PITTSBURGH, Pa. - The Robert Morris University women's soccer team kicks off the 2021 fall campaign this week with a pair of non-conference matchups Thursday at UMBC and Saturday at Mount St. Mary's as they embark on their second season as members of the Horizon League.
Robert Morris (0-0-0, 0-0-0 Horizon League) vs. UMBC (0-0-0, 0-0-0 America East)
Thursday, August 19 at 7:00 p.m. in Baltimore, Maryland
Live Stats | Live Stream
Robert Morris (0-0-0, 0-0-0 Horizon League) vs. Mount St. Mary's (0-0-0, 0-0-0 NEC)
Saturday, August 21 at 7:00 p.m. in Emmitsburg, Maryland
Live Stats | Live Stream
LAST TIME OUT
The Colonials are coming off their first season as members of the Horizon League after a 2021 spring campaign that saw RMU finish 1-8 overall. Second-year Head Coach Chris Shaw earned his first career victory as bench boss of the Colonials with a 4-2 win over Purdue Fort Wayne on March 3 as well as a 3-0 shutout win over Saint Francis University in an exhibition matchup on February 17.
The Colonials also faced Howard University in an exhibition match earlier this month at SouthPointe Fieldhouse.
VETERAN PRESENCE
Eight different members of the Colonials recorded a goal during the 2021 spring campaign, six of whom are back for another go with RMU this fall. Sheridan Reid, Kaoru Hayashi, Kayla Veloso-Lima, Chelsea Kingston, Sofie Lien Fagereng and Gabriella Lecuona all found the back of the net for Robert Morris last season and will look to bolster that performance this fall as RMU prepares for a full season of action.
Reid returns as the teams' overall leading scorer with four points after making all nine starts in the Red and Blue a season ago, as does the reigning Horizon League Second-Team Honoree Hayashi. All in all, the Colonials return eleven players who appeared in all nine games last year, including six who made all nine starts. Graduate keeper Courtney Worstell also returns to backstop RMU between the posts after playing 742 of 840 minutes in goal in the spring.
Worstell joins seniors Kingston, Allie Ball, Kristi Kania and Courtney Hurey as the veteran leadership core of RMU this fall.
NEW FACES
The Colonials welcome twelve newcomers to the squad for the 2021 fall campaign as freshmen Morgan Brustman, Emma Cantwell, Morgan Burnap, Ally Krieger, Kassidy Fischer, Sophia Belcastro, Emily Rocco, Kennedy Lazenby, Alyssa Bell, Morgan Guelas, and Cierra Gann all arrive in Moon Township for their freshman seasons, as does R-Junior keeper Isabella Bohlen who joins the squad after spending time at the University of Hartford.
RMU's new crop of talent includes a number of local Western Pa. natives in Cantwell (Peters Township), Rocco (Upper Saint Clair), and Bell (Hollidaysburg), while the remaining group comes to Moon Township from all different corners of the country including New Jersey, New Hampshire, Maryland, Ohio, Nevada, Oklahoma and Ontario.
SCOUTING THE RETRIEVERS
RMU will face UMBC for the 11th time in the history of the two programs. While UMBC currently holds a 7-3-0 all-time series advantage, the Colonials have won the last two times, including a 1-0 victory to open the 2018 campaign in which RMU scored with just 24 seconds left in regulation to earn the win. RMU is 2-4-0 vs. the Retrievers in Baltimore.
UMBC posted a 1-4-1 record in the spring of 2021, dropping two of those contests by just a single goal. Graduate midfielder Erin Stevenson earned America East Second Team honors in the spring season of 2021, while freshman midfielder Grace Harvey was tabbed to the league's All-Rookie Team.
SCOUTING THE MOUNT
Mount St. Mary's was tabbed to finish ninth overall in the 2021 NEC Preseason Coaches after a 2021 spring campaign that saw them finish 4-5 overall, including a 3-5 record against NEC opponents.
The Colonials own an impressive 10-3-1 lifetime record against their former NEC conference rivals, including a 5-1-1 mark in their last seven matchups dating back to 2013. RMU earned a 1-0 win in their most recent matchup back in September of 2019 courtesy of a Veloso-Lima PK goal in the 27'.
The Mount returns five players who earned All-NEC honors a year ago including graduate forward and first-team honoree Elisabeth Rockhill.
THEY SAID IT
"I'm excited about having a full season this time around after last years' shortened, impacted season. We've got a big class coming in with twelve newcomers, so we're really excited to get going with the new group and see how much we've developed." - Head Coach Chris Shaw
"It can be tough when you're coming into a new program trying to change the culture, but I really feel like the players we have here really bought into what we're trying to do. The new players have all jumped on board and are learning from their teammates, so I feel like we're moving in the right direction." - Coach Shaw
NEXT UP
The Colonials gear up for another two-game set next week when they travel to Olean, New York for a showdown with St. Bonaventure on Thursday, August 26 before returning home to the North Athletic Complex for their home opener against Valparaiso on Sunday, August 29 at 1:00 p.m.
