SPOKANE, Wash. -- Gonzaga women's soccer turns 25 in 2015. The program that began in 1991 opens its 2015 season Friday at the University of Nevada.

The Zags are coming off its best season in last eight years. They ended 2014 with a .500 record at 9-9-1, their first season at .500 or better since 2007. GU has moved up the West Coast Conference ladder in each of the last four years, closing out last year in fifth place. With a 4-4-1 conference mark, the Bulldogs reached four conference wins for the first time in program history, finished with a .500 record or better for the second time in program history, and finished in the top half of the conference for the third time.

Gonzaga received five All-WCC postseason honors in 2014, its most since 2007. Four are back this season. GU returns six starters, and 11 letterwinners overall from last season. Two of those coming back are 2014's top goal scorers, Heather Johnson and Karley Baggerly. Johnson was named preseason All-WCC recently. She was the first Zag to be named First Team All-WCC since 2008, while Baggerly was honorable mention last year. The duo combined for nine goals and six assists last season. Both had team-highs of 12 points in 2015.

The Zags scored 26 goals in 2014, and 12 of those goals came from players on the 2015 roster. Kristin Hayman was impressive in Gonzaga's 2-1 exhibition win at Eastern Washington. The redshirt sophomore took a pair of shots, putting one in the back of the net on a free kick. Sydney Anderson also did well moving forward. The junior took three shots, putting two on goal, and scoring once.

The defense has been a driver to Gonzaga's ascent in the conference in recent years. In each of the last the three seasons, the Zags' goals-against average (GAA) has decreased. In 2014, the Zags allowed just 1.32 goals per game, down from 1.39 in 2013. Last year's mark is the lowest GAA since 2007, when they allowed less than one goal a match.

Sarah Carter and Aliyah Miller return to the Bulldogs' defense. Both started all 19 games a season ago, and were integral in the team's five shutouts. Carter's 1,693 minutes played was the second-most of any field player.

Christie Tombari is back in the net for GU in 2015. After moving to third all-time with a career goals-against average of 1.39 (1.33 in 2014), fourth with 11 career shutouts (five in 2014), and she took eighth in the career saves column with 168 (86 in 2014), the redshirt junior is poised for another successful season. All three of her saves against Eastern Washington wowed the large crowd.

There will be plenty of new faces on the roster this season. After graduating seven players from the 2014 lineup, the Zags welcome 12 freshmen to the 2015 squad. There are 17 underclassmen on the roster, compared to the 11 upperclassmen. There are only two seniors on the 2015 team, Lexi Clark and Johnson.

Aside from the ever-tough West Coast Conference schedule, Gonzaga's non-conference slate will prove to be a test. Twelve of the Bulldogs' 20 opponents this season posted winning records in 2014. Eight opponents finished their seasons in the NCAA Tournament and three were conference champions. GU's 11 non-conference games feature an opponent eight different conferences. The Southeastern Conference's Vanderbilt makes the trip from Nashville, Tenn., to GU, for the first time ever. Oklahoma State of the Big 12 will do the same. In the lone first-ever meeting of the season, Gonzaga travels to Memphis on Sept. 26. The Zags welcome 11 opponents to Luger Field.

Amy Edwards opens her seventh season at the helm of GU women's soccer. Her 47 victories while at Gonzaga are second-most in program history. She is in her 12th overall season as a head coach, and is six wins away from 100.

The 2015 regular season begins at 5 p.m. Friday. Live stats from the game at Nevada will be available on GoZags.com.