THE LEAD: The Daemen College women's soccer team opens the 2015 season with two non-conference games this holiday weekend…the Wildcats will play at Slippery Rock University Saturday (Sept. 5), before hosting Le Moyne College in their home-opener Monday (Sept. 7)…Monday's game was originally scheduled to be played on the Le Moyne campus in Syracuse, N.Y., but was was moved to Dimp Wagner Stadium.
Satuday, Sept. 5 (at Slippery Rock, Pa.)
Daemen vs. Slippery Rock, 1 p.m.
DC ROSTER / SRU ROSTER / LIVE STATS
Monday, Sept. 7 (at Dimp Wagner Stadium, Amherst, N.Y.)
Le Moyne vs. Daemen, 3 p.m.
DC ROSTER / LC ROSTER / LIVE STATS
THE COACH: Dan Dolan enters his seventh season as head men'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.
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 WILDCATS: Daemen returns 11 players from last year's team that finished 6-14-1 overall and 0-8-1 in the competitive 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 ECC preseason poll…sophomore forwards Alex Juliano (1 gl, 0 asts) and Stephanie Zurales (1 g, 3 asts) 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…freshman defender Monique Greene is expected to challenge for a spot in the starting lineup, while fellow rookies Meaghan O'Leary and Jackie Wescott will compete for the No. 1 goaltender spot following the departure of Kathryn Haessner who started 17 games last year and posted a 1.54 GAA with four shutouts.
THE ROCK: Slippery Rock is along-time member of the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC)…The Rock are ranked sixth in the PSAC preseason poll…SRU has been one of the premiere programs in the PSAC for nearly two decades…SRU has not had a losing year in the last 19 seasons, amassing 245 wins, 12 PSAC Tournament bids, nine NCAA Tournament berths and three NCAA regional-final appearances…first-year head coach Jessica Griggs returns 14 players and seven starters from last year's team that posted an 11-6-1 overall record and a 10-5-1 mark in the PSAC…four of the top six scorers from last year return, including all-conference selections Andrea Felix (5 gls, 8 asts) and Caitlin Binder (4 gls, 4 asts)…Tess Keeley also returns after totaling 17 points (6 gls, 5 asts) as a freshman last year…veterans Sam Thornton and Lynn Neef return to a solid backline that allowed just 13 goals in 18 games last year…freshmen Charlotte Elrod and Kylie Downs will battle for the No.1 goalkeeper spot.
THE DOLPHINS: Le Moyne is a member of the Northeast-10 Conference…the Dolphins are ranked 12th the NE-10 preseason poll…veteran head coach Tracey Leipold returns the top three scorers and the No. 1 goalkeeper from last year's team that posted a 10-8-1 overall record and an 8-5-1 mark in the NE-10…the 10 wins were the most in a season since 2009…senior forward Kelly Ristoff, junior forward Rachel Terry and sophomore forward Kirsten Colegrove return the the starting lineup…Ristoff earned second-team All-NE-10 honors last year after totaling a team-high 10 goals and 22 points…Terry (5 gls, 2 asts) was a third-team All-NE-10 pick, while Colegrove (5 gls, 4 asts) was named to the NE-10 All-Rookie team…senior goalkeeper Tori Corsaro returns between the pipes after starting all 19 games last fall and posting a 1.22 GAA with eight shutouts.
THE HISTORY: Saturday's game will mark the first-ever meeting between Daemen and Slippery Rock, while Monday's showdown with Le Moyne will mark just the second time the Dolphins and Wildcats have met…Le Moyne posted a 1-0 victory in double OT at Dimp Wagner Stadium last year…Kelly Ristoff netted the game-winner just 57 seconds into the second OT.
WHAT'S NEXT: The Wildcats return to action next weekend when they host Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference members Lake Erie College (Sept. 11) and Walsh University (Sept. 13) in non-conference action…click HERE for the complete 2015 schedule.
FOLLOW THE WILDCATS: Follow Daemen College athletics on Twitter (@DaemenAthletics / @DaemenWSOC) and Facebook (facebook.com/daemencollegeathletics) to get live game updates and breaking news throughout the year.
