The JU women’s soccer team will face a stern opponent on Friday night when the Belmont Bruins come to town for the Atlantic Sun Game of the Week. The Dolphins will then face Lipscomb on senior day for the final game of the regular season at the Ashley Sports Complex.

The Dolphins (7-6-3, 4-1-3 Atlantic Sun) are coming off a huge victory over cross-town rival UNF and the claiming of yet another â€Å"barrel point” for JU in the SunTrust River City Rumble. Against the Ospreys, the Dolphins were led by freshman Eva Leeper who scored her team-leading sixth goal of the season. Sophomore goalkeeper Alexa Rooney was fantastic between the pipes as she made several crucial and spectacular saves during the contest.

â€Å"We have a very tall order this weekend,” said head coach Brian Copham. â€Å"Belmont is the defending tournament champion and one of the top teams in the conference and you can always expect a fight from Lipscomb. We’re really glad to have the chance to finish our season up at home and send our seniors out on the right note.”

JU is currently enjoying its best 10-game stretch since 2002. The Dolphins have dropped one game in their last ten contests including eight A-Sun matchups. Mike Johnson’s squad finished conference play in 2002 with a record of 8-1-2 and went on to the conference finals. The Dolphins are currently also riding a five-game unbeaten streak.

Rooney has played a big part in the Dolphins’ streak and is currently sitting on a very impressive streak of her own. Since the 24th minute of the 2-2 draw against Stetson, the Peoria, Ill. Native hasn’t allowed a goal, totaling 306 minutes of shutout soccer. Belmont (8-5-3, 5-1-2) travels to Jacksonville coming off of a 1-0-1 weekend against Stetson and FGCU. The Bruins defeated the Eagles, 2-0, and played 120 minutes against the Hatters for a 1-1 tie.

The Bruins are led by junior forward Jamie Trocino. The Franklin, Tenn. native has tallied a conference leading nine goals and three assists for 21 points, good enough for second in the conference. Between the pipes, Belmont has been stingy all season with sophomore Sari Lin posting a GAA of 0.79 thanks to 64 saves and six shutouts.

Last year, the Dolphins fell to the Belmont 3-2 (ot) but are 7-2-1 all-time against the Bruins.

Lipscomb (3-13-0, 1-7-0) has found itself in a rebuilding year with 12 freshman playing significant minutes. The Bruins are led by Kate Spellman with four goals and two assists.

The Dolphins have never lost to Lipscomb and handled the Bisons, 3-0, last year.

Both Belmont and Jacksonville remain in conten¬tion for the A-Sun title. Jacksonville can claim the A-Sun title with wins versus Belmont and Lipscomb. Belmont will capture the conference title with a win against Jacksonville and UNF. Belmont can also win the league title with a win against Jacksonville and a tie against UNF but only if Kennesaw State falls to Campbell on Saturday.

The action will kickoff at 6 p.m. on Friday night with the Dolphins facing the Bruins. Sunday, the final home game of the season, will be senior day to honor the efforts of Regan Riley, Krissy Toth and Britney Hernadez. The game against the Bisons will start at noon with the senior day festivities commencing prior to kickoff.