MONTGOMERY, Ala. | Alabama State officially begins defense of its Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC) soccer championships this week in Prairie View (Texas) with the start of the conference tournament.

Alabama State (6-8-3, 5-3-1 SWAC) won the title in the spring on the same field in which they will compete this week. The Lady Hornets enter the tournament as the fourth seed and will face No. 5 seed Texas Southern for the second time this season, with the match set for 2 pm in the quarterfinals.

The winner of that match will face either No.1 seed Prairie View A&M or No. 8 seed UAPB in the semifinals on Friday. The other two semifinals feature No. 2 seed Alabama A&M against No. 7 seed Southern, and No. 3 seed Grambling State against No. 6 seed Jackson State.

The semifinals are set for Friday beginning at 3 pm, with the championship match set for Sunday at 11 am, with the winner earning the automatic bid to the NCAA Women's Soccer Tournament.

Alabama State and Texas Southern met earlier this season in Montgomery with the Lady Hornets coming out on top 1-0 on a goal by Alexa Delong (Williamston, Mich.) in the 50th minute. In that match, Alabama State held the Tigers to just one total shot. On the season, Alabama State is 2-1 against teams in their half of the bracket, with their only loss coming against No.1 seed Prairie View A&M.

Camila Jimenez (Weston, Fla.) leads Alabama State with six goals this season, while Isabella Beortegui (Santa Ana, Calif.) has added four goals and a pair of assists. McKenna Wiscombe (Orem, Utah) has added three goals and a pair of assists, while Sunny Bowlin-Stacy (Anchorage, Alaska) has added a team-high three assists.

Sheila Sanchez (Castellon, Spain) has recorded 86 saves – including 20 against UAB earlier this season - for the Lady Hornets this season, placing her in the top 10 on the career charts in just 13 matches. She has allowed 17 goals this season for 1.24 goals against average, while recording three shutouts.

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