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With a seven-game unbeaten streak and a trip to the Big South semifinals this past spring, 2021 was good to Longwood women’s soccer. Now with a 20-match schedule on tap for this fall, the Lancers will have an opportunity to end the year on an even higher note.

Returning to a full schedule after an abridged, conference-only slate this past spring, Longwood women’s soccer unveiled its 2021 fall schedule Wednesday, which begins with a season-opening exhibition against East Carolina this Tuesday at the Longwood Athletics Complex. Select games will air live on ESPN+, and those dates will be announced later this fall.

Including the ECU opener, half of Longwood’s 20 games will be non-conference tilts against foes from the America East, American Athletic Conference (AAC), Atlantic 10 (A-10), Patriot League, Southern Conference (SoCon), Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC) and Sun Belt, while the second half of the schedule features a 10-game Big South gauntlet.

Longwood will take on that schedule with a veteran squad coming off a fourth-place Big South finish and a trip to the Big South Championship semifinals this past spring. Under the direction of 28th-year head coach and Longwood alum Todd Dyer, this year’s Lancer squad returns six starters and 21 letterwinners from that group, including fifth-year senior starters Madison Hommey and Madison Lockamy, and All-Big South selections Kylie Cahill, Alex Dinger and Kiersten Yuhas.

Longwood’s 2021 schedule will test that group early and often with a non-conference slate that features three teams that either finished in the top four of their conference during the regular season or reached their conference championship game. Among those are reigning Southern Conference champion Furman, which is coming off an 8-1-2 season and a No. 15 RPI, Sun Belt runner-up and commonwealth rival Liberty, and fourth-place AAC finisher East Carolina, whom the Lancers face in a season-opening exhibition on Aug. 10.

That lineup is road-heavy as well, as the Lancers play eight of their first nine regular-season games on the road, and 13 games away from home overall. Among those early-season road trips are a three-game swing at VCU (Aug. 13), Wofford (Aug. 20) and Furman (Aug. 22) and a six-game tear that sends the Lancers to Richmond (Aug. 29), Howard (Sept. 2), Western Carolina (Sept. 5), UMBC (Sept. 9), Liberty (Sept. 12) and Winthrop (Sept. 18).

Starting in late September, however, fans will have plenty of opportunities to see the Lancers in action with five of their seven home games taking place in the final month of the regular season. In addition to this Tuesday’s exhibition against East Carolina and an Aug. 26 date with Patriot League foe American early in the season, a home-heavy end-of-season stretch begins against Big South rival Radford on Sept. 22 and follows with home bouts against Campbell (Oct. 6), Charleston Southern (Oct. 9), USC Upstate (Oct. 16) and High Point (Oct. 20) at the Longwood Athletics Complex.

One of the premier teams in the Big South, the Lancers have rattled off a 49-25-15 conference record since joining the league in 2012. Included in that run are four top-three Big South finishes, three trips to the Big South semifinals and a Big South runner-up finish in 2017.

2021 Longwood Women’s Soccer Schedule

Tuesday, August 10, vs. East Carolina (Exh.) in Farmville, Va. at 2 p.m.

Friday, August 13, at VCU in Richmond, Va. – TBA

Friday, August 20, at Wofford in Spartanburg, S.C. at 7 p.m.

Sunday, August 22, at Furman in Greenville, S.C. at 2 p.m.

Thursday, August 26,  vs. American in Farmville, Va. at 7 p.m.

Sunday, August 29, at Richmond in Richmond, Va. at 4 p.m.

Thursday, September 2, at Howard in Washington, D.C. at 6 p.m.

Sunday, September 5, at Western Carolina in Cullowhee, N.C. at 2 p.m.

Thursday, September 9, at UMBC in Baltimore, Md. at 6 p.m.

Sunday, September 12, at Liberty in Lynchburg, Va. at 1 p.m.

Saturday, September 18, at Winthrop* in Rock Hill, S.C. – TBA

Wednesday, September 22, vs. Radford* in Farmville, Va. at 7 p.m.

Saturday, September 25, at Presbyterian* in Clinton, S.C. at 2 p.m.

Saturday, October 2, at Gardner-Webb* in Boiling Springs, N.C. – TBA

Wednesday, October 6, vs. Campbell* in Farmville, Va. at 7 p.m.

Saturday, October 9, vs. Charleston Southern* in Farmville, Va. at 2 p.m.

Wednesday, October 13, at Hampton* in Hampton, Va. – TBA

Saturday, October 16, vs. USC Upstate* in Farmville, Va. at 2 p.m.

Wednesday, October 20, vs. High Point* in Farmville, Va. at 7 p.m.

Saturday, October 23, at UNC Asheville* in Asheville, N.C. – TBA

Big South Championship TBA