THE LEAD: The Daemen College women's soccer team heads to The Buckeye State this weekend to square off against Lake Erie College (Sept. 12) and Walsh University (Sept. 14) in non-league games. It will mark the first two of five-straight road games for the Wildcats.
Friday, Sept. 12
Daemen vs. Lake Erie College, 11 a.m.
Sunday, Sept. 14
Daemen at Walsh University, 1 p.m.
THE COACH: Dan Dolan enters his sixth season as head coach at Daemen. The 2011 American Mideast Conference (AMC) Coach of the Year, Dolan has led the Wildcats to four consecutive non-losing seasons and owns a career record of 56-38-2 (.594). He guided Daemen to the 2012 United States Collegiate Athletic Association (USCAA) national championship and a runner-up showing at the USCAA Championship Tournament last year.
NCAA DIVISION II: Daemen is in Candidacy Year Three of the NCAA Division II membership process. Daemen has been accepted as a member of the East Coast Conference (ECC) and began playing full regular-season conference schedules last fall. The College will also maintain its affiliation with the United States Collegiate Athletic Association (USCAA) for postseason opportunities, as it will not be eligible for the ECC or NCAA postseason during Candidacy Year Three.
THE WILDCATS (2-1-0; 0-0-0 ECC): Daemen returns 14 players (8 starters) from last year's team that finished 10-10-0 overall and 1-8-0 in the competitive East Coast Conference…the Wildcats advanced to the championship game of the USCAA Tournament for the second-straight year, but a 3-2 OT loss to top-seeded Maine-Fort Kent denied Daemen its second-straight USCAA national championship…Daemen was voted ninth in the ECC preseason poll…graduation took its toll up front, with the loss of forwards Kacey Bougard (13 gls, 7 asts) and Samantha Engel (11 gls, 8 asts) who both collected first team USCAA All-America honors…the Wildcats surrendered just 36 goals last fall and limited 11 of their 20 opponents to one goal or less…USCAA All-American defenders Meghan Diehl and Meghan Lipinoga return, as does three-year starter Rachael Banasik…goaltender Kathryn Haessner, who started 13 games and posted a 1.56 GAA with two shutouts last year, also returns to the fold…newcomers Rose Carboni (back), Alex Juliano (forward), Alexis Ruggiero (midfield) and Stephanie Zurales (forward) are all expected to make an immediate impact…click HERE for a complete season preview…the Wildcats opened the 2014 season with wins over Rio Grande (2-1 OT) and Maine-Fort Kent (2-0) last weekend…Lindsay Stoddard and Emily Ward scored their first career goals in the win over Rio Grande, while Carboni and Juliano did the same in the win over UMFK…Daemen suffered its first setback of the season following a 1-0 OT loss to Le Moyne College this past Tuesday…Haessner has gone the distance in goal in all three games (0.62 GAA) and made five saves in the shutout win over UMFK.
THE STORM (1-1-0, 0-0-0 GLIAC): Lake Erie College is located in Painesville, Ohio and is a member of the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference, a 16-member NCAA Division II conference…LEC is ranked 12th the GLIAC preseason poll…first-year head coach Valerie Prause returns several starters from last year's team that finished 4-12-1 overall and 3-8-1 in the GLIAC…sophomore Elizabeth Awuah returns after totaling a team-high 19 points (6 gls, 7 asts) as a rookie…senior defender Grace Ferut and senior goalkeeper Sara Stroope will anchor the Storm on defense…Stroope started 13 games last year and posted a 1.76 GAA with two shutouts…the Storm opened the 2014 season with a 1-0 loss to West Virginia Wesleyan and a 2-1 victory over Wheeling Jesuit last week…Awuah had a goal and an assist in the win over Wheeling Jesuit, while Stroope stopped two shots against Wheeling Jesuit.
THE CAVALIERS (1-0-1, 0-0-0 GLIAC): Walsh University is located in North Canton, Ohio and is also a member of the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference…the Cavaliers are ranked 10th the GLIAC preseason poll…third-year head coach David Renard returns 14 letter winners from last year's team that finished 6-9-3 overall and 3-8-1 in the GLIAC…Jessie Gearhart and Emily Durina, who each tallied five goals last year, top the list of returning players…Gearhart led the team in points (15) and earned honorable mention All-GLIAC accolades…the Cavs return goalkeeper Michaella Stucky who started 17 games and posted a 1.66 GAA with two shutouts last year…the Cavaliers opened the 2014 season with a 1-1 2OT tie with Wheeling Jesuit, before posting an 8-0 win over Ohio Valley…Walsh travels to Ursuline College for a non-league game this afternoon…Gearhart totaled three goals and a assist in the win over Ohio Valley…Stucky started the first two games and made six saves in the overtime tie with Wheeling Jesuit.
THE HISTORY: Friday's meeting between Daemen and Lake Erie will mark the first-ever meeting between the two schools…Sunday's matchup will pit two former American Mideast Conference foes…Daemen has prevailed in the last four meetings, including a a 5-1 victory at Dimp Wagner Stadium on Oct. 11, 2011 in the last meeting between the Wildcats and Walsh.
DID YOU KNOW?: Daemen is 41-3-1 since the start of the 2010 season when it scores two or more goals. The Wildcats had won 15-straight games in which they scored two or more goals before suffering a 3-2 OT loss to Maine-Fort Kent in last year's USCAA Tournament championship game.
WHAT'S NEXT: The Wildcats return to action next weekend when they open ECC play with road games at Dowling College (Sept. 19) and the University of Bridgeport (Sept. 21). Click HERE to view Daemen's complete 2014 schedule.
FOLLOW THE WILDCATS: Follow Daemen College women's soccer on Twitter (@DaemenAthletics) and Facebook (www.facebook.com/daemencollegeathletics or www.facebook.com/daemencollegewomenssoccer) to get live game updates and breaking news throughout the year.
