DOBBS FERRY, N.Y. (Oct. 4, 2021) – The Mercy College women's soccer team plays at No. 7 Southern New Hampshire on Tuesday, October 5th at 7 p.m.
Who, When and Where
Date/Time: Tuesday, October 5th 7 p.m.
Records: Mercy (5-1-2), #7 Southern N.H. (9-0)
Location: Hooksett, N.H.
Last Meeting vs. Southern N.H.
Mercy earned a 0-0 tie against the Penmen in the First Round of the NCAA Tournament on November 22, 2019. The Mavericks advanced after winning penalty kicks, 4-2.
Scouting the Mavericks
Mercy is coming off a 1-0 win over Bridgeport on Wednesday. The Mavericks were led by senior Claudia McKail who scored the game-winning goal in the 6th minute and by senior Melissa Torres who made three saves. Torres set a new school record with her 25th career shutout in the win. Mercy has not beaten Southern N.H. in regulation since 2018 and Mercy's last win against a ranked opponent came against the Penmen in 2018. The Mavericks best win against a nationally-ranked team in program history was against No. 18 Bridgeport in 2014. Graduate student Nikki Bermudez has a team-high four goals on the year and has been named to the ECC Honor Roll three times. Sophomore Skyler Schwenkler and McKail are second on the team with two goals and four points. Junior Alexa Billingham and senior Sydney Cooper both have a goal and an assist on the year. Cooper was named to the ECC Honor Roll on September 13th after scoring the game-tying goal against Adelphi on September 9th. Junior Dominique Bono and sophomore Kayla Camacho have also scored and sophomore Madison Rosa and Hoyt have a team-high two assists on the year. Senior Melissa Torres is 5-1-2 in goal with 17 saves, four shutouts and a .810 save percentage. Torres was named to the ECC Honor Roll on September 13th and has a 0.50 goals against average.
Mercy is currently ranked seventh in the United Soccer Coaches East Region poll released on September 28th. The Mavericks went 13-3-4 in 2019 and advanced to the NCAA Tournament for the third straight year. Mercy has made five NCAA Tournament appearances since 2013 and has made the ECC Tournament in seven straight seasons. The Mavericks were picked first in the ECC Preseason Coaches' Poll. Third-year Head Coach Danny Leon Jr. has 10 returners from the 2019 team and has 13 student-athletes who will see their first game action as Mavericks during the 2021 season. Leading the returners is Cooper who was named Third Team All-Region and First Team All-ECC in 2019 after recording four goals and two assists. Torres returns in goal after receiving Second Team All-Region and ECC Goalkeeper of the Year honors in 2019. Senior Fernanda Castro also returns after taking home First Team All-Region and First Team All-ECC accolades in 2019. Also returning from the 2019 team are seniors Veronica Scruggs, Hoyt, McKail and Juliana Conforti and juniors Carli LoNigro, Tyra Anderson and Billingham. Seeing their first game action as Mavericks after practicing with the team last year are Rosa, Camacho, Marlene Avalos, Schwenkler, Jennifer Silva, Toni Valadez, Alisa Jensen and Genesis Vargas. Making up the freshmen class are Kayla Saavedra, Stacy Avendano and Elizabeth Bowles. Leon Jr. also adds two transfers in Bermudez and Bono from New York Tech. Bermudez was named Second Team All-ECC and First Team All-ECAC in 2019 at New York Tech.
Scouting the Penmen
Southern N.H. is coming off a 2-1 win over Pace on Saturday and has won nine straight games to open the season. The Penmen have opened the season 9-0 for the first time since 1984 and are ranked No. 7 nationally in the latest United Soccer Coaches Poll released on September 28th. Southern N.H. was picked third in the NE10 Coaches' Poll and are led by junior Jordan Butters who has a team-high 12 points on five goals and two assists. Sophomore Alyssa Anderson is second on the team with nine points on four goals and one assist and graduate student Allyson Patterson has four goals. Sophomore Z Kaplan is 6-0 in goal with 21 saves and a .840 save percentage and senior Hannah Rose is 3-0 with five saves and a .833 save percentage.
Next Game
Mercy resumes action on Saturday, October 9th when they host Lincoln at 3 p.m.
