THE LEAD: The Daemen College women's soccer team hosts Queens College (Oct. 10) and Molloy College (Oct. 11) in East Coast Conference action this weekend…after playing six of their last seven games on the road, the Wildcats close out the regular season by playing five of seven games in the friendly confines of Dimp Wagner Stadium.
Saturday, Oct. 10 (at Dimp Wagner Stadium - Amherst, N.Y.)
Queens at Daemen, 1 p.m.
DC ROSTER / QC ROSTER / LIVE STATS / GAME PROGRAM
Sunday, Oct. 11 (at Dimp Wagner Stadium - Amherst, N.Y.)
Molloy at Daemen, 3 p.m.
DC ROSTER / MC ROSTER / LIVE STATS / GAME PROGRAM
DIVISION II DEBUT: Daemen successfully completed a three-year membership process and was approved for active membership status at the NCAA Division II level by the NCAA Membership Committee his past summer…Daemen was accepted as a member of the East Coast Conference (ECC) in July of 2012 and began playing full regular-season conference schedules in the fall of 2013…the 2015-16 academic year will mark the first year Daemen will be eligible for ECC and NCAA post-season play.
THE COACH: Dan Dolan enters his seventh season as head women's soccer coach at Daemen…the 2011 American Mideast Conference (AMC) Coach of the Year, Dolan enters the 2015 season with a career record of 60-51-3 (.539)…Dolan guided the Wildcats to the 2012 United States Collegiate Athletic Association (USCAA) national championship and a runner-up showing at the USCAA Championship Tournament in 2013 and 2014.
THE WILDCATS (3-7-1; 1-2-0 ECC): Daemen returns 11 players from last year's team that finished 6-14-1 overall and 0-8-1 in the East Coast Conference…the Wildcats advanced to the championship game of the USCAA Tournament for the third-straight year, but a 2-0 loss to top-seeded Maine-Fort Kent denied Daemen the USCAA national championship…Daemen was voted 10th in the 2015 ECC preseason poll…sophomore forwards Alex Juliano and Stephanie Zurales return up front, while sophomore Alexis Ruggiero returns in the midfield after earning honorable mention All-ECC honors as a rookie last year…senior Meghan Lipinoga and sophomore Rose Carboni will anchor the backline…Daemen is 3-3-0 over its last six games…the Wildcats turned in a solid effort against regionally-ranked Roberts Wesleyan last weekend, before suffering a 2-1 loss in double OT…Daemen opened ECC play with a 2-0 loss to Mercy and a 2-0 victory over St. Thomas Aquinas…additional wins have come over Washington Adventist (6-0) and Lincoln (1-0 forfeit), while additional losses have come against Slippery Rock (7-1), Le Moyne (2-1), Lake Erie (3-1), Mansfield (3-1) and Mercyhurst (2-0)…the Wildcats battled Walsh University to a scoreless tie…Zurales netted DC's lone goal against Mansfield and scored her first career "hat trick" in the win over WAU…she ranks sixth among all ECC players in total points (5 gls, 3 asts, 13 pts)…junior Alexis Koral scored both goals in the 2-0 win over STAC and has totaled seven points (3 gls, 1 ast)…Carboni, sophomore Ellen Merchant, senior Ashley Griffin and freshman Andrea D'Sa have also scored this season…freshman Meaghan O'Leary (2.13 GAA) has started all 11 games in net…she stopped six shots en route to her first career shutout in the OT tie with Walsh and made five saves in the 2-0 win over STAC.
THE KNIGHTS (3-4-2; 1-2-1 ECC): Queens was picked seventh in the 2015 ECC preseason poll...the Knights posted a 4-8-5 overall record and a 2-5-2 mark in the ECC last fall…veteran head coach Carl Christian must overcome the graduation of All-ECC goalkeeper Mersina Onesto who posted a 0.89 GAA with seven shutouts last fall…Queens went 3-2-0 over its first five games, but is winless in its last four games (0-2-2)…the Knights are coming off a 3-0 loss at St. Thomas Aquinas…QC's league win came over Molloy (1-0)…the additional league loss came against Bridgeport (5-0) and it battled LIU Post to a 1-1 (2OT) tie…Erin Vernillo scored the game-winner against Molloy and has totaled a team-high six points (3 gls, 0 asts)…sophomore Megan Deak (1.42 GAA, 2 SHO) has started seven games in goal…she made four saves in the 1-1 (2OT) tie with LIU Post.
THE LIONS (4-3-2; 1-1-0 ECC): Molloy was picked sixth in the 2015 ECC preseason poll...the Lions posted a 5-8-1 overall record and a 5-4-0 mark in the ECC last year…head coach Danny Longo welcomes back honorable mention All-ECC selections Gianna Jennosa, Danielle Valente and Gabrielle Batista…the Lions went 1-3-2 over their first six games this year…the Lions play at Roberts Wesleyan Friday before taking on Daemen Sunday…MC takes a three-game winning streak into its game at RWC…the Lions earned their first ECC win of the year following a 2-0 win over NYIT last weekend and are coming off a 1-0 non-league win over Philadelphia…Valente scored twice in an early-season 3-1 win over Caldwell and has totaled a team-high six points (3 gls, 0 asts)…Batista (0.76 GAA, 3 SHO) has started eight games in goal this season after starting 13 games as a defender last year…she made a season-high 12 saves in an early-season 1-1 (2OT) tie with Merrimack.
THE HISTORY: Saturday's game will mark the third all-time meeting between Daemen and Queens…the Knights have prevailed in each of the previous two meetings…Queens posted a 3-1 victory last year in Flushing, N.Y…the Knights held a 2-1 lead at halftime and secured the win following a goal by Taylor Bonanno with 8:17 left to play…Rose Carboni scored for Daemen…the teams met for the first time ever during the 2013 season and Queens posted a 3-1 victory over Daemen in Amherst, N.Y…Sunday's game will also mark the third all-time meeting between Daemen and Molloy…the Lions have prevailed in each of the previous two meetings…Molloy posted a 1-0 win over Daemen last year in Rockville Centre, N.Y…Allison Sloper scored the only goal of the game 9:21 into the second half…the teams met for the first time ever during the 2013 season and Molloy posted a 3-1 victory over Daemen in Amherst, N.Y.
WHAT'S NEXT: The Wildcats return to action Tuesday (Oct. 13) when they host Alfred State College in a non-league game…click HERE for the complete 2015 schedule.
FOLLOW THE WILDCATS: Follow Daemen College women's soccer on Twitter (@DaemenAthletics / @DaemenWSOC) and Facebook (www.facebook.com/daemencollegeathletics) to get live game updates and breaking news throughout the year.
