CU Women's Soccer Preview - (Liberty League First Round) vs. RPI (10/31)

Women's Soccer | 10/29/2023 1:00:00 PM

Back in the postseason for the second straight year, the Clarkson University Women's Soccer team is hosting a playoff game for the first time since the Liberty League formed back in 2004, as the fourth-seeded Golden Knights will take on fifth-seeded Rensselaer on Tuesday afternoon at Hantz Field.

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The Series: The Golden Knights earned their first win against the Engineers since 2009 less than two weeks ago, picking up a 2-0 victory in Troy on October 21st. It was the 11th win for the Green and Gold in the series in 40 meetings. The two teams battled to a scoreless tie in the regular-season finale of 2022 as well. The winner of the game will move on to a Friday contest at top-seeded William Smith College.

Key Stats for #4 Clarkson (11-4-2, 5-4-0 Liberty League): After Emily Davis knocked in two goals against Union on Saturday, the Golden Knights now have six players with three goals or more in 2023, the first time that Clarkson has seen that since 1999. Clarkson's 11 wins are tied for the most in program history (1992) and the .706 winning percentage for the Knights is easily the best in program history. The Green and Gold have outscored their opponents by 21 goals this year, five more than last year's record-setting figure of 16, and the 10 goals allowed by the Knights are the fewest in program history, so far one less than the team gave up in 1983, a season in which the team only played 10 games. Clarkson's strong defense is back boned by Molly DiCaprio in net, as she ranks in the top 30 nationally in goals against average (0.54) and save percentage (.886). Those figures are helped by the consistent defense of Arin Bates, Emily Colby, and Julia Tylar, who rarely leave the field and have all played over 1500 minutes this season.

Key Stats for #5 RPI (8-4-4, 3-4-2 Liberty League): The Engineers are now slouches on offense, having scored 29 goals this year, including two against one of the top-ranked defenses in the country in Ithaca College on Saturday. Senior Gwen Barnes leads the team and the conference in both goals (8) and points (19), but she has been limited to just two goals in conference contests and has been further held to only four shots in the last five games as teams hone in on her. Classmate Veronica Martinez de Pinillos has also chipped in 12 points (5-2-12) with five points in conference games and Izzy O'Clair, another senior, has also contributed five goals, as the trio has combined for more than 60% of the team's goals. Rachel Borra (2-4-8), Bryanna Swanson (3-2-8), and Haley Cole (3-1-7) add to the team's offensive firepower. Megan Wampner has seen most of the time in the RPI goal, having played 1080 minutes with a 1.08 goals against average, a .794 save percentage, and 50 saves.

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Players Mentioned

#20 Emily Colby: M; 5' 9"; Junior

#5 Emily Davis: M; 5' 7"; Sophomore

#99 Molly DiCaprio: GK; 5' 7"; Sophomore

#7 Julia Tylar: D/M; 5' 6"; Freshman

#8 Arin Bates: D/M; 5' 6"; Senior

Players Mentioned

#20 Emily Colby
: 5' 9"; Junior
: M

#5 Emily Davis
: 5' 7"; Sophomore
: M

#99 Molly DiCaprio
: 5' 7"; Sophomore
: GK

#7 Julia Tylar
: 5' 6"; Freshman
: D/M

#8 Arin Bates
: 5' 6"; Senior
: D/M