SHAWNEE – The second and third matches of the season take place for Oklahoma Baptist this Wednesday and Friday on Bison Hill. On Sept. 2, OBU hosts UT Dallas at 7 p.m. before a Sept. 4 meeting with Central Oklahoma at the OBU Soccer Complex. That matchup with the Bronchos is slated for a 6 p.m. kickoff.
Wednesday's contest is the second all-time with UTD. A season ago, the Comets defeated the Bison 5-0. As for the latter game with UCO, that's the seventh matchup in the D2 era. Previously in the 2023 season, the Bison won in Edmond 2-1.
Here are notes on the squads.
For the Bison:
- The green and gold were dealt a 5-0 loss in its season opener last Thursday to Midwestern State.
- The last time OBU won its season opener was 2020 when it defeated Oklahoma Christian 3-1 during the spring CoVID campaign.
- OBU was held without a shot on goal. It marked just the second time in the D2 era (2015-present) that the Bison did not attempt a shot on target. Previously, Dallas Baptist held OBU without a SOG on Sept. 10, 2022.
- During last Thursday's match vs. MSU, Ajae Belliston, Camden Ocheskey and Addison Gray attempted OBU's three shots.
- The Bison will look to improve in these areas this week: defense on set pieces and controlling the wings.
- Midwestern State attacked OBU on those fronts and it resulted in a 28-3 shots and 7-0 corner-kick advantage.
For the Comets:
- UT Dallas had a unique start to 2026: they traveled to Hawaii and had a pair of 3-0 victories against Hawaii Pacific and Chaminade.
- Gabby Thompson scored half of her team's goals on the trip while Jules Chavez and Kaley Robison added two more.
- In the goalie's box, Melyna Martinez was named the Lone Star Conference's Goalkeeper of the Week. She notched five saves and two clean sheets for the Comets.
- UTD made the most of its opportunities, scoring six goals on 17 shots on goal (.353%).
- Also of note, UT Dallas attempted a whopping 18 combined corner kicks in the two contests.
For the Bronchos:
- UCO hosted No. 15 Minnesota State and Augustana last week in Edmond and fell by 2-1 and 2-0 scores, respectively.
- Sophia Gaskins scored in the MSU matchup with Sheridan Ross providing the assist.
- Central Oklahoma's defense did a decent job in the contests, surrendering a respectable eight shots on goal.
- However, its offense didn't crack MSU's or Augustana's net enough, scoring once on 12 SOG attempts.
- The Bronchos are 2-0 in Shawnee in the D2 era. They won 4-0 in 2016 and 1-0 during the 2022 campaign.
