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Princeton University Athletics
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/ Women's SoccerFordham, Villanova Set to Visit Women's Soccer as Season Opens
August 22, 2016 | Women's Soccer
Friday vs. Fordham, 7 p.m. | Sunday vs. Villanova, 7 p.m. | Roberts Stadium | Free Admission | Facility/Parking Info
Live Stats | TV/Video: Ivy League Digital Network (Friday), ESPNU/ESPN3 (Sunday)
Two weeks of preseason practice for the Princeton women's soccer team lead up to Friday night's opener against Fordham at Roberts Stadium with a visit from Villanova close behind Sunday.
The Tigers return much of their team from the 2015 squad that won the Ivy League at 6-0-1 and won an NCAA tournament game for the second time in four years, beating Boston College in what was Roberts Stadium's first NCAA women's tournament game since its 2008 opening. Princeton then went to Virginia to face USC, and three first-half goals lifted the Trojans past the Tigers 3-0.
This year, though the Ivy League has no official preseason poll, the Tigers are picked as a near-top 25 team, receiving a vote in the NSCAA preseason top 25, being included as one of five additional teams considered for Top Drawer Soccer's preseason top 25, and checking in at No. 21 in Our Game Magazine's preseason top 25.
Before and since then, the accolades have been rolling in for Princeton's two strikers, senior Tyler Lussi and sophomore Mimi Asom. Both trained and competed with the U.S. U-23 (Lussi) and U-20 (Asom) teams since last season ended, and both were recently named to Top Drawer Soccer's list of the nation's top 100 players ahead of the 2016 season, with Lussi checking in at No. 17 and Asom at No. 90. Lussi, an NSCAA second-team All-America last year, returns as the two-time reigning Ivy League Offensive Player of the Year, and Asom was the Ivy's Rookie of the Year last season. No player has earned three Ivy Player of the Year honors.
Sean Driscoll earned Ivy League Coach of the Year honors in his first season leading the staff as the Tigers went 14-4-1 with midfielder Vanessa Gregoire earning first-team All-Ivy League recognition alongside Lussi and midfielder Natalie Larkin a second-team all-leaguer along with Asom and graduated defender Emily Sura. Both Gregoire and Larkin are back as juniors. Sura was the only starter the Tigers graduated after last season.
Princeton also enters this season with an intriguing pursuit of program records set to resume. Lussi (43 goals) needs just four goals to tie Esmeralda Negron '05, her former assistant coach, for the program career record, and Lussi's 98 points are 14 back of Negron's 112 in a career.
In Fordham, the Tigers will face a team they faced last Aug. 30 in the Bronx, using goals by two then-seniors, Stephanie Paloscio in the 49th minute and Emily Sura in the 77th, around one in the 59th by Fordham's then-senior Ivana Lahcanski to head home with a 2-1 win and a 2-0 record. That win also made Princeton 2-0 all-time against Fordham, with the first meeting coming in 2013 in the Bronx, a 3-1 Tiger win. This will be Fordham's first trip to Roberts Stadium.
The Rams return nine of their 31 goals from last season, graduating Jessica Widmann (12) and Kristina Maksuti (seven) to leave Carlie Wagner (three) as the leading returning scorer. Megan Fitzgerald returns in goal for her senior campaign after playing nearly 1,900 of the team's more than 2,000 minutes last season. Fordham opened its season last weekend with a 1-1 tie against DePaul and a 1-0 win over Loyola (Ill.), getting goals from Brooke Salmon and Clare Paoletta with Adaeze Obinelo (win) and Fitzgerald (tie) getting the starts in goal. Last year, Fordham went 13-7-2 and fell to another Princeton opponent of both last season and this one in a 2-0 A-10 final loss to Duquesne. Fordham was picked seventh in this year's Atlantic 10 preseason poll.
Princeton is 16-7-1 all-time against Villanova, having won the last three (2011, 2014, 2015) following a tie in 2007. In last season's meeting at Villanova, first-half goals from Larkin, Lussi and Nicole Loncar, all back this season, staked Princeton to a 3-0 lead before a 79th-minute goal from Emily Kuefler. The Wildcats struggled to a 2-16 mark last season and return four of their eight goals, with Amanda Vocelka and Kuefler netting two apiece. In goal, Emmalee Meyer and Emily Harris, who split the duties a season ago, are back this year. Villanova opened last weekend with a 3-2 win over Delaware and a 3-0 loss to Drexel with Ida DiClemente getting all three goals against Delaware and Meyer playing all 180 minutes in goal. Villanova, which won't play again until Sunday's game, was picked ninth in this year's Big East preseason poll.
Following the weekend, Princeton will have another Friday-Sunday pair, this time heading to Delaware and Howard in a couple of return games from last season.
Live Stats | TV/Video: Ivy League Digital Network (Friday), ESPNU/ESPN3 (Sunday)
Two weeks of preseason practice for the Princeton women's soccer team lead up to Friday night's opener against Fordham at Roberts Stadium with a visit from Villanova close behind Sunday.
The Tigers return much of their team from the 2015 squad that won the Ivy League at 6-0-1 and won an NCAA tournament game for the second time in four years, beating Boston College in what was Roberts Stadium's first NCAA women's tournament game since its 2008 opening. Princeton then went to Virginia to face USC, and three first-half goals lifted the Trojans past the Tigers 3-0.
This year, though the Ivy League has no official preseason poll, the Tigers are picked as a near-top 25 team, receiving a vote in the NSCAA preseason top 25, being included as one of five additional teams considered for Top Drawer Soccer's preseason top 25, and checking in at No. 21 in Our Game Magazine's preseason top 25.
Before and since then, the accolades have been rolling in for Princeton's two strikers, senior Tyler Lussi and sophomore Mimi Asom. Both trained and competed with the U.S. U-23 (Lussi) and U-20 (Asom) teams since last season ended, and both were recently named to Top Drawer Soccer's list of the nation's top 100 players ahead of the 2016 season, with Lussi checking in at No. 17 and Asom at No. 90. Lussi, an NSCAA second-team All-America last year, returns as the two-time reigning Ivy League Offensive Player of the Year, and Asom was the Ivy's Rookie of the Year last season. No player has earned three Ivy Player of the Year honors.
Sean Driscoll earned Ivy League Coach of the Year honors in his first season leading the staff as the Tigers went 14-4-1 with midfielder Vanessa Gregoire earning first-team All-Ivy League recognition alongside Lussi and midfielder Natalie Larkin a second-team all-leaguer along with Asom and graduated defender Emily Sura. Both Gregoire and Larkin are back as juniors. Sura was the only starter the Tigers graduated after last season.
Princeton also enters this season with an intriguing pursuit of program records set to resume. Lussi (43 goals) needs just four goals to tie Esmeralda Negron '05, her former assistant coach, for the program career record, and Lussi's 98 points are 14 back of Negron's 112 in a career.
In Fordham, the Tigers will face a team they faced last Aug. 30 in the Bronx, using goals by two then-seniors, Stephanie Paloscio in the 49th minute and Emily Sura in the 77th, around one in the 59th by Fordham's then-senior Ivana Lahcanski to head home with a 2-1 win and a 2-0 record. That win also made Princeton 2-0 all-time against Fordham, with the first meeting coming in 2013 in the Bronx, a 3-1 Tiger win. This will be Fordham's first trip to Roberts Stadium.
The Rams return nine of their 31 goals from last season, graduating Jessica Widmann (12) and Kristina Maksuti (seven) to leave Carlie Wagner (three) as the leading returning scorer. Megan Fitzgerald returns in goal for her senior campaign after playing nearly 1,900 of the team's more than 2,000 minutes last season. Fordham opened its season last weekend with a 1-1 tie against DePaul and a 1-0 win over Loyola (Ill.), getting goals from Brooke Salmon and Clare Paoletta with Adaeze Obinelo (win) and Fitzgerald (tie) getting the starts in goal. Last year, Fordham went 13-7-2 and fell to another Princeton opponent of both last season and this one in a 2-0 A-10 final loss to Duquesne. Fordham was picked seventh in this year's Atlantic 10 preseason poll.
Princeton is 16-7-1 all-time against Villanova, having won the last three (2011, 2014, 2015) following a tie in 2007. In last season's meeting at Villanova, first-half goals from Larkin, Lussi and Nicole Loncar, all back this season, staked Princeton to a 3-0 lead before a 79th-minute goal from Emily Kuefler. The Wildcats struggled to a 2-16 mark last season and return four of their eight goals, with Amanda Vocelka and Kuefler netting two apiece. In goal, Emmalee Meyer and Emily Harris, who split the duties a season ago, are back this year. Villanova opened last weekend with a 3-2 win over Delaware and a 3-0 loss to Drexel with Ida DiClemente getting all three goals against Delaware and Meyer playing all 180 minutes in goal. Villanova, which won't play again until Sunday's game, was picked ninth in this year's Big East preseason poll.
Following the weekend, Princeton will have another Friday-Sunday pair, this time heading to Delaware and Howard in a couple of return games from last season.
Thursday, November 06
Monday, November 03
Saturday, November 01
Monday, October 27