VALDOSTA, Ga. – The Valdosta State women's soccer team closes the 2023 regular season Friday afternoon at 5 p.m., at West Georgia in the Red Clay Rivalry Series.  
 
Fans can access links to live stats and streaming of the match at vstateblazers.com on the women's soccer schedule page.  
 
The Blazers enter the week with an 8-5-3 record overall and a 6-5-1 mark in Gulf South Conference play as they currently sit fourth in the league standings with 19 conference points, while West Georgia enters with the same 6-5-1 record in league play and a 6-6-3 mark overall.  VSU needs a victory Friday to ensure a spot in the GSC postseason tournament and potentially hosting the quarterfinal round match on Saturday, Nov. 4.  
 
West Florida leads the league standings with a 10-1 record in league play and a 13-1-1 mark overall.  Lee is second with a 9-0-2 record in league play and an 11-0-4 mark overall.  Mississippi College sits third with an 8-2-1 record in the GSC and a 9-2-2 mark for the season.  

Following VSU and UWG, Montevallo and Union each have 18 conference points, while Alabama Huntsville has 17 points and West Alabama has 16 points.  Six teams are in contention for the final five playoff spots behind Lee, MC and UWF.  Only VSU and UWG have one game remaining among the teams in contention for a conference tournament berth, while the rest have two.  Check back with vstateblazers.com on Sunday afternoon following the completion of every regular season match to see where the Blazers stand heading into postseason play.
 
Last week, the Blazers defeated Spring Hill College on Friday, 2-0, and then gave it all against No. 21 West Florida on Sunday for Senior Day, falling 1-0 on a goal in the 15^th minute.  The Blazers had a number of chances at the equalizer in the second half, but were unable to score.  
 
Prior to the game, VSU honored six seniors playing in their final regular season home match.  The 2023 Senior Class included; Landon Carter, Morghan Craven, Asti Luff, Courtney Magnan, Taylor Morris and Ashley Puentes.   
 
VSU leads the all-time series with West Georgia 7-5-2, but the Wolves snapped a four-match winning streak by VSU last season with a 2-0 victory in Valdosta on Sept. 11, 2022.  VSU is 4-1-1 all-time in Carrollton, Ga., and has won the last three there.  Blazer head coach Stephen Andrew is 4-2 against UWG in his career at VSU. 
 
The Wolves lead the third annual Red Clay Rivalry Series with a 2.0-0.5 lead as UWG finished better in both men's and women's cross country championships (Oct. 21), while VSU won the first of two volleyball meetings this season, 3-1 in Carrollton, Ga., on Sept. 19.  The Blazer volleyball team is scheduled to host UWG on Oct. 31 at The Complex, while the football team hosts West Georgia on Nov. 11 at Bazemore-Hyder Stadium at 7 p.m.
 
Andrew is 198-100-19 overall in his 17^th season, while he is 58-45-10 all-time at VSU.  He owns the school-record for victories for the Blazers.  This season, the Blazers lead the GSC in shots on goal per game at a 7.88 clip with 126 SOG's this season for 35^th nationally.  VSU is 20^th nationally and second in the league in corner kicks per game at a 6.44 clip with 103 for the season.  The Blazers are fourth in the league in points per game (5.56) for 47^thnationally, while the team is fourth in scoring offense at 2.06 goals per game for 51^st nationally and fourth in the league in shots per game at a 14.88 clip for 54^th nationally.  VSU has scored 33 goals for fourth in the league and 32^nd nationally, 23 assists for fourth in the GSC and 33^rd nationally and 89 points which are good for fourth in the league and 32^nd nationally. 
 
Individually, juniors Ana Moleka and Molly Wooldridge lead the team with seven goals each for fifth in the GSC, while Moleka is fourth in the league in total points (18) to lead the team and junior Ansley Decenzo is fourth in the league in assists with a team-high five.  Wooldridge leads the team with 44 shots and 24 on target (.545) as her shot accuracy is good for second in the GSC.  She also leads the team with three game winners for third in the GSC and 33^rd nationally.  Sophomore teammate Victoria Bahr is second in shot accuracy at a .515 clip with 17 on target and 33 total shots for third in the league.  In goal, sophomore Claire Timberlake is 5-3-1 on the year with a 1.16 goals against average (fifth in GSC) with 34 saves, 2.5 shutouts and faced 77 shots, while allowing ten goals.  
 
The Wolves enter scoring 1.33 goals per game with 20 goals, 13 assists and 53 points.  UWG is led offensively by Katherine Hagans with six goals, while she leads the team with 13 points and Victoria Grant has a team-high three assists.  Interim head coach Jacob Crawford is in his first season at the helm of the Wolves.  He is a Valdosta State graduate and served six seasons at South Georgia State College.