Women's Soccer at Johnson & Wales
Friday, August 29 | 1 p.m. 
Scotts Miracle-Gro Athletic Complex | Providence, R.I. 

SERIES HISTORY
• The sides will meet to open the season for the fifth year in a row on Friday. 
• Babson is 1-2-1 all-time against Johnson & Wales in a series that dates back to 2021. 
• The Beavers are 0-1-1 against the Wildcats in Rhode Island, falling 2-1 in the first meeting between the two programs in 2021 and playing to a 1-1 draw in 2023.

LAST MEETING
• Sophomore Marcie Iannico scored a goal midway through the second half to give Johnson & Wales a two-goal lead and the Wildcats held on for a 3-2 victory over Babson in the season opener for both teams on August 30, 2024, at Hartwell-Rogers Field.
• Jordyn Ferrantino '25 had a part in both Babson scores with a goal and an assist and Laura Lukowicz '25 also scored her first-career goal for the Beavers. Nora Ryan '25 and senior Cleo Grignard split time in the Babson goal and each finished with one save.
• Emily DeRoehn '25 and sophomore Rowan Garr scored first-half goals for the Wildcats, and Skyla Landry '25, sophomore Kyla Leahy and junior Lulani Haslinger registered assists in the win. Leah Bragaw '25 went the distance in goal and earned the win, making four saves.

SCOUTING THE BEAVERS
• Babson (0-0-0) returns 18 players from a team that finished with an 8-7-5 overall record last fall and a 5-3-3 mark in NEWMAC play.
• The Beavers return several starters on defense, including a pair of All-NEWMAC second team selections in juniors Jadyn Mapura and Caroline Sutherland along with classmate Claudia Baiter and senior Gabby Michalski. They helped a defensive unit concede just 26 goals in 20 games, including 13 in 11 conference clashes.
• All-Conference junior Priscilla-Rose Men-Martin and sophomore Mack Feeney are key returnees in the midfield. After losing three players who accounted for 12 of the team's 23 goals last year, top returning forwards include sophomore Josie Lee (3-2-8) and senior Meredith Greeley (2-1-5).
• Senior Cleo Grignard and junior Callahan Cottone saw limited action last season but will vie to take over from last year's starter in goal Nora Ryan '25.

SCOUTING THE WILDCATS
• Johnson & Wales (0-0-0), the top seed that was upset by second-seeded Emmanuel in the GNAC Tournament final last season, finished 18-4-1 overall and 14-0-1 in conference play.
• The Wildcats, who joined the Conference of New England (CNE) this summer, returns 20 veterans to this year's team, including three All-Conference players. The team will be without two-time All-American Emily DeRoehn, who graduated after earning the GNAC Athlete of the Year honor.
• Juniors Grace Sheehan (11-3-25) and Sophia Warburton (6-11-23) were the top two scorers on last year's squad and earned second team All-Conference recognition. Sophomore Jamie Davies (8-3-19) was third on the team in scoring and captured GNAC Rookie of the Year and third team All-Conference accolades.
• Junior Ava Vaughan (0.25 GAA, .857 sv. pct) is the top returning keeper, posting a 4-0-0 record in seven appearances with four starts.

PATROLING THE SIDELINE
• Babson head coach Nellie Pineault has finished at .500 or better in 14 of her 15 seasons since taking over the program in 2010.
• Pineault enters the season with 144 career wins, which ranks third among NEWMAC coaches.

OPENING STATEMENT
• Babson is 14-6-3 in its season opener over the last 23 seasons, which includes a 4-3-3 mark going back to 2013. 
• The Beavers are looking for a win in their season debut for the first time since defeating Johnson & Wales, 3-1, in 2022.

POLL POSITION
• After advancing to the NEWMAC Tournament semifinals last year for the third straight season, Babson was picked to finish second when the NEWMAC released its preseason coaches' poll last week. 
• The Green and White outscored their opponents 15-13 in conference play last fall before being eliminated for the NEWMAC Tournament by eventual champion MIT in the semifinals, 1-0.
• Over the last three seasons, the Beavers are 20-6-6 in regular season matches against conference foes. 

BEAVER BITES
• Babson recorded five shutouts over its final 10 games of the 2024 campaign and conceded one goal or fewer eight times.
• Last year's five draws were tied for the most since 2008 along with the 2013, 2014, and 2021 squads and were just one behind the school record of six set in 2006 and matched in 2008.

NUMBERS TO KNOW
• The Beavers went 7-0-2 last fall and are 15-2-4 over the last two seasons when scoring the first goal of the game.
• The Green and White are 23-0-3 over the past three seasons when leading at halftime.
• Going back to 2021, Babson is 35-3-1 when scoring at least two goals. 
• Babson was 6-2-5 last year and is 28-4-8 over the past three seasons when holding the opponent to one goal or less.

UP NEXT
• The Beavers will return to Babson Park for the home opener against local rival Brandeis on Tuesday at Hartwell-Rogers Field at 4 p.m.