West Coast, Best Coast? Maybe, but we’ve also heard that East Is A Beast (thanks, Food Network) and this week we are keeping it focused on those players who make camp near the Atlantic. From Maine down to Virginia, a few players and teams enjoyed a scintillating start to conference play, with one player scoring their first collegiate goal in the process.
Izzy Stein was rarely sighted for Long Island in her freshman season, but a lot has changed in her sophomore year and the Manly United product’s upward trajectory only continued apace this week with a first collegiate goal. Although the opponent was Stonehill, the match was played at Hofstra Soccer Stadium, a venue that has been very kind to Australians over the years, and that tradition continued this week. Stonehill had taken the lead just inside the half-hour mark, but Stein responded in the 67th minute with an equaliser before the Sharks managed to find a winner with eight minutes to play. Although the Sharks would fall to Wagner in their second match of the weekend, splitting the opening games of conference play remains a solid start for a team tipped to finish 9th in the 11 team Northeast Conference.
Staying in the northeast of the country but moving to the America East conference, Lara Kirkby and Maine remain undefeated after defeating Vermont following a scarcely believable chain of events. Having already equalised just 24 seconds after halftime after conceding the opener in the 40th minute, Kirkby and Maine found themselves trailing once again late in the game following a 77th minute goal from Vermont. However, an 88th minute goal looked as though it would earn the Black Bears a share of the points. However, that idea last all of 16 seconds, as Maine secured all three points courtesy of an absolutely sumptuous ball that split the defenders and put Jordane Pinette through on goal for the winner. Kirkby tallied a shot on target in her 73 minutes on the pitch as the South Australian continues to keep herself in the conversation for College Matildas Breakout Player of the Year.
Meanwhile, the conference schedule couldn’t have started much better for Greta Kraszula and VCU. The Young Matildas representative was heavily involved throughout the weekend as the Rams picked up wins against a pair of in-state rivals. Facing Richmond in their first game of the weekend, VCU dominated throughout, outshooting the Spiders 21-2 as their opponents failed to put a shot on target. It did take until the 77th minute for the Rams to break through for their only goal, but when the opposition fail to test the goalkeeper, one goal is enough. The Rams found those missing goals against George Mason later in the week, scoring the opener inside the first ten minutes before adding four more in an 18-minute stretch commencing just after the hour mark for a dominant 5-0 win. Kraszula played the full 90 minutes in the win over Richmond, and tallied one of VCU’s 18 shots in a 79-minute outing against George Mason.
Finally, there was good news at UMBC even if the Retrievers could only split the points in a 2-2 draw with Bryant. Annie Grove had not played a minute since being forced off just nine minutes in against Towson on August 31, but returned to play 23 minutes off the bench in the team’s only game of the week, which is hopefully a precursor to a return to her role as a starter.
Complete Results
Alabama State (Madison Chambers, Grace Norbury)
This week: lost 1-0 to Jacksonville St.
Grace Norbury played the full 90 minutes in Alabama State’s loss to Jacksonville State, but Madison Chambers did not feature for the Hornets.
Bellarmine (Teagan Douglas)
This week: lost 2-1 to Austin Peay; lost 2-0 to Lipscomb
Teagan Douglas started both games for Bellarmine this week, playing the full 90 minutes against Austin Peay and 71 minutes in the loss to Lipscomb.
Butler (Claire Farrington)
This week: defeated Ball St. 4-0
Claire Farrington played the full 90 minutes in Butler’s win over Ball State, registering two shots.
Coastal Carolina (Asha McClurg)
This week: lost 1-0 to Old Dominion
Asha McClurg did not feature in Coastal Carolina’s loss to Old Dominion.
Dartmouth (Kate Ryan)
This week: drew 1-1 with UMass Lowell
Kate Ryan did not feature in Dartmouth’s draw with UMass Lowell.
Denver (Isabella Chidiac)
This week: lost 3-1 to Colorado
Isabella Chidiac came off the bench for Denver in their loss to Colorado, playing 23 minutes.
Eastern Kentucky (Sophie MacAlpine)
This week: lost 1-0 to Lipscomb; defeated Austin Peay 1-0
Sophie MacAlpine did not feature for Eastern Kentucky on either occasion this week.
Grambling State (Aimee Benton)
This week: lost 1-0 to ULM
Aimee Benton did not feature in Grambling State’s loss to Louisiana-Monroe.
Hawai’i (Eliza Ammendolia)
This week: defeated CSUN 2-1
Eliza Ammendolia started for Hawai’i in their win over Cal State Northridge, playing 47 minutes.
High Point (Meg Roden)
This week: drew 2-2 with NC State
Meg Roden came off the bench in High Point’s draw with NC State, playing 45 minutes.
Illinois (Isabel Rolley)
This week: drew 1-1 with Iowa
Isabel Rolley came off the bench in Illinois’ draw with Iowa, playing a 4-minute cameo late in the first half.
La Salle (Courtney Butlion)
This week: lost 4-0 to Saint Louis
Courtney Butlion started in La Salle’s loss to Saint Louis, playing 53 minutes.
Little Rock (Cameron Barreiro, Emily Jensen, Candice Kilderry, Bronte Peel)
This week: defeated Louisiana Tech 2-1; lost 1-0 to Morehead St.
Bronte Peel and Emily Jensen each started on both occasions this week. Jensen registered two shots in 73 minutes against Louisiana Tech and another shot in a full-game outing against Morehead State, whilst Peel played 70 minutes against Louisiana Tech and 64 minutes against Morehead State. Cameron Barreiro came off the bench to play 28 minutes against Louisiana Tech and 10 minutes in the loss to Morehead State, whilst Candice Kilderry came off the bench to play 31 minutes in the win over Louisiana Tech and 41 minutes in the loss to Morehead State.
Long Island (Matilda Boyle, Isabella Stein)
This week: defeated Stonehill 2-1; lost 2-0 to Wagner
Izzy Stein started against Stonehill, scoring her first collegiate goal as part of a 53-minute outing before coming off the bench to play 63 minutes in the loss to Wagner, tallying a shot in the process. Matilda Boyle came off the bench to play 10 minutes against Stonehill but did not feature in the loss to Wagner.
Louisiana (Emma Bates)
This week: lost 3-0 to Texas St.
Emma Bates started in Louisiana’s loss to Texas State, notching a shot on target in her 49 minutes.
Maine (Lara Kirkby)
This week: defeated Vermont 3-2
Lara Kirkby started in Maine’s win over Vermont, tallying a shot on target in 73 minutes of action.
Massachusetts (Hannah Peric)
This week: defeated George Washington 2-0; lost 1-0 to Dayton
Hannah Peric started both games for Massachusetts this week, playing 66 minutes in the win over George Washington and tallying a shot in a 90-minute outing against Dayton.
Morehead State (Natasha Tanner)
This week: drew 2-2 with UNC Asheville; defeated Little Rock 1-0
Natasha Tanner came off the bench to play 22 minutes in Morehead State’s draw with UNC Asheville, but did not feature in the win over Little Rock.
Northwestern State (Caitlin Le Roux)
This week: defeated Southeastern La. 1-0
Caitlin Le Roux started in Northwestern State’s win over Southeastern Louisiana, playing 69 minutes and tallying a shot in the process.
Oral Roberts (Layla Lopez)
This week: defeated Tarleton St. 4-0
Layla Lopez did not feature in Oral Roberts’ win over Tarleton State.
Oregon State (Katie Godden)
This week: drew 0-0 with Montana
Katie Godden started in Oregon State’s draw with Montana, playing 23 minutes.
Pacific (Libby Davy)
This week: defeated Fresno St. 3-0; lost 3-1 to Cal Poly
Libby Davy played the full 90 minutes for Pacific on both occasions this week, making four saves in each game.
Rider (Eloise Jones)
This week: defeated Siena 1-0
Eloise Jones did not feature in Rider’s win over Siena.
Santa Clara (Holly Furphy)
This week: lost 1-0 to Stanford
Holly Furphy came off the bench in Santa Clara’s loss to Stanford, playing a seven-minute cameo.
Siena (Iona Snape)
This week: lost 1-0 to Rider
Iona Snape started for Siena in their loss to Rider, tallying two shots with one on target in 84 minutes of action.
Southern Illinois (Chantelle Symes)
This week: lost 1-0 to UIC
Chantelle Symes played the full 90 minutes in Southern Illinois’ loss to Illinois-Chicago, making two saves.
Texas A&M-Corpus Christi (Molly Arens)
This week: drew 1-1 with UTRGV; lost 3-2 to Tex. A&M-Commerce
Molly Arens started both games for Texas A&M-Corpus Christi this week, tallying a shot on target in 68 minutes against UTRGV and registering another shot in an hour of play against Texas A&M-Commerce.
UAB (Abbey Burns)
This week: drew 0-0 with Charlotte
Abbey Burns played the full 90 minutes in UAB’s draw with Charlotte, tallying a shot in the process.
UMBC (Isobel Davy, Annaliese Grove)
This week: drew 2-2 with Bryant
Isobel Davy did not feature in UMBC’s draw with Bryant, whilst Annie Grove came off the bench to play 23 minutes in her first appearance since being forced off against Towson on August 31.
UNC Asheville (Jasmine Barry)
This week: drew 2-2 with Morehead St.
Jasmine Barry started for UNC Asheville in their draw with Morehead State, playing 64 minutes.
USC (Talia Grossman)
This week: defeated New Mexico St. 3-0
Talia Grossman did not feature in USC’s win over New Mexico State.
VCU (Greta Kraszula)
This week: defeated Richmond 1-0; defeated George Mason 5-0
Greta Kraszula started both games for VCU this week, playing the full 90 minutes against Richmond and tallying a shot in 79 minutes in the win over George Mason.
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