Troy soccer hits the road to play UAB and Auburn

Caleb OdomSports Editor   Fresh off a 5-0 blanking of Jackson State on Sunday, the Troy soccer team (2-2) is ready for a weekend road trip against UAB on Friday and Auburn on this coming Sunday. Trojan head coach Chris Bentley is looking towards the Friday Birmingham match against the Blazers, a game not to be underestimated. “Our focus right now is on UAB because it is Friday,” Bentley said. “I think the girls are working hard this week and it will pay off on Friday.” The UAB women’s soccer team is currently 3-1 this season with victories on the road against Vanderbilt, Francis Marion and South Carolina State. The Blazers’ lone loss was the second match of the season to Ole Miss 5-2 at home. In terms of how good UAB is compared the teams Troy has played, Bentley said they kind of fall in the middle of the pack. “It’s hard to know right now it is so early in the season,” Bentley said. “But I think UAB is going to stack up really well maybe comparable to a Louisiana Tech maybe.” The Trojans faced Louisiana Tech on Aug. 30 losing 2-0 to an opportunistic team that capitalized on chances. “We can’t take them lightly,” Bentley said. “We’ve got to go in and expect that they are going to compete.” But Sunday’s offensive score-fest for Troy doesn’t have the Trojan coaching thinking his team is perfect by any stretch of the imagination. Bentley said that his team has some room to grow and it is his hope that they peak when the Trojans get to the conference tournament. “Right now we have got plenty of things that we are working on,” Bentley said. “I can see that we are improving and that is the most important thing.” Troy takes on UAB on Friday at 5 p.m. and Auburn at 2 p.m. to end a weekend on the road. For more Troy soccer coverage follow Trop Sports on Twitter and read home game stories on tropnews.com.