The 2025 season, College Matildas’ 12th covering the Australians in NCAA Division I, has finally arrived as over 40 Australians spread across more than 30 programs take to the pitch this year. With stars such as 2024 award winners Abbey Burns, Candice Kilderry, Lilly Bailey, and Adelaide Wyrzynski joined by a group of new players including Sydney FC duo Jasmine Black and Margaux Chauvet, the list of players to watch is reaching an almost absurd length. However, every single player has a story of their own to follow, and even though only one team can lift a national championship at the end of the season, hopefully each and every player can find personal success. Let’s get to it…
Isabella Chidiac and Denver kicked off their season against national powerhouse North Carolina in 2024, and this year it will be the turn of Iona Snape and Siena to face the Tar Heels in Week 1. The Saints will travel to Chapel Hill for their first meeting against UNC in program history, and will absolutely be playing with house money in this one. Siena are not expected to cause any upsets here, but sometimes that absence of pressure can be the perfect thing coming into such a big occasion. Taking on North Carolina in Chapel Hill is something most players outside the ACC will never get the chance to experience, so regardless of the result, this will be a moment to cherish for Snape and her teammates. However, they will be going in there to get a result, hopefully off the back of a win over Lafayette in Week 1, and even getting a draw against the defending national champions would be a confidence-booster for the Saints.
Meanwhile, across the state line in Mount Pleasant, South Carolina, Viktorija Calusic and College of Charleston will face South Carolina in their season opener in a rematch of 2024’s early season matchup. South Carolina won that match 4-1 on their home patch in Columbia, and College of Charleston will be eager for revenge. However, it won’t be easy against a Gamecocks side picked to finish 3rd in the SEC and ranked 21st in the national coaches poll. Such is the life of a mid-major though; non-conference matchups can flip wildly from being a heavy underdog one week to an unbackable favourite the next. However, the Cougars finished 11-4-5 last season and received a first-place vote in the CAA South Division preseason poll, so have every reason to be confident in their abilities.
Chantelle Symes had an outstanding spring season as starting goalkeeper for Detroit Mercy, and the Sydneysider will be looking to reprise that form as the Titans make the short trip to Ann Arbor to face Big Ten side Michigan. Already optimistic about their chances of a deep run this season, Detroit Mercy have been picked to finish 3rd in the Horizon League in 2025, and even picked up a first-place vote. Michigan have been tabbed to finish 13th in the 18-team Big Ten, but considering the level of some teams in that league, they will still be a formidable foe for the Titans. Indeed, Michigan own the all-time series 9-2, but the last match was in 2015. One feels as though Detroit Mercy are far more prepared this time around than they have been in previous seasons, and Symes could play a major part in getting the Titans a big early-season result.
Montana-Rose Currey and High Point also kick off their season against a power conference foe, hosting Virginia Tech in their season opener. Following an elite junior college career, Currey will get quite an introduction to NCAA Division I against a Hokies side ranked 14th in the nation to start the season. However, High Point have been picked to finish second in the Big South and picked up four of nine first-place votes. Regardless of how this match plays out, this will be an excellent way for the Panthers to lay down a marker, as Virginia Tech will be by far the toughest team they face in the regular season. If they get even close to a result here, they will have tangible evidence that they can hang with all 16 opponents on their schedule.
Meanwhile, there are a couple of Aussie v Aussie matchups, which is highly unsurprising given that there are now Australian players at 36 different NCAA Division I programs. Wilma Thodhlana and Saint Peter’s will head to Baltimore to take on Loyola Maryland, who feature two Aussies at starkly different points in the career to Thodhlana. Whilst the Western Australian has been named captain for Saint Peter’s this year, freshman Eva McGorian and sophomore Ava Blizzard have both yet to make their debut for Loyola Maryland. However, it is Loyola Maryland that will come into this game as favourites, having been picked to finish mid-table of the Patriot League whilst Saint Peter’s are expected to finish in the lower reaches of the MAAC. With that said, preseason rankings are often barely worth the paper they’re written on, and it remains to be seen if that is the case this season. In any event, hopefully McGorian and Blizzard each make their collegiate bow and we see some direct battles between the Australian players.
Meanwhile, should Stella Tosoni and Lilly Bailey make their debuts for their respective teams, the game between Quinnipiac and Hofstra should certainly see a direct battle between the two Australians. Bailey has transferred to Hofstra after an outstanding start to her career at Morehead State, and has battled 2024 backup Carly Travers for the starting spot. Meanwhile, Tosoni comes into her freshman season at Quinnipiac looking to make an immediate impact on the attack. These programs can both lay claim to the description of mid-major heavyweight, and this should be a game well worth watching, as Hofstra have been tipped to finish 3rd in the Coastal and Quinnipiac were picked second in the MAAC with two first-place votes.
Full Schedule
Bellarmine (Teagan Douglas)
This week: v Miami (OH) – 3:00am, Monday 18 August
Cal State Bakersfield (Georgia Martell)
This week: @ California Baptist – 12:00pm, Friday 15 August; @ San Diego St. – 12:00pm, Monday 18 August
Canisius (Chloe Tseros)
This week: v Buffalo – 8:00am, Friday 15 August
Central Michigan (Alyssa Di Campli)
This week: v Butler – 3:00am, Friday 15 August; v Loyola Chicago – 3:00am, Monday 18 August
Charleston (Viktorija Calusic)
This week: v South Carolina – 9:00am, Friday 15 August
Charleston Southern (Eve Tiktikakis)
This week: @ Syracuse – 9:00am, Friday 15 August; @ St. Bonaventure – 3:00am, Monday 18 August
Cleveland State (Sophie Abbott)
This week: v Kent St. – 9:00am, Friday 15 August; @ Southern Ind. – 4:00am, Monday 18 August
Dartmouth (Kate Ryan)
This week: No games.
Denver (Isabella Chidiac)
This week: @ Air Force – 10:00am, Friday 15 August; @ Colorado Col. – 5:00am, Monday 18 August
Detroit Mercy (Chantelle Symes)
This week: v Valparaiso – 9:00am, Friday 15 August; @ Michigan – 3:00am, Monday 18 August
East Carolina (Jenny Hill)
This week: v Liberty – 4:00am, Friday 15 August; v NC State – 9:00am, Monday 18 August
Fresno State (Shivani Battaglia)
This week: @ UC Davis – 12:00pm, Friday 15 August
Gardner-Webb (Sarah Birchall)
This week: @ Stetson – 8:00am, Friday 15 August; @ Queens (NC) – 8:00am, Monday 18 August
George Mason (Libby Davy)
This week: @ William & Mary – 9:00am, Friday 15 August
George Washington (Jasmine Black)
This week: @ American – 3:00am, Friday 15 August; @ Drexel – 3:00am, Monday 18 August
Hampton (Morgan Stanton)
This week: v Delaware St. – 8:00am, Friday 15 August; @ Howard – 5:00am, Monday 18 August
Harvard (Erin Gordon)
This week: No games.
High Point (Montana-Rose Currey)
This week: v Virginia Tech – 9:00am, Friday 15 August; @ Western Caro. – 3:00am, Monday 18 August
Hofstra (Lilly Bailey)
This week: v Saint Joseph’s – 9:00am, Friday 15 August; v Quinnipiac – 3:00am, Monday 18 August
Incarnate Word (Montanna Mathews)
This week: @ North Texas – 10:00am, Friday 15 August; v Texas St. – 10:30am, Monday 18 August
Jacksonville State (Lara Aitken)
This week: @ West Ga. – 9:00am, Friday 15 August; v North Ala. – 4:00am, Monday 18 August
Little Rock (Claudia Hewitt, Candice Kilderry, Serenity Thake)
This week: @ East Texas A&M – 10:00am, Friday 15 August; @ Ark.-Pine Bluff – 3:00am, Monday 18 August
Long Island (Izzy Stein)
This week: @ Manhattan – 7:00am, Saturday 16 August
Loyola Maryland (Eva McGorian, Ava Blizzard)
This week: @ Fla. Atlantic – 9:00am, Friday 15 August; v Saint Peter’s – 8:00am, Monday 18 August
Maine (Grace Wilson)
This week: v Rhode Island – 2:00am, Monday 18 August
Providence (Meg Roden)
This week: v Army West Point – 8:30am, Friday 15 August
Purdue (Margaux Chauvet)
This week: v Indiana St. – 9:00am, Friday 15 August; @ Ball St. – 3:00am, Monday 18 August
Quinnipiac (Stella Tosoni)
This week: @ Hofstra – 3:00am, Monday 18 August
Rider (CJ Harris, Eloise Jones)
This week: No games.
Saint Peter’s (Wilma Thodhlana)
This week: @ Drexel – 8:00am, Friday 15 August; @ Loyola Maryland – 8:00am, Monday 18 August
Seton Hall (Grace Mitchell, Sarah Mitchell)
This week: v Monmouth – 8:00am, Friday 15 August
Siena (Iona Snape)
This week: v Lafayette – 6:00am, Friday 15 August; @ North Carolina – 3:00am, Monday 18 August
Tarleton State (Charlie Shanahan, Zoe Daly, Adelaide Wyrzynski, Phoebe Riley)
This week: @ UTRGV – 9:30am, Friday 15 August; v Houston Christian – 4:00am, Monday 18 August
UAB (Abbey Burns)
This week: v UCF – 10:00am, Friday 15 August; @ ETSU – 2:00am, Monday 18 August
Youngstown State (Aimee Benton)
This week: @ Indiana – 10:00am, Friday 15 August; @ Texas Tech – 10:00am, Monday 18 August
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