DOBBS FERRY, N.Y. (Sept. 24, 2021) – The Mercy College women's soccer team plays at ECC foe Roberts Wesleyan on Saturday, September 25th at 1 p.m.
Who, When and Where
Date/Time: Saturday, September 25th 1 p.m.
Records: Mercy (3-1-2, 2-0 ECC), Roberts Wesleyan (0-5-1, 0-1 ECC)
Location: Rochester, N.Y.
Last Meeting vs. Roberts Wesleyan
Mercy earned a 2-0 win over Roberts Wesleyan on November 2, 2019.
Scouting the Mavericks
Mercy is coming off a 3-1 win over St. Thomas Aquinas on Tuesday. The Mavericks were led by senior Claudia McKail, junior Dominique Bono and graduate student Nikki Bermudez who scored. Seniors Fernanda Castro and Jessica Hoyt dished out assists. Mercy has won three of the last four meetings against the Redhawks and are looking to start 3-0 in ECC play for the first time since 2018. Bermudez has a team-high three goals on the year and has been named to the ECC Honor Roll twice. 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. Bono, McKail and sophomores Kayla Camacho and Skyler Schwenkler have also scored and sophomore Madison Rosa has a team-high two assists on the year. Senior Melissa Torres is 3-1-2 in goal with 13 saves, two shutouts and a .765 save percentage. Torres was named to the ECC Honor Roll on September 13th and has a 0.66 goals against average.
Mercy is currently ranked fifth in the United Soccer Coaches East Region poll. 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 Dominique 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 Redhawks
Roberts Wesleyan is coming off a 4-0 loss at Molloy on Saturday. The Redhawks have dropped five of their first six games with a lone tie against Malone on September 9th. Roberts Wesleyan defeated the Mavericks, 1-0, on October 17, 2018 in the teams' last meeting in Rochester. The Redhawks were picked fifth in the ECC Preseason Coaches' Poll after going 10-6-3 in 2019 and 4-0-1 during the spring of 2021. Roberts Wesleyan is led by junior Olivia Grande and senior Makenzie Muoio who have both recorded a goal. Sophomore Jessica Savage has an assist and sophomore Nicolette Knauf is 0-5-1 in goal with 29 saves and a .744 save percentage.
Next Game
Mercy resumes action on Wednesday, September 29th when they host Bridgeport at 12 p.m.
