No. 11 Arkansas Razorbacks women’s soccer team will face Alabama on Thursday at Razorback Field in Fayetteville. The match is scheduled to start at 6:30 p.m. and will be available for streaming on SECN+, with Brett Dolan providing play-by-play commentary and Josh Haley as analyst.
This meeting marks the first time since 2023 that Arkansas hosts Alabama, a match in which the Razorbacks secured a 5-0 victory when Alabama was ranked ninth nationally. Historically, Alabama leads the all-time series against Arkansas with 14 wins, 13 losses, and three draws. The last time Alabama defeated Arkansas in Fayetteville was in 2017.
Alabama enters the game following a close 4-3 win over Auburn in their recent Iron Bowl of Soccer match. Melina Rebimbas was recognized as SEC Offensive Player of the Week after scoring two goals and assisting on Gianna Paul’s game-winning goal. Paul also scored twice during the match.
Arkansas has demonstrated consistent performance in SEC play since winning its first regular season title in 2019. Since then, the Razorbacks have won three SEC regular season titles, recorded 43 conference victories with five ties out of 55 matches, and reached the SEC Tournament finals three times. The team leads the conference with 124 goals scored against SEC opponents since 2020 and remains unbeaten at home in conference games since October 16, 2020.
The most recent outing saw Arkansas lose its first road and conference game of the season to No. 22 Georgia, conceding a single goal while only managing one shot on target. Head coach Colby Hale received a red card during that match and will serve a one-match suspension during Thursday’s fixture against Alabama.
Arkansas’ schedule is among the most challenging nationally this year, according to NCAA women’s soccer analyst Chris Henderson (@chris_awk). The team has played or will play four of the top fifteen teams and six of the top twenty-five throughout the season.
In preseason exhibitions against UT Martin and Oral Roberts, newcomers contributed significantly to Arkansas’ scoring output. Freshman Paige Szymanski led with three goals, while BYU transfer Erin Bailey added two goals against Oral Roberts.
The Razorbacks began their season ranked sixth in the United Soccer Coaches preseason poll—their highest ever—and seventh by TopDrawerSoccer. They were also picked by league coaches to win another SEC regular season championship.
For recruiting, Arkansas’ incoming class was ranked nineteenth nationally by TopDrawerSoccer—marking head coach Colby Hale’s first top-25 class at Arkansas since his arrival in 2012—with several recruits earning high national rankings from IMG Academy.
Among transfers joining for this season are BYU midfielder Erin Bailey; Seminole State forward/midfielder Aniyah Nurse-Whyte; and veteran goalkeeper Evelyn Vitali from Utah via Oklahoma State. Bailey scored ten goals last year for BYU; Nurse-Whyte earned All-America honors as a freshman; Vitali brings experience as both an All-Freshman honoree and starter at previous programs.
Sophomore goalkeeper Keegan Smith tied school records last year with eleven shutouts and posted strong statistics including seven clean sheets in ten SEC matches. Smith received multiple honors including All-SEC recognition as a freshman and participated in U.S. Women’s National Team youth training camps earlier this year.
Freshman forward Vailana Tu’ua made an immediate impact by recording two goals within fifty-five seconds during her collegiate debut at Florida and earning SEC Freshman of the Week honors soon after.
Arkansas maintains an impressive home record—unbeaten in forty-nine of its last fifty-two matches at Razorback Field dating back to August 2021—and remains undefeated through twenty-five consecutive home conference games since late 2020.
Returning forward Bella Field recently came back from injury to score twice against Ole Miss and netted another goal versus South Carolina earlier this month.
As of now, Arkansas leads several categories within SEC play including total wins (four), points (forty-seven), goals (sixteen), and assists (fifteen). Individually, Vailana Tu’ua ranks third in points (ten) while Bella Field is eighth with three goals scored.
