Salem at Methodist | Tuesday, November 1st | 6:30 p.m.
Duggins Soccer Stadium | Fayetteville, N.C.

LAST TIME OUT
Salem goalkeeper Jordan Tomberlin pitched her second solo shutout of the season, closing with eight saves in the process, as the Spirits finished in a scoreless tie with Greensboro when the two teams collided in USA South Conference soccer action on Saturday afternoon at Pride Field.

The scoreless tie, which marked the first in the head-to-head series between the two USA South Conference rivals, came as Tomberlin and her counterpart, Sofia Pagnamenta, stopped a combined 10 shots.

Tomberlin, who has made 31 saves in her last four matches combined, has at least five saves in 12 matches this season. She finished the season second in the league in saves (82), just 11 saves off the pace established by Pagnamenta.

Salem finished with two shots in the match, both on goal, with Darilyn Nieto attempting one shot and Ashley Linden making the other. Meanwhile, Greensboro had 16 total shots in the match and eight shots on goal. Hannah McCarty and Haley Russell had two shots on goal each to lead The Pride.

CLASHING WITH METHODIST IN THE POSTSEASON
Salem and Methodist will meet for the third time in program history in the USA South Conference Tournament when the two meet in Fayetteville, N.C. on Tuesday evening.

The first-ever meeting in the postseason between the two teams came on November 4, 2016. Salem claimed a 3-2 victory over Methodist in the USA South Conference Semifinals after a game-winning goal from Jordan Lanier in the 95th-minute, marking her second goal of the match. Hannah Wagner ended that clash with seven saves for Salem, earning her 13th win of the slate in net.

The most recent clash came on October 28, 2017, with the Monarchs prevailing 4-2 in the USA South Quarterfinals.

THE WINNER GETS …
The winner of the match between No. 1 Methodist and No. 8 Salem will clash with the winner of the No. 4 William Peace and No. 5 Greensboro match.

SALEM'S CONFERENCE TOURNAMENT HISTORY
Salem will appear in its 19th conference tournament match in program history and eighth as a USA South Conference member. The Spirits are 3-5 all-time in USA South Conference Tournament clashes, earning their last victory on November 2, 2018 against Piedmont by a 2-0 margin.

Salem is 11-5-2 all-time in conference tournament matches in program history between the USA South and Great South Conferences.

STOPPING THE OPPONENTS IN THEIR TRACKS
Senior Jordan Tomberlin, who has made 31 saves in her last four matches combined, has at least five saves in 12 matches this season. She finished the season second in the league in saves (82), just 11 off the pace established by Greensboro's Sofia Pagnamenta.

Tomberlin pitched her second solo shutout of the season, closing with eight saves in the process, as the Spirits finished the regular season in a scoreless tie with Greensboro.

With her solid performances, on October 24th, for the second time in the 2022 season and the third in her career, Tomberlin was named as USA South Defensive Player of the Week. Tomberlin became the first player in Salem soccer history to earn the USA South Defensive Player of the Week honors three times in a career. When she received the honor on September 12th, she placed herself alongside Sydney Priest as the only two-time winner. Tomberlin also brought home the honor on October 11, 2021, marking her first-ever in-season award.

SALEM'S STATISTICAL LEADERS
Darilyn Nieto, who won three consecutive USA South Rookie of the Week honors to open the 2022 season, was Salem's regular season leader in goals with 12. Nieto broke a tie with Brooke Bukas (2014) for fourth-most goals by a Salem rookie with her strike against Southern Virginia (Oct. 11) and now sets her sights on Maddie Crumpton, who has third-most goals with 13. The program record for most goals by a Salem first-year player is shared by Alexi Saganich and Tarryn Johnson.

Salem All-Time First Year Goal Scoring Leaders

Salem's Ashley Linden more than doubled her single-season goal totals from 2021, ending the regular season with seven goals, two assists (16 points). She did so on 40 shots, including 25 shots on goal, while in 2021 she tallied three goals, seven points and attempted 40 shots (20 SOG). The 2022 season also witnessed Linden scoring two penalty kick goals and a game-winning goal, the first of her career.

The Spirits received four goals from Oliva Nivens, marking the first four of her career. Nivens tied herself alongside Miriam Moctezuma and Alyson Gammons for most assists (three) on the season, resulting in 11 points. Two of those goals for Nivens came in USA South Conference play (vs. Meredith / N.C. Wesleyan).

The quartet of Nathaly Berrezueta, Christina Battistini, Alyson Gammons and Layla Locklear also notched two goals each for Salem.

Defensively, Salem surrendered 28 goals and 283 shots over the course of the season. The Spirits held opposing offenses to a .099 shot percentage and 135 shots on goal (.477 shots on goal percentage).

Jordan Tomberlin led the way in net for Salem with 82 saves in 1081:50 minutes, notching a team-high four wins. The senior netminder surrendered just 18 goals and posted a .820 save percentage. Senior teammate Alexcina Wartski was also efficient in net with 20 saves (.667 save percentage), claiming two wins on the slate. Wartski appeared in 10 games, earning the starting nod in three of those contests.

ANALYZING THE MONARCHS
On September 29, 2022, Methodist claimed just its second shutout in the all-time series with Salem on Thursday, September 29th, when the Monarchs capped off their third USA South Conference win of the season with a 9-0 win at Varsity Field.

The Monarchs scored six of their nine goals in the second half, including three in a six minute, 11-second stretch of the frame. Goalkeeper Mary Newman, who picked up her fifth win in the match, had the lone save for Methodist, while the offense came through with 28 shots (16 shots on goal).

Methodist, who earned the USA South Conference regular season crown, was a perfect 8-0 at home in 2022. The last home loss for the Monarchs came on November 5, 2021, when Covenant (Ga.) claimed a 3-1 win in the USA South Semifinals.

Corrine Shovlain led all Methodist scorers with eight goals, after attempting a team-best 25 shots on goal, while both Tatiana Lourenco-Shiber and Laura Harris added seven kills apiece. Lourenco-Shiber was also second in total assists, handing out seven, with Rianna Orello leading the way with nine. Lourenco-Shiber ended the season with 21 points by virtue of her seven-kill, seven-assist efforts in 2022.

Caroline Simpkins, one of four players to compete between the pipes for the Monarch goalkeeper unit, capped off the season with a team-high 20 saves. Allowing just four goals, Simpkins was responsible for an .833 save percentage.

Mary Newman led the Monarchs in wins (10-1-0), posting 19 saves (.826 save percentage) in 607:08 minutes. Both Kaylea Carter and Caley Justice closed out the regular season with five saves and one win each.