES HISTORY
 
- For the second time in 16 attempts, Presbyterian earned a victory over SoCon stalwart Furman last week in a 2-1 thriller from Greenville. Fittingly, it was senior Gwen Keiser who delivered the game-winner on a free kick from roughly 20 yards away, the first score of her collegiate career.

- Both of PC's hits against the Paladins were long-distance beauties, as sophomore Emilia Lieber put her side ahead in the 12^th minute with a snipe from only a few steps beyond the midfield line.

- Picking up her sixth personal win in a Blue Hose uniform and combining for 17 saves in the last two matchups, senior Kelly Hall was declared the Big South Defensive Player of the Week on Monday after denying eight Furman shots and pitching a first-half shutout.

- Since making the jump to the D-I ranks in 2007, Presby has never gone head-to-head with Southern Wesleyan. There is a slight connection, however: as the head coach of Limestone over a seven-year period, Smith defeated the Warriors on five occasions.

- The last of those was a 1-0 W in the first round of the 2016 Conference Carolinas Tournament, a game where the deciding goal didn't rear its head until the 83:32 stamp.

 
SENIOR DAY 2024
 
Sophia Thomson | #10 | F/MF | Johns Creek, Ga.



Sophia has appeared in 39 matches during her time as a Blue Hose, surpassing the 1,000-minute mark as a junior in 2023. She recorded her first collegiate goal during her debut season (2021) against Longwood, adding an assist the following year versus Radford. Thomson will graduate in the spring with a major in Business Marketing (dual concentrations in Management and Accounting), and will be escorted by her parents, Scott and Kelly, as well as their dog Murphy.
 
Sarah Dieffenderfer | #12 | MF | Dawsonville, Ga.



A symbol of perseverance after battling through numerous injuries, Dieffenderfer remains a regular contributor for Presbyterian who has competed in 25 matches. Like Thomson, she passed the 1,000-minute threshold as a junior and published her first career goal as a freshman against the Georgia Bulldogs. She'll graduate with a degree in Business Management and a minor in History (double concentrations in Marketing and Data Analytics), and will be escorted by her mom and dad, Paul and Cheryl, as well as her nephew Everett.
 
Gwen Keiser | #23 | MF/D | Charleston, S.C.



Gwen has started 46 contests over her time in Clinton while appearing in 53 matches overall, logging over 3,500 minutes while balancing between midfield and defense. After dishing out two assists against UNC Asheville and Radford as a freshman and sophomore, Keiser found her biggest PC highlight last week with the aforementioned game-winner to knock off Furman. She is majoring in Business Management and Marketing, to be escorted on Thursday by her parents, Brian and Katie, sisters Hayley and Emma, and her grandmother Pat.
 
Madison Hindman | #27 | MF/D | Florence, S.C.



Madison leads the way among this senior class with 54 appearances in the past three-plus seasons, penciled in as a starter on 36 occasions to eclipse 3,000 total minutes. As a primary defender, she secured her first PC goal against Radford in 2022 and has been named a starter in 22 consecutive matches. Hindman will receive a Biochemistry degree in the spring and will be escorted by her mother and father, Dr. Carey and Jill.
 
Kelly Hall | #48 | GK | Suwanee, Ga.



A two-time Big South All-Academic team honoree, Hall has been in the keeper's box for 38 matches which translates to over 2,800 minutes. Over her career in the blue and garnet, she's compiled 167 saves and has been given the W six times. Kelly has stopped 74 percent of shots from hitting the back of the net all-time, including an 82% clip thus far in 2024 which is a personal-best. She is a Business Accounting and Marketing major while holding a minor in Spanish, to be escorted tomorrow by her parents, Russell and Ellen, alongside her sister Shannon.