PRINCE ATHLETIC COMPLEX – No. 6 University of Rochester women’s soccer earned an at-large bid to the NCAA Division III Women’s Soccer Tournament and will host a regional pod featuring No. 24 Misericordia, No. 25 Wesleyan (CT), and Penn St. Behrend on Nov. 10-11 at Edwin Fauver Stadium.
Rochester will face Allegheny Mountain Collegiate Conference (AMCC) champion Penn St. Behrend (13-4-2, 8-0-1 AMCC) in their opening-round matchup, with 24th-ranked Misericordia and 25th-ranked Wesleyan (CT) squaring off in the other regional contest at Fauver Stadium.
The Yellowjackets will be making their first NCAA Tournament appearance under Head Coach Ashley Van Vechten and their first since 2018 after finishing second in the University Athletic Association (UAA) this season, their best conference finish since 2009.
The sixth-ranked ‘Jackets wrapped up their first undefeated regular season in program history with a 2-1 win over Emory on Saturday, capping off a regular season that saw multiple wins over ranked foes, including an upset of then-No. 1 Washington University in St. Louis on Oct. 29. UR finished the regular season at 12-0-5 (3-0-4 UAA), just a point shy of UAA Champion WashU in the conference standings.
Offensively, Rochester is led by one of the best goal-scorers in the country, Claire Grover, who led the UAA and ranks 36th in Division III with 15 goals, as well as 50th in Division III with 34 points.
Grover is one of seven Yellowjackets with two-plus goals on the season, with Natalie Kocsis and Lauren Blanch’s four goals good for the second-most on the team. Grover also leads UR in shots with 46 (26 on goal), while Mia McGinty leads the Yellowjackets in the assist department with five, including a program record three in a single game earlier this year vs. Alfred on Sept. 7.
As a team, the Yellowjackets averaged more than two goals per game (2.29) on 15.1 shots per game, and have tallied 39 goals, 256 shots and 79 corner kicks this year.
Defensively, the ‘Jackets have been one of the best defensive units in the country, having allowed just nine goals on 118 shots all season. UR ranks 27th in Division III with a 0.529 goals against average and 42nd in DIII with a 0.864 save percentage.
Individually, Grace Kuropatkin started all 17 games in goal for Rochester, playing nearly 1,500 minutes while facing 113 shots and making 54 saves. The junior allowed just eight goals all season, a 0.489 goals against average that ranks 17th in the country, while Kuropatkin’s eight shutouts rank 28th and her 0.871 save percentage ranks 37th.
All-time, Rochester is 3-0 vs. Penn St. Behrend, having last beaten the Lions in the SUNY Fredonia Clarion Classic, 5-1, on Sept. 10, 2010 in Fredonia, NY. The Yellowjackets are 1-0 vs. Misericordia, having beaten the Cougars, 2-0, in their lone matchup on Nov. 11, 2006, in the first round of the 2006 NCAA Tournament, while UR has never faced Wesleyan (CT).
The Lions entered the AMCC Championship as the No. 1 seed and captured the conference title in penalty kicks over Pitt. Greensburg, 3-0, after defeating Mt. Aloysius, 4-0, in their opening-round contest. Penn St. Behrend is one of the highest-scoring teams in the country, ranking in the top 10 of Division III in goals (80), assists (56) and total points (216) and averaging more than four goals per game.
Offensively, the Lions are led by Trinity Prestash and Audra Kuzma, who’ve scored 14 and 10 goals each, while Rachel Sickeri’s tallied a team-high 10 assists. Prestash also leads Behrend with 78 shots (33 on goal), while Riley Morningstar has allowed just 15 goals, making 59 saves over 17 games started in goal.
Misericordia comes into the NCAA Tournament with a 15-3-1 (7-0 MAC Freedom) record, ranked 24th in the latest United Soccer Coaches’ Poll. The Cougars won the MAC Freedom title with overtime wins over DeSales University and Stevens after going undefeated in conference play.
Three different Cougars have scored 10+ goals, led by Emma Sweitzer’s 16 tallies. Sweitzer also leads Misericordia with seven assists and 71 shots, while as a team, the Cougars’ 63 goals and 21.79 shots per game led the MAC Freedom and ranked 18th and 22nd in the country, respectively.
Defensively, Lauren Mondor started 16 of 19 games in goal for the Cougars, allowing 12 goals (0.87 goals against average), facing 82 shots and making 34 saves.
Wesleyan (CT) earned an at-large berth to the NCAA Tournament after falling to No. 1-seeded Amherst in the New England Small Collegiate Athletic Conference (NESCAC) Tournament Semifinals, 1-0. The Cardinals went 7-4-6 (3-2-5 NESCAC) this season, finishing fourth in the NESCAC.
The Cardinals are led by Waverly Meyers and Katie O’Connell, each of whom has scored five goals this season, as well as Audrey Lavey, who leads Wesleyan (CT) with six assists. As a team, the Cardinals scored 28 goals on 241 shots (121 on goal) this season, while allowing just 12 scores.
In goal, three different keepers saw action for the Cardinals, led by Molly Brumbach, who appeared in 11 games, making 13 starts for Wesleyan, tallying 71 saves on 125 shots faced.
The 6th-ranked Yellowjackets will face Penn St. Behrend in the first round of the NCAA Division III Tournament on Saturday, Nov. 11 at 4:30 p.m. at Edwin Fauver Stadium, with the matchup between No. 24 Misericordia and No. 25 Wesleyan (CT) to follow at 7:00 p.m., and Sunday’s regional final scheduled for 5:00 p.m.
All games will have live online statistics available and will be streamed online via UR Athletics All-Access free of charge. For those fans attending in person, tickets are $6 for adults, $3 for seniors and students, $2 for children aged 3-12 with children 2 years and under being admitted free. University of Rochester students will be admitted free of charge after showing their student ID at the gate, courtesy of UR Student Activities.
u of r plays first round at home this weekend recap from website below
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