Women's Soccer vs. Johnson & Wales
Friday, August 30 | 12 p.m.
Hartwell-Rogers Field | Babson Park, Mass.
SERIES HISTORY
• Babson is 1-1-1 all-time against Johnson & Wales in a series that dates back to 2021.
• The sides will meet to open the season for the fourth year in a row on Friday.
• The Beavers won the only previous meeting at Hartwell-Rogers Field, defeating the Wildcats 3-1 back in 2022.
LAST MEETING
•
Morgan Krauss '23 M'24 opened the scoring in the 14th minute to help Babson earn a 1-1 draw against Johnson & Wales on September 1, 2023, in Cranston, R.I.
• Madison Sanborn scored the equalizer in the 63rd minute for the Wildcats, who got a pair of second-half saves from Carly McCrumb.
• Sophomore
Callahan Cottone made four first-half saves in her collegiate debut, while senior
Nora Ryan stopped six shots over the final 45 minutes for the Beavers, who were outshot 18-10 in the match.
SCOUTING THE BEAVERS
• Babson returns 22 players from a team that finished with a 12-7-3 record after making its first NCAA Tournament appearance since 2015 last fall.
• Despite losing four of its top five scorers, senior
Jordyn Ferrantino netted a career-high 11 goals and added two assists for 25 points on the way to earning all-conference and all-region honors.
• Senior
Emma Mumby scored twice and juniors
Izzy DeMatos and
Meredith Greeley added a goal apiece last fall, while senior
Elisa Diletizia produced seven goals and two assists for 16 points back in 2022.
• Senior
Laura Lukowicz, reigning NEWMAC Rookie of the Year
Jadyn Mapura and sophomore classmates
Claudia Baiter and
Caroline Sutherland all return on defense in front of Ryan (1.67 GAA, .795 save pct.) and Cottone (1.50 GAA, .793 save pct.), who split time at goalkeeper last fall.
SCOUTING THE WILDCATS
• Johnson & Wales, which finished atop the GNAC preseason poll, returns 19 players from a team that went 18-3-3 and lost in the first round of the NCAA Tournament in 2023.
• The Wildcats return their top four scorers, a group that includes third-team All-America selection Emily DeRoehn (12-3-27), who led the team in goals, and reigning conference rookie of the year Sophia Warburton (10-7-27), who was first on the squad in assists.
• Angelina Oliveira tied for the team lead with 12 goals, including six game winners, while MacKenna Renaud scored 11 times for the nation's sixth-ranked scoring offense.
• The goalkeeper duo of Leah Bragaw and Carly McCrumb combined for a 0.67 goals against average while posting 13 shutouts last fall.
POLL POSITION
• After advancing to its first conference tournament final since 2015 last November, Babson was picked to finish second when the NEWMAC released its preseason coaches' poll last week.
• The Beavers went 8-1-2 in league play last fall while recording their highest point total (26) in the NEWMAC era, which dates back to 1998.
• Over the last two seasons, the Green and White is 15-3-3 in regular season matches against conference foes.
HISTORY LESSON
• Ferrantino's 11 goals last fall were the most since Amy Festa '13 scored 11 times back in 2012.
• Mapura, who started 21 of 22 games last year, became the Beavers' first NEWMAC Rookie of the Year selection since 2011.
OPENING STATEMENT
• Babson is 14-5-3 in its season opener over the last 22 seasons, which includes a 4-2-3 mark going back to 2013.
• The Beavers are also 6-3-2 in its first home game of the year dating back to 2012.
NUMBERS TO KNOW
• The Beavers went 8-0-2 last season and are unbeaten in 18 matches over the last two seasons when leading at halftime.
• Going back to 2021, Babson is 30-2-1 when scoring at least two goals.
• Head coach
Nellie Pineault ranks third among NEWMAC head coaches with 136 career wins.
• The Green and White was 8-2-2 last year and is 29-3-2 over the last three years when scoring the first goal of the match.
UP NEXT
• The Beavers begin a stretch of four of their next five games on the road when they travel to Waltham, Mass., to take on Brandeis next Wednesday at 7 p.m.
