UTICA, NY - The Utica University women's soccer team is currently on a three-game winning streak entering Wednesday's matchup with Russell Sage College at 7 p.m. On Saturday, they travel to Rochester for a clash against Nazareth at 1 p.m. Utica sits first in the Empire 8 conference standings.
Last Time Out: The Utica University women's soccer team defeated Empire 8 opponent Keuka College Wolves 5-1 on Saturday afternoon. 3:51 into the match
Rylee Lamphere (Little Falls, NY/Dolgeville) scored an unassisted goal giving the Pioneers a 1-0 lead. She has now recorded at least two points over the team's last three matches, scoring four goals and dishing out one assist. Lamphere currently leads the Empire 8 through 12 matches with five goals and five assists, good for 15 points. This now puts Lamphere over her point total of eight from last season. Keuka would strike back in the seventh minute, with a goal from Grace DeCapua to even the match 1-1. Utica scored three minutes later as
Gabriela Daumont (Latham, NY/Shaker) connected with
Noella Burlette (Manchester, CT/Manchester) giving the Pioneers a 2-1 lead. At the 13th minute Lamphere struck again, scoring on an unassisted goal giving Utica a 3-1 advantage. The Pioneers went into halftime up 3-1. The second half saw plenty of ball movement for Utica. In the 18th minute,
Gabriela Daumont (Latham, NY/Shaker) would record her second goal of the season assisted by Lamphere extending Utica's lead 4-1.
Rory Richard (Barneveld, NY/Holland Patent) put the icing on the cake, scoring an unassisted goal at the 72nd minute as Utica would go on to win 5-1. Goalkeeper
Courtney Connolly (Warwick, NY/Warwick Valley) earned the win for Utica recording one save.
Karen Troche (Amsterdam, NY/Amsterdam) entered the match in the second half recording two saves in eight minutes. Overall, the Pioneers outshot the Wolves 12-4 including 11-4 shots on goal. Lamphere and Daumont combined for three goals and two assists.
Light It Up Lamphere: Rylee Lamphere (Little Falls, NY/Dolgeville) has been going off the last three matches during the team's three-game winning streak, recording nine points with four goals and one assist. Lamphere currently leads the Empire 8 through 12 matches with five goals and five assists, good for 15 points. This now puts Lamphere over her point total of eight from last season. Lamphere has 14 shots on goal with nine being off target.
Team Dominance: Utica leads the Empire 8 with 64 points. The team is responsible for 24 goals and 16 assists. The Pioneers have been very disciplined through 12 matches, committing the least amount of fouls in the Empire 8 with only 53, averaging 4.42 per game. Defensively the team has let up 12 goals in 12 matches averaging one goal against per game.
Ol' Reliable: Courtney Connolly (Warwick, NY/Warwick Valley) has continued to excel in net for the Pioneers and is in the midst of a fantastic stretch of play where she has allowed just two goals in her last four outings. The senior has recorded two shutouts during the streak and has made 14 saves on 31 shots faced over the past four matches. Connolly looks to keep playing well and help guide the Pioneers towards earning more valuable Empire 8 conference points.
Scouting Russell Sage: Sage is 5-3-2 overall and 2-1-1 in Empire 8 play. The Gators defeated Utica 1-0 in the 2022 season. The team is coming off a league loss to Houghton 1-0 on Saturday. Sage sits third in the Empire 8 with 17 goals and ranks first in goals allowed with eight. Julia Hanlon, Kennedy Jones and Gianna Viscusi lead the team with three goals each. Jones stands in first with nine points, assisting on three goals. Goalkeeper Olivia Horan has started six matches recording 25 saves and a .806 save percentage. She has registered four shutouts and posts a 4-2-2 record.
Looking At Nazareth: Nazareth is 4-3-4 overall and 3-0-1 in Empire 8 play. The team is coming off a league win against Elmira 2-0. Shannon Sgombick and Haley Glassman recorded the team's only goals. Goalkeeper Annika Monfort had one save in 90 minutes. Tatum Overton leads the Golden Flyers with five goals while Grace Lanzetta leads the way with four assists. Nazareth has a .867 team save percentage, good for first in the Empire 8. Montfort leads the conference with a .864 save percentage.
Up Next: The team travels to Nazareth on Saturday at 1 p.m.
